Egypt: Former vice president Omar Suleiman dies in US | Fox News Egypt: Former vice president Omar Suleiman dies in US Published July 19, 2012 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Email Print April 14, 2012: Former spy chief and presidential candidate Omar Suleiman gestures as he talks during an interview with Reuters at his office in Cairo. (Reuters) Egypt's former spy chief Omar Suleiman, deposed president Hosni Mubarak's top lieutenant and keeper of secrets, died Thursday, the country's official news agency reported. He was 76. Suleiman, who said little but had a finger in virtually every vital security issue confronting Egypt, was dubbed by the media as the "the black box." Like Mubarak, he was a fierce enemy of Islamists in Egypt and throughout the region, and a friend to the United States and Israel. The official Middle East News Agency said that Suleiman had suffered from lung and heart problems for months and that his health condition had sharply deteriorated over the past three weeks. He was treated at a hospital in Cleveland and died early Thursday. His three daughters will accompany the body to be buried in Egypt, according to MENA.

Suleiman was appointed vice president on Jan. 29, 2011, at the peak of last year's revolution, a last-gasp attempt by Mubarak to save his political life as hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets demanding his ouster. But this and other desperate measures, including talks between Suleiman and the formerly outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, were unable to stave off Mubarak's overthrow. It was Suleiman who grimly appeared on telelvision on Feb. 11, 2011, to announce that Egypt's leader of nearly three decades was stepping down and handing power to a military council. This marked the end of the 18-day uprising but opened up a new chapter of tumultuous transition under the rule of the generals. After the revolution, Suleiman disappeared from public view only to return earlier this year as a presidential candidate, sparking fears of a Mubarak regime comeback. However, the election commission in a surprise move disqualified him along with two Islamist front-runners. His sudden emergence and disqualification at a time two heavyweight Islamists were also running and disqualified raised suspicions that his candidacy was orchestrated by the military generals to get rid of Islamists.

In April, Suleiman said he decided to run to prevent the Muslim Brotherhood from coming to power. "If the Brotherhood's candidate wins the presidential election, Egypt will be turned into a religious state. All state institutions will be controlled by the Brotherhood," he said in April. Mohammed Morsi, a member of the Brotherhood, won the presidency last month. Suleiman, a tall man who was frequently photographed wearing dark sunglass, rarely spoke to the media. He served as intelligence chief for nearly two decades. For most of that time he played a behind-the-scenes role as the top official in charge of some of the most important issues facing the Egyptian state, including relations with the U.S., Israel and talks with the Palestinians. He was widely believed to be the military leadership's preferred successor to Mubarak. This created silent tension between Suleiman and the president's younger son, Gamal, who was seen as being groomed by his father as a rival successor. The uncertainty over the succession, and the fear that Mubarak was trying to set up a family dynasty through his son, helped spark the uprising. U.S.

diplomatic cables posted by WikiLeaks as well as declassified CIA files have identified Suleiman as the point man in U.S.-Egyptian cooperation on counterterrorism. He is believed to have played a direct role in the U.S. rendition program, in which suspected terrorists were sent to Egypt and other countries for interrogation, sometimes involving torture. Suleiman was born in Qena in southern Egypt and graduated from the country's military academy as an infantry officer in 1955. He rose through the ranks and was appointed deputy head of military intelligence in 1987. He became military intelligence chief in 1991 during the Gulf War, when Egyptians fought alongside other Arab forces in the U.S.-led coalition that drove Saddam Hussein's military out of Kuwait. Suleiman also indirectly saved Mubarak's life when he advised the former president to take an armored Mercedes with him on a state visit to Ethiopia in 1995. Mubarak survived an Islamist ambush of his convoy. But in post-2011 Egypt, Suleiman was seen as tainted by his connections to a president who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for failing to stop the killing of protesters during the uprising.

