Mehdi Hasan

Mehdi Hasan’s polemical take on politics, economics and foreign affairs

The truth about Egypt

The US and the UK have backed and funded Hosni Mubarak's corrupt, tawdry dictatorship for far too long.

By Mehdi Hasan Published 28 January 2011 16:00

As the protests escalate across Egypt, I have a simple question: on which side are the US and UK governments? The side of the protesters, fighting for their democratic rights and freedoms, or the side of the ageing, corrupt dictator, Hosni Mubarak, and his secret police? The US and UK governments, aided and abetted by the US and UK media, might like us to believe that it is the former, rather than the latter.

But the reality is that Mubarak is in power in Cairo with the west's blessing, approval, support, sponsorship, funding and arms. Democrat and Republican presidents as well as Labour and Conservative prime ministers have all cosied up to Egypt's "secular" tyrant, a self-proclaimed but ineffective bulwark against "Islamic extremism", since he assumed the presidency in 1981.

Mubarak might be a son of a bitch but, as the saying goes, he is very much OUR son of a bitch. Some facts to consider:

* Egypt is the one of the biggest recipients of US economic and development assistance -- $28bn since 1975, according to USAid. Only Israel, Pakistan and Afghanistan have received more cash.

* Egypt is the second-biggest recipient (behind Israel) of US military aid -- over $1.3bn a year.

* The US State Department describes Egypt as "a strong military and strategic partner of the United States".

* According to the Federation of American Scientists' Arms Sales Monitoring Project, "The United States sells Egypt a large amount of military equipment and a significant number of small arms; such weaponry is both likely to be used for internal security and difficult to track once sold."

* This is what President Obama said about the despotic ruler of Egypt in August 2009:

I am grateful to President Mubarak for his visit, for his willingness to work with us on these critical issues, and to help advance the interest of peace and prosperity around the world.

Obama described Mubarak as a "leader and a counselor and a friend to the United States".

* This is what President Bush, that great neoconservative crusader for freedom and democracy in the Middle East, said about Mubarak in April 2004:

I'm pleased to welcome my friend, Hosni Mubarak, to my home. Welcome. I always look forward to visiting with him, and I look forward to hearing his wise counsel . . . Egypt is a strategic partner of the United States and we value President Mubarak's years of effort on behalf of the peace and stability of the Middle East.

* It's not just the dastardly Yanks who have been playing footsie with Mubarak, his torturers and his secret police. According to the UK's Foreign Office, "The British and Egyptian governments have a strong relationship and share mutual objectives."

* The UK is the largest foreign investor in Egypt.

* Tony Blair, that other great neoconservative crusader for freedom and democracy in the Middle East, visited Egypt with his family on holiday on several occasions, had countless meetings with Mubarak, but never chastised him in the manner that he now chastises, say, the Iranians. Shamefully, Blair, while in office as prime minister of the United Kingdom, allowed Mubarak to pay for his family's luxury holiday at the Red Sea resort of Sham-el-Sheikh in December 2001. Was he worried, I wonder, about the freedom and human rights of political prisoners languishing in Egyptian prisons while he sunned himself in his holiday villa, as a guest of Mubarak's dictatorship?

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Tags: Protest Egypt human rights George W Bush Barack Obama Tony Blair

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128 comments

Fri, 2011-01-28 21:20 — Jordan and Zara (not verified)

"It's better to die on your feet than to be crawling on your knees"
People refuse to be slaves even if that means they have to die crawling on their knees.
Yeah he's not Saddam...but he respects and praises mass genocide in Palestine...
ALL the egyptian's want is to overthrow a corrupt government that has shamed us by supporting and aiding the zionists.
It's about having the right principles and values and respecting them. Fair enough unfortunately people will loose their lives but that's because they have bigger values. One example is the Iranian revolution....many lost their lives however the revolution took place. It's like saying...lets support mass murder because we are scared ....quiet pathetic really.
Also Iran does not support Israel.. nothing has happened to them... and if it does most people are ready and will support it..
as much as people biggup Israel...if everyone gets together they are nothing.
its not fair, their getting punished for standing up for themselves. They dont deserve it...for this NOT to happen the goverment need to listen to them rather than ignore them, who knows, it could improve them AND their country...
Hilary Clinton is talking about Democracy and Human rights....how funny.
This conveys what mubarak's put Egypt through is unthinkable.
All these people want is freedom and prosperity, we should help support that they should recieve their basic human rights... MUBARAK NEEDS TO LEARN WHAT THE WORD DEMOCRACY MEANS!!! we hope Egypt get revolution against their IDIOTIC dictator.

