Osama El-Baz (; ) (6 July 1931 – 14 September 2013) was an Egyptian

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or interna ...

and a senior advisor to former President

Hosni Mubarak Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak, (; 4 May 1928 – 25 February 2020) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the fourth president of Egypt from 1981 to 2011. Before he entered politics, Mubarak was a career officer in ...

Career

A graduate from

Cairo University Cairo University ( ar, جامعة القاهرة, Jāmi‘a al-Qāhira), also known as the Egyptian University from 1908 to 1940, and King Fuad I University and Fu'ād al-Awwal University from 1940 to 1952, is Egypt's premier public university ...

, he studied for six years in the United States, where he obtained his master's degree from

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each c ...

. El-Baz later joined the Egyptian foreign service, and was made ''chef de cabinet'' with ambassadorial rank in 1977. When

Ismail Fahmi Ismail Fahmy ( arz, اسماعيل فهمى) (2 October 1922 – 21 November 1997) was an Egyptian diplomat and politician. He served as ambassador to Austria (1968–1971), tourism minister (1973), foreign minister (1973–1977) and deputy pri ...

resigned in 1977 to protest President

Anwar El Sadat Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat, (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt, from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 ...

's visit to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, El-Baz volunteered to help the president in planning his negotiations with

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. He was sent to Israel where he negotiated the terms for the Egyptian President's visit. His colleague in those preparations was

Boutros Boutros-Ghali Boutros Boutros-Ghali (; , ar, بطرس بطرس غالي ', ; 14 November 1922 – 16 February 2016) was an Egyptian politician and diplomat who served as the sixth Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) from 1992 to 1996. An academic ...

, who later went on to become

Secretary-General of the United Nations The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-g ...

. El-Baz represented the Arab nationalist, while Boutros-Ghali was a cautious pro-Westerner. Following Sadat's assassination in 1981, Egypt's new president

took El-Baz as an advisor, where he headed the Presidential Office for Political Affairs. El-Baz was considered an '' éminence grise'', and was more influential than most members of the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

, especially in foreign-policy matters. He was sent on sensitive missions which would be inappropriate for the

Foreign Minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

to undertake. According to ''

Al-Ahram ''Al-Ahram'' ( ar, الأهرام; ''The Pyramids''), founded on 5 August 1875, is the most widely circulating Egyptian daily newspaper, and the second oldest after '' al-Waqa'i`al-Masriya'' (''The Egyptian Events'', founded 1828). It is majori ...

'', he was sidelined during the last years of the Hosni Mubarak regime. El-Baz was even spotted during the 18-day

Tahrir Square Tahrir Square ( ar, ميدان التحرير ', , English: Liberation Square), also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political demonstrations in Cai ...

sit-in in January 2011, at the start of the

Arab Spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in Tunisia in response to corruption and econo ...

. Osama El-Baz is the late father of Egyptian industrialist, entrepreneur, and business executive Basil El-Baz, as well as a brother to famed NASA geologist Farouk El-Baz.

Personal life

Osama El-Baz has eight siblings, who are: Mohammed El-Baz (the eldest), Isam El-Baz, Farouk El-Baz, Laila El-Baz, Soraya El-Baz, Safa El-Baz, Hazim El-Baz and Nabeel El-Baz (the youngest).

References

External links

* 1931 births 2013 deaths Cairo University alumni Egyptian diplomats Harvard Law School alumni People from Dakahlia Governorate {{Egypt-politician-stub