Many other key regime figures are now imprisoned pending trials over a catalogue of corruption charges, or have fled the country and sought exile in Arab countries, Europe or the United States. Advertisement Omar Suleiman | vice president of Egypt | Britannica.com vice president of Egypt Ramses III Omar Suleiman, (born July 2, 1936, Qinā, Egypt—died July 19, 2012, Cleveland, Ohio), Egyptian intelligence official who served as the director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service (EGIS; 1993–2011) and briefly served as vice president of Egypt under Pres. Ḥosnī Mubārak in early 2011, becoming the first person to serve as vice president in Mubārak’s nearly three-decade presidency. During his tenure as director of EGIS, Suleiman, a close ally of Mubārak, emerged as one of the most powerful figures in Egypt, handling important diplomatic assignments and developing close relationships with Western intelligence agencies. Omar Suleiman, 2007. Cherie A.

Thurlby/Department of Defense Suleiman was born in the Upper Egyptian town of Qinā in 1936. He graduated from the Egyptian Military Academy in Cairo as an infantry officer and received further military training in the Soviet Union. He participated in the third Arab-Israeli war in 1967 and the fourth Arab-Israeli war in 1973. He received military training in the United States in the 1980s, after Egypt began to receive extensive military aid from the United States following the conclusion of a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. In 1986 Suleiman became the deputy head of military intelligence in Egypt. In 1993, as the security services fought to defeat a violent Islamist insurgency in Egypt, he was appointed director of EGIS. As director, Suleiman was entrusted with a portfolio that included foreign intelligence-gathering operations, counterterrorism, and protection for officials. Suleiman was credited with foiling an attempt on Mubārak’s life during a visit to Ethiopia in 1995 by persuading him to ride in an armoured limousine while on the visit.

Militants did open fire on the president’s car in Addis Ababa, but the armour prevented any harm to Mubārak. As he became established as one of Mubārak’s most trusted advisers, Suleiman began to take on important diplomatic assignments. The Egyptian government made his identity public in 2001, breaking with the usual practice of keeping the identities of EGIS directors secret. His highest-profile diplomatic assignments dealt with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where he worked to broker agreements between Israel and the Palestinians as well as between rival Palestinian factions. Suleiman also worked closely with Western intelligence agencies, especially in tracking and fighting Islamist militant groups. In January 2011 protests against political repression, corruption, and poverty erupted in Egypt, threatening the stability of the Mubārak regime. Mubārak, who had ruled for nearly 30 years without officially naming a deputy, appointed Suleiman vice president of Egypt on January 29.

On February 11, amid continuing protests, Suleiman appeared on Egyptian television to announce that Mubārak had stepped down as president and that governing authority would be transferred to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, a group of senior military officers. The transition left Suleiman without a position in the government, and he did not make further public appearances after Mubārak left office. Later that month the Egyptian government confirmed that Suleiman had survived an assassination attempt on February 4, a week before Mubārak left office, when unknown gunmen opened fire on his vehicle in Cairo. Britannica Stories Egypt Vice President Omar Suleiman Speech | Video | C-SPAN.org Supreme Court February 10, 2011 Egypt Vice President Omar Suleiman Speech Egyptian Vice President Suleiman addressed the Egyptian people, saying the President Hosni Mubarak had delegated power to him to rule the country. He called on anti-government protesters to return to work and home to restore law and order.

Transcript type Egypt State Media Says Omar Suleiman, Former Vice President, Dies - The New York Times The New York Times Middle East |Omar Suleiman, Powerful Egypt Spy Chief, Dies at 76 Search Continue reading the main story CAIRO — Omar Suleiman , the once-powerful head of Egypt ’s intelligence service who represented the old government’s last attempt to hold on to power, died on Thursday at an American hospital, according to the state-owned Middle East News Agency. He was 76. There had been no public reports that Mr. Suleiman was ailing or that he had gone to the United States for medical care, so the news of his death came as a surprise. Reuters said he died suddenly while undergoing a medical examination. Al Ahram, the state-owned newspaper in Egypt, said he died at a hospital in Cleveland. No cause was given. That he died in the United States was, to his Egyptian critics, emblematic of his close ties with the C.I.A., which he had helped as it established the practice of extraordinary rendition: sending terrorism suspects to foreign countries to be interrogated and, its critics say, tortured. When the C.I.A. asked Mr.