Mon, 2011-01-31 20:36 — andyg (not verified)

Arab, Egyption etc etc. These are human beings simply trying to get along from day to day. The internet helps them to talk over distance just as it does for you and I. After 30 years suddenly just as Tunisia erupts so does Egypt. The only connection is the internet, don't you think that governments are aware of this powerful tool also? The capitalist agenda constantly requires new markets in times of recession. As for a people ruler, the West certainly will not decide who that is but will certainly decide how they rule. It's simply the game of monopoly on the world stage. The next stage is the same as always, "The world is overpopulated especially in Africa".
And then it all starts over again.

Fri, 2011-01-28 21:35 — Dave C (not verified)

Buckskins wrote, "Because Nasser and Co had an agenda."

So his agenda was to make his citizens, who nearly all speak Arabic but none of whom were actually Arabs, think they were Arabs?

The CIA World Factbook is always useful: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/eg.html

Sun, 2011-01-30 04:06 — dillon (not verified)

so when your mates the muslim brotherhood take over the goverment of egypt medhi hassan,what will be your message to the coptic christians already under a barrage christianaphobia and murder and oppression by your fellow muslim brothers,,come on medhi hassan answer that,,umm you wont.

Sun, 2011-01-30 04:20 — Nixon is Lord (not verified)

"Aging strongman"? Is there a youthing strongman, or anyone else who's youthing, for that matter?
The idea that these people are going to end up better off than they were before is ludicrous; unless they curb their population growth and stay away from fundamentalists, they're going to end up being even poorer, more crowded and corrupt than before-and they (or at least "activists" here in the West)will still blamed the US and the UK for their new and even worse situation.
A nation that can't feed what it breeds is a failure.

Fri, 2011-01-28 22:04 — Daniele1

Here you are again Buckskin talking through your bum hole.
Egyptians not Arabs? Well I went there and they all seemed Arab to me. they speak Arabic , are Muslims and describe themselves as Arabs. But hey! what do they know?They should have asked you first.
Are you thinking of the Copts, the descendants of the Ancient Egyptians who for a while remained distinct from the new Arab population and who were mostly Christians?
Well there are very few of them left as they have mostly mixed with the invading Arabs. So no, the Egyptians ARE an Arab nation.

Fri, 2011-01-28 22:09 — Dave C (not verified)

Bucky baby, You made the assertion that "Egyptians are not Arabs."

What's your definition of an Arab that somehow excludes Egyptians?

Just to help you along, here's the Oxford Dictionary definition: "a member of a Semitic people, originally from the Arabian peninsula and neighbouring territories, inhabiting much of the Middle East and North Africa."

http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0036800#m_en_gb0036800

Fri, 2011-01-28 22:38 — Mostafa Mahmoud (not verified)

Mr. Buckskins is right.

We Egyptians are a Nordic people and I am campaigning for Swedish to be our official language.

Thu, 2011-02-03 23:28 — Lou (not verified)

Disturbed to see Senator McCain in calling for Mubarak to step down - a good call - go on to say 'this virus is spreading across the Middle East'

Fri, 2011-01-28 22:44 — Oliver Twist (not verified)

Why is it that all of these Islamic countries are hideously unsuccessful ?

Is there a successful Islamic state anywhere on earth ???

Mon, 2011-01-31 23:23 — l.jung (not verified)

we all die . clean your house

Sun, 2011-01-30 11:42 — EnragedBrit (not verified)

Danielle - I am amazed by your last two sentences -"When the Normans invaded England, they happily "socialised" with the female population. Does that make the people with Gallic DNA in England French? Don't be daft!"
Don't you see that you are making my point for me?
The Egyptians were conquered by the Arabs just as the English were conquered by the Normans.The English are English, not Normans and the Egyptians are still Egyptians - not Arabs.
You appeaer to have no grasp of reality. Take in what muqqafa says - you might actually learn something.

Homo Sapiens - The "logic" you are refering to is not mine. It belongs to Danielle and as anyone can see, it is not logic at all.

