Ahmed Aboul Gheit (Arabic: أحمد أبو الغيط [ˈæħmæd æbolˈɣeːtˤ], also: Abu al-Ghayt, Abu El Gheyt; born 12 June 1942) is an Egyptian politician and diplomat. He has been Secretary-General of the Arab League since July 2016.[1] He was reappointed for a second term on 3 March 2021.[2] Aboul-Gheit served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt from 11 July 2004 to 6 March 2011. Previously, between 1999 and 2004,[3] he was Egypt's Permanent Representative to the United Nations.[4] He was succeeded as Minister of Foreign Affairs by ICJ judge Nabil Elaraby in March 2011, following the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak.[5] He was elected Secretary-General of the Arab League in March 2016,[6] and his term commenced on 3 July 2016.
Ahmed Aboul Gheit | |
|---|---|
أحمد أبو الغيط | |
.jpg) Aboul Gheit in 2023 | |
| 8th Secretary-General of the Arab League | |
| Assumed office 3 July 2016 | |
| Deputy | Ahmed Ben Helli |
| Preceded by | Nabil Elaraby |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 11 July 2004 – 6 March 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Ahmed Nazif Ahmed Shafik |
| Preceded by | Ahmad Maher |
| Succeeded by | Nabil Elaraby |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 June 1942 Cairo, Egypt |
| Alma mater | Ain Shams University |
He was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur, first rank in 2002.[7]
Biography
editAhmed Aboul Gheit was born in Heliopolis in Cairo on 12 June 1942,[8] He studied business at Ain Shams University, Cairo.
Diplomatic career
editAboul Gheit joined the diplomatic corps in 1965 after completing university, and rose through the ranks of the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, occupying diplomatic positions in Rome, Nicosia, Moscow and New York. He participated in negotiations in 1978 of the Camp David Accords, which led to the signing of the Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty. In 1999, he was appointed Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations, before being recalled to Cairo in 2004 to take the lead in diplomacy.
Aboul Gheit started his career as Third Secretary at the Embassy of Cyprus. Later he was First Secretary for Egypt's Ambassador to the United Nations, Political Consultant at the Egyptian Embassy in the Soviet Union in 1984, and Ambassador of Egypt to Italy, Macedonia and San Marino. In 1999 he was the head of Egypt's permanent delegation to the United Nations.[9]
Foreign minister
editAboul Gheit served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt from 11 July 2004 to 6 March 2011. In December 2005, he began mediating the Chad-Sudan conflict. In 2006, he was critical of Pope Benedict XVI and accused him of having no understanding of real Islam.[10]
On 26 December 2010, Aboul Gheit opened the first Egyptian consulate outside Baghdad in the northern city of Erbil, where he also held talks with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.[11]
After Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was ousted in February 2011, Aboul Gheit retired from the foreign ministry to write his memoirs.
Secretary-General of the Arab League
editIn March 2016 Aboul Gheit was elected Secretary-General of the Arab League succeeding Nabil el-Arabi although his election was contested due to his age.[12] His term commenced on 3 July 2016.
In 2019, Gheit called the 2019 Turkish offensive into northeastern Syria a blatant violation of Syria's sovereignty.[13] On 11 May 2021, he called Israeli air strikes on Gaza indiscriminate and irresponsible.[14]
Awards and recognition
edit- Egypt: Grand Cross of the Order of the Republic (Egypt)
- Egypt: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit (Egypt)
- France: Grand Officer of the Ordre national du Mérite
- Italy: Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
- Serbia: First Class of the Order of the Serbian Flag
- Russia: Medal of the Order of Friendship
Published works
edit- Egypt's Foreign Policy in Times of Crisis: My Testimony, Cairo, The American University in Cairo Press, 2019
- Witness to War and Peace: Egypt, the October War, and Beyond, Cairo, The American University in Cairo Press, 2018
References
edit- ^ "Arab League names Egypt's Ahmed Aboul Gheit as new chief". Retrieved 10 March 2016.
- ^ "Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit reappointed". Arab News. 3 March 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
- ^ "HE Ahmed Aboul Gheit | ATF". arabthought.org. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
- ^ "Envoy to UN Named Foreign Minister in New Egyptian Govt", Reuters (Arab News), 11 July 2004.
- ^ "Breaking News". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
- ^ "Arab League names Egypt's Ahmed Aboul Gheit as new chief". Retrieved 10 March 2016.
- ^ "HE Ahmed Aboul Gheit | ATF". arabthought.org. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
- ^ "Aboul Gheit, Ahmed". Rulers. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
- ^ "Not a popularity contest". Al Ahram Weekly (534). 17–23 May 2001. Archived from the original on 27 July 2009. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
- ^ "In quotes: Muslim reaction to Pope", BBC News, 16 September 2006.
- ^ Hossam El Kady. "Egypt opens new consulate in Iraq". The Egyptian Gazette. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
- ^ "Snoozing while the region smoulders: What is the point of the Arab League?". The Economist. 29 April 2016. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ^ "World reacts to Turkey's military operation in northeast Syria". Al Jazeera. 10 October 2019
- ^ "Arab League condemns Israeli air strikes on Gaza". Al Jazeera. 11 May 2021. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021.