Suleiman if he could provide a DNA sample from a brother of the Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri , Mr. Suleiman offered to send the agency the brother’s entire arm, according to Ron Suskind, who has written extensively about antiterrorism efforts. Mr. Suleiman’s supporters, however, saw him as a pillar of the old order who might have served as a buffer between military rule on the one hand and dominance by Islamist groups on the other. Advertisement Continue reading the main story In 18 years as the head of the General Intelligence Service, better known as the Mukhabarat, Mr. Suleiman became, in the view of many, the most powerful spymaster in the Middle East. He was often referred to as President Hosni Mubarak ’s “black box.” His insistence that the Egyptian leader use an armored car during a visit to Ethiopia in 1995 is said to have saved Mr. Mubarak from an assassin’s bullet. As Mr. Mubarak was buffeted by months of street protests and calls for his resignation, he turned to Mr. Suleiman to lead negotiations with his critics.

He later charged him with a last-ditch effort to reorganize the government, appointing him to the long-vacant post of vice president. The move was widely ridiculed by revolutionaries, and 13 days later, on Feb. 11, 2011, it was Mr. Suleiman who announced that Mr. Mubarak was standing down and handing over interim power to the military. Another figure took over the Mukhabarat. Mr. Suleiman was the first head of the intelligence service whose identity became publicly known. He played a crucial role in Egyptian diplomatic efforts to forge a reconciliation between Palestinians from Hamas and from Fatah, although releases of diplomatic documents by WikiLeaks showed that he had worked with the Israelis to try to deny Hamas its electoral victory in Gaza. Mr. Suleiman viewed the organization as an extension of the Muslim Brotherhood, the Egyptian party he had helped ban from participating in national politics until its victory in this year’s presidential election. Photo Omar Suleiman in 2009. Credit Nasser Nasser/Associated Press “I think a lot of secrets will die with him,” said Nabil Fahmy, a former Egyptian ambassador to the United States.

“He had a unique ability of being in a very sensitive, often controversial position as head of intelligence but at the same time preserving the respect of people toward him. He was a professional.” Mr. Suskind, who wrote about American antiterrorism efforts in his 2006 book “The One Percent Doctrine,” had a more trenchant view. “Suleiman was our go-to guy for ugly extralegal actions — like torture and renditions — that we wanted done, but without U.S. fingerprints on them,” Mr. Suskind said in a telephone interview. “His legacy represents the ongoing costs of these ‘dark side’ engagements for the U.S. — a loss of our honest broker’s credibility at a time it could be so valuable in shaping and guiding the democratic springtime in the region.” Mr. Suleiman’s deep involvement in the C.I.A.’s program of extraordinary rendition implicated him in allegations of torture. The first known case of rendition, that of Talaat Fouad Qassem, was to Egypt in 1995, according to Omar Ashour, a visiting scholar at the Brookings Doha Center. Mr.

Suleiman’s intelligence agency was also accused of involvement in the torture of dissidents. His public speeches during the Tahrir Square revolution, denouncing protesters as agents of foreign governments and claiming that Egypt was not ready for democracy, eroded his public support. At the same time, many moderate Egyptians looked to Mr. Suleiman, and later to Mr. Mubarak’s last prime minister, Ahmed Shafik, as an alternative to Islamist leadership. “For pro-revolution and pro-change Egyptians, he was the brains behind Mubarak’s regime survival and a brutal torturer-murderer,” Mr. Ashour said. “For pro-Mubarak, he is a source of stability in the country and a bulwark against Islamist advance.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story Mr. Suleiman’s death came at a symbolic moment. Mr. Mubarak was returned to prison this week after being held in the relative comfort of a military hospital, and Mohamed Morsi , Egypt’s new president and a former leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, met on Thursday with Khaled Meshal, the top political leader of Hamas. Mr.