Fri, 2011-01-28 23:51 — thinkov

Egypt ....a lost customer ,how are we ever gong to get out of this recession now?

Sun, 2011-01-30 12:40 — Daniele1

You deliberately misunderstand my point Enraged moron, or you are stupid.
My point is your personal DNA doesn't really matter. It is how you feel that matters.
Which culture you identify with, is what matter, not who your ascendants bred with.
If some Egyptians do not feel Arab but identify with the Copts or other groups of people, that's fine but please don't tell other people what they are or should be.
otherwise we are going to have to test everybody's DNA and tell them they have no right to call themselves English or German or whatever. Hang on.. they tried that in Germany and they didn't even know how to test people's DNA.That wasn't a great success as I recall.

Tue, 2011-02-01 02:51 — JoeChuckles87 (not verified)

When will Algeria topple I wonder?

HORRIFYING human rights abuses :((

Fri, 2011-02-04 06:00 — stuart (not verified)

be in no doubt,if president mubarack is forced to step down before his term finishes in september there will be chaos and mayhem,then waiting in the wings are the dark forces of the muslim brotherhood who by the way had links to the nazis in world war 2..think on what you wish for..

Fri, 2011-02-04 10:18 — Des Demona (not verified)

@ Stuart
Of course no one sensible wants Egypt to slide into an Islamic theocracy rather than a secular state but if we believe in democracy then if that is what the people vote for then that is what they should get. Fortunately I don't think the vast majority of the people of Egypt will want to give up their secular freedoms. They want a fairer government with less corruption and cronyism,not an Iranian style theocracy or Saudi Monarchy.
As for the Muslim brotherhood? Well, I'm no fan and they may have had links with the Nazis but then again so did the Finns,the Italians and a host of others. Perhaps time to let bygones be bygones on that one? lol

Sat, 2011-01-29 01:35 — Daniele1

Buckskin:
Coming from you that is a complement.Thanks!!
You are a charmer you are!
The ancient Egyptians are no more, the new ones are ARAB! Deal with it!
Going back to what is happening in Egypt, the danger is that they turn away from democracy when they know that the Western democracies have been supporting and arming their tyrant. Why would they go for that? the danger is that "the Muslim brotherhood" takes advantage of the situation and takes over the revolution which would be a catastrophe for the Egyptians.
By forever keeping the dictators in power, the West is pushing their victims into the arms of the religious extremists. It happened in Iran and might happen now in all those countries which are now trying to free themselves from tyranny.They will then swap one tyranny for another, which will be tragic.

Sat, 2011-01-29 01:48 — a7a (not verified)

Most of u ppl if not all chat crap!! U all chat as if u know the country's history inside out!!

Yes egyptians r arabs and r africans!!!

Give me 1 country that has democracy where wat the ppl want happens?!! Cut the bullshit democracy is just a word that is commonly used in today's society!!

Might I add that the uk exports the majority of its natural gas from russia!! So if they decide to cut that what will happen!! And also america exports more oil than the all of the other countries in the world put together if the opec countries decide to stop exportin what will happen!!

So stop with the bullshit that most of u guys r writing!!!

Sat, 2011-02-05 13:14 — Reginald-Fah-fah

Excellent Mehdi....great seeing you doing the paper review on sunrise!!!

Sun, 2011-01-30 14:22 — EnragedBrit (not verified)

Right - so if a Zulu feels he is an Eskimo then that's what he is, in your opinion. Everyone else, however, can see he is one totally deluded Zulu!
And you call me a moron! You are completely clueless!

Sun, 2011-01-30 15:46 — Daniele1

EnragedBrit:
That is what I thought first time: you are stupid.

Sat, 2011-01-29 09:18 — Luddite (not verified)

He's hoping the long suffering Egyptian people can overthrow, President Mubarak and his corrupt nepotistic government. But call me a cynic, but somehow i can't see a western-style democratic and tolerant society rising from Mubarak demise.

Tue, 2011-02-01 11:07 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

tawdry dictatorship in Egypt! .. what about about the twadry moderator dictatorship at the NS? its just the same pattern of behaviour.

Sun, 2011-01-30 17:53 — Stuart Eels (not verified)

Daniele,

Keep it up, you've got EnragedBrit tripping over his ridiculous rubbish!

