Suzanne Mubarak

Suzanne Mubarak
سوزان مبارك

Suzanne Mubarak, 2003
First Lady of Egypt
In role
14 October 1981 – 11 February 2011
President Hosni Mubarak
Preceded by Jehan Al Sadat
Succeeded by Naglaa Mahmoud
Personal details
Born Suzanne Saleh Thabet (Arabic: سوزان صالح ثابت‎‎)
(1941-02-28) 28 February 1941
Al Minya Governorate, Kingdom of Egypt
Spouse(s) Hosni Mubarak
Children Alaa Mubarak
Gamal Mubarak
Alma mater American University in Cairo

Suzanne Mubarak (Arabic: سوزان مبارك‎‎, Sūzān Mubārak; born 28 February 1941) is the wife of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and was the First Lady of Egypt during her husband's presidential tenure from 14 October 1981 to 11 February 2011. She has served as Goodwill Ambassador of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and founded the Cairo Child Museum in collaboration with the British Museum. Born to an Egyptian father and a British mother, she is a sociologist by education.

Early life and education

Suzanne Mubarak was born in Al Minya Governorate, located on the Nile River about 250 kilometres to the south of Cairo, on 28 February 1941.[1] Her father, Saleh Thabet, was an Egyptian pediatrician and her mother was Lily May Palmer (died in 1978), a nurse from Pontypridd, Wales.[2][3] [4] She went to St. Claire School in Heliopolis, Cairo.

She met her future husband, an Egyptian Air Force officer named Hosni Mubarak, when she was 16 years old.[5] The couple married when she was 17 years old[5] and had two sons; Alaa Mubarak and Gamal Mubarak. She returned to school ten years after her marriage.[5]

Mubarak graduated from American University in Cairo (AUC) in 1977 with a bachelor's degree in political science and then received a master's degree in sociology from AUC in 1982.[5][6] She wrote a thesis on "Social Action Research in Urban Egypt: Case study of primary school upgrading in Bulaq".

First Lady of Egypt

First Lady Suzanne Mubarak (left), with President Hosni Mubarak and Polish President Lech Kaczynski and his wife, Maria Kaczyńska, in 2008

Mubarak became First Lady of Egypt upon her husband's accession to the presidency on 14 October 1981 and served as First Lady until her husband's resignation on 11 February 2011.

Mubarak's activities in projects relating to human trafficking and family affairs became prominent in Egypt.[7] She led the Egyptian U.N. delegation in conferences relating to women and children. In 1985 she founded the Child Museum of Cairo in collaboration with the British Museum. In 2005, she opened the Hurghada branch of Mubarak's Public Library.[8] In October 2008, she was nominated as Goodwill Ambassador of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).[9] She was a patron of the children's television series, Alam Simsim (Arabic for "Sesame's World"), Egypt's version of the American series, Sesame Street.

On 18 October 1988, at a party in Egypt in her honour, Uday Hussein killed his father's favorite valet and food taster Kamel Hana Gegeo in the presence of party guests.

In March 2008, Egyptian journalist Ibrahim Eissa was arrested for reporting on Hosni Mubarak's health problems in August 2007.[10] Mubarak then gave a rare television address to allege that Hosni was actually healthy and reporters who suggested otherwise deserve to be punished.[10]

In 2011, WikiLeaks released cables that indicate Mubarak "commandeered" a bus during a trip to the Sinai. The bus had been paid for by the United States Agency for International Development to carry children to school.[11]

Family

Mubarak is married to former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. She is the daughter of an Egyptian pediatrician, Saleh Sabet, and Welsh nurse Lily Palmer. Saleh Sabet, at the time a 29-year-old medical student at Cardiff University, married the 29-year-old Lily May Palmer at Islington, London on 16 March 1934. Palmer was a trained nurse working at The Infirmary on Camden Road, Islington. She was the daughter of colliery manager Charles Henry Palmer, and grew up in Pontypridd, Glamorgan, Wales.[1] Mubarak's older brother, Mounir Sabet, is a former president of the Egyptian Olympic Committee.[12]

She has two sons — Alaa and Gamal — two grandsons and a granddaughter. One of the two grandsons, 12-year-old Muhammad Mubarak, died on 18 May 2009 in Paris after a two-day health crisis.[6]

Honours

References

  1. 1 2 "Egypt's first ladies". Historica. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
  2. ↑ "Egypt: Suzanne Mubarak 'recovering' from sudden illness". BBC. 14 May 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  3. ↑ Mahnaimi, Uzi (12 June 2005). "Wife bids to build Mubarak dynasty". The Times.
  4. ↑ Evans, Martin. "Egypt Crisis: Mubarak Family Profile – Telegraph."30 Jan. 2011. Web. 14 May 2011. .
  5. 1 2 3 4 Leary, Alex (14 February 1988). "A Greater Role for Egypt's First Lady". New York Times. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  6. 1 2 Thurber, John. "Suzanne Mubarak's Literary Career|Los Angeles Times." |18 May 2011. .
  7. ↑ Hendawi, Hamza. "Court: Remove Mubarak name from public facilities – Yahoo! News." 21 April 2011. .
  8. ↑ http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/050825/2005082524.html
  9. ↑ "First Ladies Summit at FAO, Rome". FAO Newsroom. 5 November 2009.
  10. 1 2 "Egyptian Journo Jailed For Prez Reports" 26 March 2008. CBS News. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
  11. ↑ Landler, Mark & Lehren, Andrew (January 27, 2011). "Cables Show Delicate U.S. Dealings With Egypt’s Leaders". The New York Times. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  12. ↑ Hays, Kathleen; Morris, Valerie; Willis, Gerri (10 December 2003). "Deadly Checkmate" (Free with registration). Egypt Today. America's Intelligence Wire. Retrieved 7 October 2010. the Egyptian Olympic Committee (EOC), headed by Gen. Mounir Sabet, the brother of the First Lady Suzanne Mubarak...
  13. ↑ "Bundestag speaker addresses UNESCO general conference and receives award". UNESCO.
Honorary titles
Preceded by
Jehan Al Sadat		 First Lady of Egypt
1981–2011 		Succeeded by
Naglaa Ali Mahmoud
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