Suleiman was born on July 2, 1936, in Qena, a city in Upper Egypt. He graduated from Egypt’s military academy and, like Mr. Mubarak, received training in the Soviet Union. He studied political science at Cairo University and at Ain Shams University in Cairo. As a former lieutenant general in the Egyptian military, he would be entitled to burial with military honors. But some critics in Cairo were already arguing against that. It would put Egypt’s new president in an awkward position, since he would be expected to attend. “He is entitled to have a military funeral by law, and I respect that, but I don’t think that he deserves it,” said Hisham Kassem, a publisher and a political analyst. “This is a man who basically spent 18 years making sure Egypt does not move to the road of democracy.” Correction: July 20, 2012 Earlier versions of this obituary misstated part of the title of a 2006 book by Ron Suskind about American antiterrorism efforts. It is “The One Percent Doctrine,” not “The One Percent Solution.” Kareem Fahim and Mai Ayyad contributed reporting.

A version of this article appears in print on July 20, 2012, on Page B11 of the New York edition with the headline: Omar Suleiman, Powerful Egypt Spy Chief, Dies at 76. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Omar Suleiman, ex-spy chief and Mubarak vice president dead - Daily News Egypt Omar Suleiman, ex-spy chief and Mubarak vice president dead - Daily News Egypt Thursday January 19, 2017 Jobzella Email Omar Suleiman, ex-spy chief and Mubarak vice president dead The man who delivered the historic resignation of Hosni Mubarak and served as vice president died in a US hospital Jobzella Email A picture taken on 15 June 2005 in Jerusalem shows then Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman (AFP PHOTO/EITAN ABRAMOVICH) Omar Suleiman, stalwart of former President Hosni Mubarak’s regime, died early morning today in the United States at the age of 76, MENA state news agency reported. At the time of his death Suleiman was undergoing a medical check-up in a Cleveland hospital.

Suleiman was Egypt’s top spy chief, heading the General Intelligence Directorate for 18 years before Mubarak appointed him as his first and only vice president after wide scale protests calling for his ouster in January 2011. It was Suleiman who announced Mubarak’s resignation on February 11, making the brief worldwide, but historic statement. The former intelligence chief tried to run for president earlier this year but the Presidential Elections Committee disqualified him citing faulty nomination forms. According to MENA, Suleiman developed a lung disease shortly after, which then led to heart problems. His health had deteriorated further in the past few weeks, the state news agency added. “He was fine. It came suddenly while he was having medical tests in Cleveland,” his aide, Hussein Kamal, told Reuters. An Egyptian embassy official in the United States announced that Suleiman’s body would be returned to Egypt within 24 hours and that he would be receiving a military funeral. The idea was not welcomed by activist on twitter, who immediately started a hashtag rejecting a military funeral for Suleiman.

The former vice president was notorious for his employment of torture during his tenure as intelligence chief and according to wiki leaks cables his even sat in on, and participated in, torture sessions. When asked by US officials to provide DNA samples of Al-Qaeda leader Ayman El-Zawahri’s brother, who is being held prisoner in Egypt, Suleiman was famously reported to have said he could send the US the man’s arm. Suleiman was also one of the most influential participators in the US’s extra rendition program. The US would send terror suspects to “friendly” countries like Egypt for interrogation, largely involving torture. As intelligence chief, Suleiman was tasked with handling Egypt’s top foreign policy files, traditionally the domain of the Foreign Ministry; such was Mubarak’s trust in him. He handled the Ethiopia and Nile basin countries portfolio, the Palestinian reconciliation case, and the Sudanese split issue. Suleiman also handled all communications with Israel and was viewed favourably by the Israeli government.

From renditions to mediations: The spy who broke out of the mould - France 24 From renditions to mediations: The spy who broke out of the mould Text by Leela JACINTO Follow leelajacinto on twitter Latest update : 2011-02-07 Omar Suleiman has climbed up the ranks from intelligence chief to Egypt's first vice president in three decades. But given his background, can the man charged with ushering in a transition bring the change Egyptians seek? On January 29, when embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak named him vice president, Omar Suleiman emerged from the shadows of Egypt’s extensive security-intelligence apparatus to become a pivotal international figure. But for many analysts and followers of US-Mideast policy, Suleiman was already a familiar figure. And not all of them felt reassured by the new appointment. Suave, sophisticated, and fluent in English, Suleiman had been the country’s spy chief since 1993, when he took over as head of Egypt’s powerful General Intelligence Service (GIS) – or “Mukhabarat” as it is commonly known in Egypt.

