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<b>January 29, 2011<br><br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=4>The Torture Career of Egypt's New Vice
President: Omar Suleiman and the Rendition to Torture Program<br><br>
</b></font><font face="Verdana" size=2><i>By Stephen Soldz<br><br>
</i>In response to the mass protests of recent days, Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak has appointed his first Vice President in his over 30 years
rule, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman. <br><br>
When Suleiman was first announced, <i>Aljazeera</i> commentators were
describing him as a "distinguished" and "respected "
man. It turns out, however, that he is distinguished for, among other
things, his central role in Egyptian torture and in the US rendition to
torture program. Further, he is "respected" by US officials for
his cooperation with their torture plans, among other
initiatives.<br><br>
Katherine Hawkins,
<a href="http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=824785">an
expert</a> on the US's rendition to torture program, in an email, has
sent some critical texts where Suleiman pops up. Thus, Jane Mayer, in
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Side-Inside-Terror-American/dp/0385526393/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1296347655&sr=8-1">
<i>The Dark Side</a></i>, pointed to Suleiman's role in the rendition
program:<br><br>
</font>
<dl>
<dd>Each rendition was authorized at the very top levels of both
governments....The long-serving chief of the Egyptian central
intelligence agency, Omar Suleiman, negotiated
directly with top Agency officials. [Former U.S. Ambassador to
Egypt] Walker described the Egyptian counterpart, Suleiman, as "very
bright, very realistic," adding that he was cognizant that there was
a downside to "some of the negative things that the Egyptians
engaged in, of torture and so on. But he was not squeamish, by the
way" (pp. 113).<br><br>
</dl>Stephen Grey, in
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Plane-Rendition-Torture-Program/dp/B002ECEUSU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1296350988&sr=1-1">
Ghost Plane</a></i>, his investigative work on the rendition program also
points to Suleiman as central in the rendition program:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>To negotiate these assurances [that the Egyptians wouldn't
"torture" the prisoner delivered for torture] the CIA dealt
principally in Egypt through Omar Suleiman, the chief of the Egyptian
general intelligence service (EGIS) since 1993. It was he who arranged
the meetings with the Egyptian interior ministry.... Suleiman, who
understood English well, was an urbane and sophisticated man. Others told
me that for years Suleiman was America's chief interlocutor with the
Egyptian regime -- the main channel to President Hosni Mubarak himself,
even on matters far removed from intelligence and security.<br><br>
</dl>Suleiman's role in the rendition program was also highlighted in a
<a href="http://cablesearch.org/cable/view.php?id=05CAIRO5924&hl=EGIS">
Wikileaks
</a></i>
<a href="http://cablesearch.org/cable/view.php?id=05CAIRO5924&hl=EGIS">
cable</a>:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>the context of the close and sustained cooperation between the USG
and GOE on counterterrorism, Post believes that the written GOE
assurances regarding the return of three Egyptians detained at Guantanamo
(reftel) represent the firm commitment of the GOE to adhere to the
requested principles. These assurances were passed directly from Egyptian
General Intelligence Service (EGIS) Chief Soliman through liaison
channels -- the most effective communication path on this issue. General
Soliman's word is the GOE's guarantee, and the GOE's track record of
cooperation on CT issues lends further support to this assessment. End
summary.<br><br>
</dl>Suleiman wasn't just the go-to bureaucrat for when the Americans
wanted to arrange a little torture. This "urbane and sophisticated
man" apparently enjoyed a little rough stuff himself.<br><br>
Shortly after 9/11, Australian citizen Mamdouh Habib was captured by
Pakistani security forces and, under US pressure, torture by Pakistanis.