We should be very worried about the situation right across Northern Africa, how the yanks will react and what our gung-ho leaders will pledge to back them up on because of "the special relationship" that doesn't really exist.

Sat, 2011-01-29 11:08 — Chris (not verified)

The one argument in favour of Mubarak seems to be that he's kept the fundamentalists out of power. But that's about it. I agree with Daniele and Luddite's comments above. It would be great to see an elected democratic government in Egypt, but I don't think it's going to happen. Hope I'm wrong.

Sun, 2011-01-30 19:13 — Villan (not verified)

I suppose Mr Hassan would prefer it if the shadowy Muslim brotherhood were to take power, with all that that might mean for security in the middle east and beyond?

Sat, 2011-01-29 12:12 — David Vinter (not verified)

The real trouble is most of the Mediterranean countries have not a hope in hell of feeding themselves,
[Egypt imports 80% of its food]. So need to export to pay for it! But they spend too much on arms, and armies. The population is growing very fast, with little world competitive industry, a recipe for trouble, then couple it with a brutal insensitive regime, and it boils over. Many countries in the middle east are similar. I wonder how long 'god' will hold them together?

Sun, 2011-01-30 19:44 — chand seikh (not verified)

i love all muslim

Mon, 2011-02-07 15:24 — Simon Festing

Excellent article

Sat, 2011-01-29 11:58 — terence patrick hewett1

The first thing he did was to lock up all the usual suspects in the form of the Muslim Brotherhood: sounds good to me. If you think they will shift Mubarak you are living in dreamland.

Sun, 2011-01-30 20:28 — someone who cares. (not verified)

people, its not the main issue here, your talking about whether they are african or arabs, to be honest it doesnt matter, the main issue it that people have been cut off, familys can not contact eachother, why are we focusing on the unimportant? think about what realy matters here.....

Tue, 2011-02-01 13:43 — EnragedBrit (not verified)

It's not looking good.

"Mohamed Ghanem, one of the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, calls for Egypt to stop pumping gas to Israel and prepare the Egyptian army for a war with it’s eastern neighbor.

Speaking with Iranian television station Al-Alam, Mohamed Ghanem blamed Israel for supporting Hosni Mubarak’s regime. Ghanem also said that the Egyptian police and army won’t be able to stop the Muslim Brotherhood."
And over in Tunisia, Islamists have physically attacked "moderate" Muslim demonstrators at the airport!

Fri, 2011-02-04 14:23 — CJT (not verified)

These quotes are largely diplomatic niceties, which reveal little of the real opinion of the originator. Little appreciated in Europe, George W Bush is currently emerging in a different light. His general ideas now prove to make a lot of sense. It is a pity he was surrounded which such a bad bunch of advisers.

Tue, 2011-02-01 13:49 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

@ET: God only knows what I'm doing, it's so hot here. I'm reacting against the moderator who I liken to the tawrdy dictatorship in Egypt. Dictatorship ( the suppression of the individual by someone more powerful) comes in all forms of guises, not least by those in charge of the delete button on the NS blog comments. Talk about herding all us blog commentators into a monolithic morons.

Wed, 2011-02-16 22:02 — Des Demona (not verified)

@ Mehdi
The truth about Egypts is that up 'til this point I've never seen you write one negative piece about this suddenly abhorrent regime and puppet of the west.
Bandwaggon and opportunism are words that spring to mind.

Sat, 2011-01-29 13:54 — Dave C (not verified)

Buckskins again, You made the assertion that "Egyptians are not Arabs."

What's your definition of an Arab that somehow excludes Egyptians?

Just to give you something else for your mind to work on: here's a map of Arab League countries: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/country_profiles/1550797.stm

Sat, 2011-02-05 17:02 — Godfrey (not verified)

Good article.

Sat, 2011-02-12 22:54 — spikeeyyyyyyy. (not verified)

AlhamdoLilah, mubark has gone, the truth is out, and every knows what he out them through. InshAllah egypts future will be brighter now, knowing that he will not be back to make them suffer anymore.
We will nver know what they went through physically but we can imagiane how painful it was...

-moral of this event...
'keep trying and what you NEED you will get'.