A Soviet-trained, former army man, Suleiman looked set to fill the “shadowy intelligence chief” mould when he took over the GIS. But all that changed with the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in the US. In pictures: Major players in Egypt’s crisis Omar Suleiman The country’s new vice-president previously served as general intelligence director for almost two decades. Emerging from the political shadows only recently, Suleiman is now charged with talking to the opposition. (Photo credit: Screen grab from Al Oula TV). Sami Anan Pro-American Lieutenant General Sami Anan (right) is chief of staff of the armed forces – some 350,000 soldiers and 470,000 reserves. He reportedly has enormous influence over the outcome of the crisis – depending on who he orders the army to side with. (Credit: AFP). Mohammed Badie As Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, Badie has been at the head of Egypt’s most organised opposition movement for one year. He, along with his party, are demanding that Mubarak form a government of national unity. (Credit: FRANCE 24).

Mohamed ElBaradei Opposition leader and 2005 Nobel Peace Prize winner, ElBaradei returned to Egypt on January 28 to join the protests. Outside of Egypt he is a strong favourite to be the next president, but inside the country he is little-known. (Credit: FRANCE 24). Ayman Nour Ghad Party leader and founder, Nour came second (albeit far behind Mubarak), in the presidential election of 2005. A political dissident and prominent human rights lawyer, he has endured several stints behind bars. (Credit: FRANCE 24). Amr Moussa Former foreign affairs minister, Moussa enjoys widespread popularity in Egypt for his hearty criticism of neighbouring Israel. Currently Secretary General of the Arab League, he has not ruled out running for the presidency. (Credit: FRANCE 24). Gamal Mubarak The youngest son of Hosni Mubarak serves as the deputy secretary-general of the president’s ruling National Democratic Party. He’s considered by many as the most likely successor to his father, but the opposition is determined to stop that from happening.

In 2009, US magazine Foreign Policy ranked Suleiman the Middle East's most powerful intelligence chief, ahead of Meir Dagan, the head of Israel’s Mossad. When the whistleblower website WikiLeaks published US diplomatic cables last year, analysts learned that Suleiman had already been singled out by Egyptians as a likely Mubarak successor. A May 14, 2007, leaked US cable reads more like prophesy than a diplomatic memo. “…in past years Soliman (sic) was often cited as likely to be named to the long-vacant vice-presidential post,” read the cable. Suleiman in fact filled a post Mubarak vacated 30 years ago when he took over the presidency following the 1981 assassination of President Anwar Sadat. Just pick up the phone and talk The Jan. 29 appointment of a new vice president was greeted with relief in some quarters, notably because it signalled that Mubarak had acknowledged the unpopularity of his son and widely rumoured successor, Gamal Mubarak. Privately, many US officials were relieved to have a man in Cairo they could phone and “level with”.

Indeed as the situation in Egypt subsequently deteriorated, Suleiman rapidly turned into Washington’s point-man in the Egyptian administration. On Feb. 2, as pro-Mubarak demonstrators in Cairo’s Tahrir Square waged pitched battles against anti-government protesters, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton phoned Suleiman to urge him to investigate who was behind the day’s violence and hold them accountable. Former US Ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner, who was dispatched to Cairo by Obama to try to diffuse the crisis, also met with Suleiman during his visit. ‘Not squeamish’ about ‘torture and so on’ Negotiations between Suleiman and US ambassadors go a long way back and have historically proved fruitful. In her book “ The Dark Side ,” New Yorker correspondent Jane Mayer quotes then US Ambassador to Egypt Edward Walker describing Suleiman, as “very bright, very realistic”. Walker acknowledged that the GIS head was involved in “some of the negative things that the Egyptians engaged in, of torture and so on. But he was not squeamish, by the way”.

“The Dark Side” examines the murky chapter of US renditions under the Bush administration’s “war on terror”, when the CIA snatched suspected terrorists from across the world and turned them over to authorities criticised for using extensive torture. Egypt, a country ruled by the same man under emergency laws for decades, was an enthusiastic partner in renditions, wrote Mayer as she followed the cases of terror suspects who claimed to have been captured by the US and sent to Egypt, where they were tortured. Torture in Egypt has been a longstanding issue that has dominated human rights reports on the world’s largest Arab nation for decades. As the Mukhabarat chief, Suleiman was considered the “hit man” for Mubarak’s regime, wrote Ron Suskind, author of the book, “ The One Percent Doctrine ”.