He was then rendered (with an Australian diplomats watching) by CIA
operatives to Egypt, a not uncommon practice. In Egypt, Habib merited
Suleiman's personal attention. As related by
<a href="http://www.homepagedaily.com/Pages/article7178-the-torturers-apprentice.aspx">
Richard Neville</a>, based on Habib's memoir:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>Habib was interrogated by the country's Intelligence Director,
General Omar Suleiman.... Suleiman took a personal interest in anyone
suspected of links with Al Qaeda. As Habib had visited Afghanistan
shortly before 9/11, he was under suspicion. Habib was repeatedly
zapped with high-voltage electricity, immersed in water up to his
nostrils, beaten, his fingers were broken and he was hung from metal
hooks.<br><br>
</dl>That treatment wasn't enough for Suleiman, so:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>To loosen Habib's tongue, Suleiman ordered a guard to murder a
gruesomely shackled Turkistan prisoner in front of Habib -" and he
did, with a vicious karate kick.<br><br>
</dl>After Suleiman's men extracted Habib's confession, he was
transferred back to US custody, where he eventually was imprisoned at
Guantanamo. His "confession" was then used as evidence in his
Guantanamo trial.<br><br>
The Washington Pos</i>t's intelligence correspondent Jeff Stein reported
<a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2011/01/egypts_spy_chief_stands_in_the.html">
some additional details</a> regarding Suleiman and his important role in
the old Egypt the demonstrators are trying to leave behind:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>"Suleiman is seen by some analysts as a possible successor to
the president," the Voice of American
<a href="http://www.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Despite-Curfew-Egypt-Protests-Escalate-114807289.html">
said</a> Friday. "He earned international respect for his role as a
mediator in Middle East affairs and for curbing Islamic
extremism."<br><br>
<dd>An editorialist at Pakistan's "International News"
<a href="http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=27859&Cat=9">
predicted</a> Thursday that "Suleiman will probably scupper his
boss's plans [to install his son], even if the aspiring intelligence guru
himself is as young as 75."<br><br>
<dd>Suleiman graduated from Egypt's prestigious Military Academy but also
received training in the Soviet Union. Under his guidance, Egyptian
intelligence has worked hand-in-glove with the CIA's counterterrorism
programs, most notably in the 2003 rendition from Italy of an al-Qaeda
suspect known as
<a href="http://voices.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2010/10/italian_prosecutor_wants_stiff.html">
Abu Omar</a>.<br><br>
<dd>In 2009, <a href="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/">Foreign Policy</a>
magazine
<a href="http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2009/07/20/the_list_the_middle_easts_most_powerful_spies">
ranked</a> Suleiman as the Middle East's most powerful intelligence
chief, ahead of Mossad chief Meir Dagan.<br><br>
<dd>In an observation that may turn out to be ironic, the magazine wrote,
"More than from any other single factor, Suleiman's influence stems
from his unswerving loyalty to Mubarak."<br><br>
</dl>If Suleiman succeeds Mubarak and retains power, we will likely be
treated to plaudits for his distinguished credentials from government
officials and US pundits. We should remember that what they really
mean is his ability to brutalize and torture. As Stephen Grey puts
it:<br><br>
<dl>
<dd>But in secret, men like Omar Suleiman, the country's most powerful
spy and secret politician, did our work, the sort of work that Western
countries have no appetite to do ourselves.<br><br>
</dl>If Suleiman receives praise in the US, it will be because our
leaders know that he's the sort of leader who can be counted on to do
what it takes to restore order and ensure that Egypt remains friendly to
US interests.<br><br>
There are some signs, however, that the Obama administration may not
accept Suleiman's appointment. Today they criticized the rearrangement of
the chairs in Egypt's government. If so, that will be a welcome sign that
the Obama administration may have some limits beyond which it is hesitant
to go in aligning with our most brutal "friends."<br><br>
We sure hope that the Egyptian demonstrators reject the farce of
Suleiman's appointment and push on to a complete change of regime.
Otherwise the Egyptian torture chamber will undoubtedly return, as a new
regime reestablishes "stability" and serves US
interests.<br><br>
<br><br>
<br>
Author's Bio: Stephen Soldz is psychoanalyst, psychologist, public health
researcher, and faculty member at the
<a href="http://www.bgsp.edu/">Boston Graduate School of
Psychoanalysis</a>. He is co-founder of the Coalition for an Ethical
Psychology and is President of <a href="http://psysr.org/">Psychologists
for Social Responsibility</a>. He was a psychological consultant on two
of the Guantanamo trials. Currently he maintains the
<a href="http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/">Psyche, Science, and
Society</a> blog. <br><br>
<br><br>
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