Fri, 2011-02-04 17:48 — stuart (not verified)

true des demona,,but what really gets my goat up is obama and cameron lecturing mubarack as if he was there little poodle,thank god he has stuck his 2 fingers up to them 2..and bty i want cameron out,,how would he like it if the president of egypt mubarack told cameron to resign after we have are protests against this coalition goverment in the coming months..hypocrites the lot of them..

Sat, 2011-01-29 15:49 — EnragedBrit (not verified)

Buckskins is right. The Egyptians are not and never have been, Arabs.
Neither are the Tunisians, Libyans, Moroccans, Lebanese, Palestinians and Algerians.
All these peoples were conquered by the Arabs, all of these peoples had their own languages, traditions and religion stamped out by the Arabs.
Incredibly, this has led to many of these people actually coming to believe that they are Arabs.(DNA says otherwise).
I take it that those who insist that the Egyptians are Arabs also accept that the Irish, Scots and Welsh are English.

Tue, 2011-02-01 18:10 — andyg (not verified)

@buckskins
That is precisely my point.

Sat, 2011-01-29 16:15 — Dave C (not verified)

So, according to you, the Egyptians aren't Arabs, they just suffer from a false consciousness so they think they are Arabs?

Thu, 2011-02-03 16:49 — Seaman T

You could learn a lot by looking beyond the second hand cliché's and inbred racist attitudes and try to care about what the consensus of a countries population really believes in. The Arab people have very different ways to most of us. Some might seem outdated and even a bit "Barbourous" at times, it's true. But they deserve much more respect than they are generally given. The Egyptians are good people and have given the world a lot. Leave them alone to sort out their own problems. And if by the will of the almighty their suffering continues, at least it will be at the hand of their own people and not ours, as too often in the recent past.

Tue, 2011-02-01 18:23 — andyg (not verified)

@ buckskins.
Why have I never heard of the victors in Vietnam or anywhere else that you Yanks have decided to breach the soverign rights of that particular nation?

Mon, 2011-01-31 01:32 — Gary (not verified)

Its funny how Latin America is growing and advancing rapidly since the American puppets were kicked out of that region. The key to economic success seems to be to kick out the Americans and Brits.

Islamism in Iran was supported and funded by the CIA when they ousted Mossadegh and destroyed Iranian democracy. Great work by the fascist, Hitler-loving Dulles brothers in dismantling the country's democratic mechanisms, opening the door for the Ayatollahs. The CIA also came up with the ingenius idea to back Mr. Bin Laden in Afghanistan...and as we all know that worked out just peachy. The US backs Saudi Arabia, which is funding most of the Islamic terrorism, and the US worries about the Muslim Brotherhood?
What a bunch of hypocritical, incompetent morons.

Surprised that Hague is worried about "stability", I thought the Tories said that chaos is good?
Like the Egyptians, I could not give a flying toss what David Cameron thinks.

Tue, 2011-02-01 19:09 — andyg (not verified)

@Mr Divine
Sometimes crimson of the poor, in fact, always.

Fri, 2011-01-28 16:41 — Axmed

What the West refers to as “the Arabs” are the brutal dictators whom the West supports and who are the main enemies of the population. And the media cooperate by dismissing the population as what are called “unpeople” shows on Britain’s long-standing support for brutal dictators, business school graduated, western co-workers who worship wealthy rather than ALlah. (like the US). "A change has come" by Sam Cooke - at last! I'd like to see the Saudis and Qatar next! But the question is: Should Muslims have leaders who represent them? I am optimistic.

Sat, 2011-01-29 17:33 — Hriday

The unrest in Tunisia & now in Egypt should not only worry the Arab dictators ruling these countries, but the West & the rest of the non Muslim world too.Once these dictators are toppled, the Muslim extremists will take over. These nut cases will threaten, like mad Iran, the West.The Saudi rulers will have the biggest fall.Ironically the Saudis have been funding Islamic fundamentalists , via the Madrassas, all over the world. ( Pakistan providing the terrorist foot soldiers The chickens will come home to roost, for the Saudis.
There will never be genuine democracy in an Arab or Muslim country.The foundation of democracy is tolerance & the ability to agree to disagree.Islam doesn't allow dissent.

Sat, 2011-01-29 17:35 — dillon (not verified)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1351694/Left-wing-students-vicio... racist,fascist,anti semtic ,left exposed at last