In an interview with the United States ABC News network, Suskind sarcastically described Suleiman as “a charitable man, friendly," before going on to add: "He tortures only people that he doesn't know." ‘Liars who only understand force’ Suleiman also played a key role in the Egyptian-negotiated indirect talks between Israel and Hamas over the past two years, paying official visits to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, where he met with Israeli leaders including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres. He has extensive experience on the Palestinian dossier, which included a failed attempt by Egypt to negotiate a Palestinian unity government between rivals Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA) in 2008. Familiar with Hamas and PA leaders, Suleiman also played a critical role in demolishing underground smuggling tunnels from Gaza into Egypt. As the spy chief of the Arab world’s largest Sunni Muslim nation, Suleiman concurred with Israeli and US policies on tightening the reins on Shiite Iran. But most appealing for the US has been Suleiman’s reputation as an ardent anti-Islamist with a visceral dislike of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s officially banned but tolerated Islamist group.

According to British daily The Guardian , Suleiman has in the past described the Brotherhood as "liars who only understand force". In his new role of vice president, Egypt’s former spy chief will now have to negotiate with a group he has traditionally considered the country’s most serious security threat. It will not be easy for the vice president, nor for his Islamist negotiating partner. Timeline of Egypt's unrest | Politics , Human Rights , Middle East , US & Canada , Egypt Omar Suleiman, Egypt's former vice-president and long-time spy chief to deposed president Hosni Mubarak, has died in the US, the official MENA news agency has reported. He was 76. "Former vice president General Omar Suleiman died in the early hours of Thursday in a hospital in the United States," the agency said. "He was undergoing medical tests in Cleveland," Suleiman's aide Hussein Kamal said, adding that arrangements were being made to return his body to Egypt for burial. The former intelligence chief stepped briefly into the limelight when he was appointed vice-president during the uprising that toppled Mubarak. He left Egypt after a failed bid to run in the country's first ever free presidential elections in May.

Initially travelling to Dubai, he later headed to Germany and then on to the US for treatment, General Saad al-Abbassi, a member of Suleiman's presidential campaign team, told AFP news agency. "His health deteriorated recently. He was in the United States with his family," said Reem Mamdouh, another member of the team. He was a central figure in Egyptian politics for more than 15 years after he took over the country's intelligence agency in 1993. Pillar of ousted regime Suleiman, a pillar of the ousted regime, announced in April that he would be running for the president after initially saying he would stay out of the race. He was barred from pursuing the country's top job on a technicality, after the country's election commission said he failed to get endorsements from 15 provinces as per the law. Suleiman was born in 1936 in the southern town of Qena and left for Cairo at the age of 19 to enroll in Egypt's military academy and went on to receive advanced army training in Russia.

He took part in both the 1967 and 1973 Middle East wars, though details of his service are unclear. Suleiman was widely believed to have formed part of the inner circle of Mubarak, who shortly before his fall named the intelligence supremo as vice president. Both Mubarak and Suleiman survived an assassination attempt in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, where they were due to attend an African summit in June 1995. Related Former Egyptian spy chief Omar Suleiman dies in US - reports — RT News Trends Egypt unrest Tags Health , Middle East , USA , Egypt Suleiman, 76, died in a US hospital Thursday morning, according to the report which did not immediately give details about the cause of death. "He was fine. It [his death] came suddenly while he was having medical tests in Cleveland," Reuters quotes the aide, Hussein Kamal, as saying. Kamal, however, also failed to provide a reason for Suleiman's death. Preparations are under way to bring Suleiman's body back home for burial, he said.

Initially traveling to Dubai, Suleiman later headed to Germany and then on to the US for treatment, General Saad al-Abbassi, a member of Suleiman's presidential campaign team, told AFP news agency. "His health deteriorated recently. He was in the United States with his family,” said Reem Mamdouh, another member of the team. A close ally to Hosni Mubarak, Suleiman became deputy head of military intelligence in 1986 and later its director in 1991. In 1993, he became the chief of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service – another branch of the Egyptian intelligence community. On 29 January 2011, Suleiman was appointed to the long-vacant Vice Presidency by then-President Hosni Mubarak. On February 11, 2011, Suleiman announced Mubarak's resignation and ceased being Vice President. Governing power was subsequently transferred to the Armed Forces Supreme Council, of which Suleiman was not a member.

Suleiman tried to join the race for the country's presidency in April, but Egypt's central elections committee ruled that as a Mubarak-era official he would not be able to run in the presidential race. Former Egyptian vice president dies in U.S. hospital, officials say - CNN.com Former Egyptian vice president dies in U.S. hospital, officials say From Mohamed Fadel Fahmy, CNN Updated 10:39 PM ET, Thu July 19, 2012 Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds. Omar Suleiman served as vice president under President Hosni Mubarak before his ouster. Story highlights Omar Suleiman died of complications from amyloidosis, Cleveland Clinic says He was disqualified from a recent presidential election Suleiman announced Hosni Mubarak's resignation in February 2011 Omar Suleiman, the Egyptian vice president under Hosni Mubarak who announced the president's resignation to the world, has died in a U.S. hospital at age 76, officials said Thursday.

A family member said the former spy chief had "water on his lungs and suffered heart problems that led to his death after his health deteriorated in the past three weeks." He had traveled to Germany for medical reasons before for traveling Monday to a medical center in Cleveland. Suleiman died early Thursday with his family at his side at the Cleveland Clinic, which announced that his death was due to "complications from amyloidosis, a disease that affects multiple organs including the heart and kidneys." His body was to arrive Friday morning in Egypt and his funeral was to be held after prayers, relatives said. Head of Egypt's powerful intelligence services, Suleiman also served as vice president under Mubarak before his ouster . In a somber one-minute television announcement in February 2011, Suleiman announced that Mubarak had resigned his post as president and declared that the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces would run the country's affairs. Timeline: Unrest in Egypt The announcement followed an 18-day popular uprising in Egypt that saw tens of thousands take to the streets to demand Mubarak's ouster.

Suleiman most recently made headlines when he entered the race for Egypt's first democratically elected president in the eleventh hour and then failed to gather enough signatures required to be on the ballot. He was disqualified from the election by a panel that included members connected to the Mubarak regime, which suggested that his elimination from the presidential race was not politically motivated. Suleiman had headed Egypt's intelligence since 1993, maintained close CIA ties and was often criticized by rights groups for his heavy-handed approach with suspected militants. Born into poverty in the Egyptian town of Qena, he enrolled in the country's prestigious military academy and was decorated for his performance in the wars against Israel in 1967 and 1973. In June 1995, both Suleiman and Mubarak survived an assassination attempt during an African summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.

Egypt - Omar Suleiman (Omar Soliman, Omar Sulaiman, Omar Suleiman and Umar Sulayman) Further Reading Omar Suleiman Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said on Egyptian TV late on Thursday night 11 February 2011 that he will hand power to Vice President Omar Suleiman as laid out in the constitution but did not say he was stepping down. "I consider it appropriate to hand over the powers of the head of state to the vice president in accordance with the constitution," Mubarak said. Mubarak appointed Suleiman, the intelligence chief, as vice president on January 29, four days after protests against Mubarak's 30-year rule broke out in the North African country. Long-time Mubarak consigliere Omar Suleiman (also spelled Omar Soliman, Omar Sulaiman, Omar Suleiman and seldom Umar Sulayman) was sworn in as vice president of Egypt on Saturday, 29 January 2011. In practice, recent Egyptian Presidents were succeeded by their Vice Presidents. President Hosni Mubarak had not previously named a Vice President.

Analysts had long believed that Egyptian intelligence chief, Omar Suleiman, who had been an interlocutor between Palestinians and Israelis, could be a potential successor to Mubarak. Omar Suleiman was born on 1936 in Qena, in Southern Egypt. He attented Egypt's premier Military Academy in 1954 and also received military training at Moscow's Frunze Military Academy. Suleiman was involved in the war in Yemen in the years of 1962, 1967 and 1973 against Israel. He received bachelor's and master's degrees in Political Science from Ain Shams University and Cairo Universitys in the mid-1980's. Omar Suleiman headed the General Opeartions Authority in the Armed Forces which then led him to become the Director of the Military Intelligende Unit in 1991 during the Gulf War, when Egypt was among the Arab forces that helped the US-led coalition. Omar Suleiman was Director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service since 1993. Prior to that time, Maj. Gen. 'Umar Sulayman had served as Egyptian Minister for Presidential Affairs.

Omar Soliman in past years was often cited as likely to be named to the long-vacant vice-presidential post. Since 2005 Soliman had stepped out of the shadows, and allowed himself to be photographed, and his meetings with foreign leaders reported. He earned international respect for his role as a mediator in Middle East affairs and for curbing Islamic extremism. Suleiman, has met with Hamas and Palestinian Authority figures in order to secure ceasefire arrangements with Israel. In the wake of Israeli Prime Minister Sharon's decision to pursue a unilateral Israel withdrawal from Gaza, Egypt signaled a new readiness to play a constructive role in making the region secure. Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman became the point man in discussions with the Palestinians, delivering the message of the United States and the Quartet that the Palestinians must consolidate and reform their security forces and empower their prime minister rather than Chairman Arafat. For the first time since the outbreak of violence, Egypt put significant pressure on Yasser Arafat. President Mubarak's envoy, General Omar Suleiman, has demanded that Arafat relinquish control over all Palestinian security forces and agree to their consolidation.

In addition, he has told Arafat he must fire more than 70 corrupt Palestinian officials, or risk losing any Egyptian financial assistance. Egypt has expressed its willingness to train the Palestinian security services in Gaza as the disengagement plan proceeds. On February 1, 2006, Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman demanded that Hamas should "one, stop the violence. Two, it should become doctrine with them tobe committed to all the agreements signed with Israel. Three, they have to recognize Israel ... If Hamas won't commit to these conditions, Mahmoud Abbas is not obligedto ask them to form a government." Suleiman mediated the June 2008 Israel-Hamas cease fireand indirect talks between Israel and Hamas on a prisoner exchange for Israeli Cpl. Gilad Shalit, whom Hamas captured in June 2006. Bilateral Egyptian-Israeli consultations were headed by Egyptian head of Intelligence Omar Suleiman and Israel's Ministry of Defense advisor Amos Gilead. Soliman, because of his military background, would at the least have to figure in any succession scenario for Gamal, possibly as a transitional figure.

Soliman himself adamantly denies any personal ambitions, but his interest and dedication to national service is obvious. His loyalty to Mubarak seems rock-solid. At age 75 [in 2011], he could be attractive to the ruling apparatus and the public at large as a reliable figure unlikely to harbor ambitions for another multi-decade presidency. A key unanswered question is how he would respond to a Gamal presidency once Mubarak is dead. It is said that Soliman "detests" the idea of Gamal as president, and that he also was "deeply personally hurt" by Mubarak, who promised to name him vice-president several years ago, but then reneged. By 2008 Egypt was not the regional leader it had been over the past few decades - this mantle had fallen to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is uncomfortable taking over this role but saw no choice, because of the perceived threat from Iran. There were several reasons for Egypt's decline in leadership. Mubarak was getting older and no longer had the energy to provide the leadership he once did, and no one in the government, including his son or Omar Sulayman the chief of the Egyptian External Intelligence Service, had replaced him in regional relations.

Omar Soliman having been a senior army officer and head of Egyptian intelligence, there was a period in which people could think of him as a possible successor to Mubarak himself. Both of Mubarak's possible successors - intelligence chief Omar Soliman and Gamal Mubarak - were likely to continue Mubarak's foreign policy, but Gamal might seek to liberalize Egyptian domestic politics over time. Mubarak's potential successor would not greatly alter the course of Egyptian foreign policy or Cairo's relationship with the United States. NEWSLETTER

Question: Omar Suleiman was the Vice President of which African country?
Answer: Egypt