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 of Egypt | |
| 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 | (1942-06-12)12 June 1942 (age 83) Cairo, Egypt |
| Alma mater | Ain Shams University |
Ahmed Aboul Gheit (Arabic:أحمد أبو الغيط[ˈæħmædæbolˈɣeːtˤ], also:Abu al-Ghayt,Abu El Gheyt; born 12 June 1942) is an Egyptian politician and diplomat. He has been Secretary-General of theArab League since July 2016.[1] He was reappointed for a second term on 3 March 2021.[2] Aboul-Gheit served as theMinister 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 theUnited Nations.[4] He was succeeded as Minister of Foreign Affairs byICJ judgeNabil Elaraby in March 2011, following theoverthrow of PresidentHosni Mubarak.[5] He was electedSecretary-General of the Arab League in March 2016,[6] and his term commenced on 3 July 2016.
He was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur, first rank in 2002.[7]
Ahmed Aboul Gheit was born inHeliopolis inCairo on 12 June 1942,[8] He studied business atAin Shams University, Cairo.
Aboul Gheit joined the diplomatic corps in 1965 after completing university, and rose through the ranks of theEgyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, occupying diplomatic positions in Rome, Nicosia, Moscow and New York. He participated in negotiations in 1978 of theCamp David Accords, which led to the signing of theIsraeli-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 theUnited Nations, Political Consultant at the Egyptian Embassy in the Soviet Union in 1984, and Ambassador of Egypt toItaly,Macedonia andSan Marino. In 1999 he was the head of Egypt's permanent delegation to the United Nations.[9]
Aboul Gheit served as theMinister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt from 11 July 2004 to 6 March 2011. In December 2005, he began mediating theChad-Sudan conflict. In 2006, he was critical ofPope 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 ofErbil, where he also held talks with Iraqi PresidentJalal Talabani.[11]
After Egyptian PresidentHosni Mubarak was ousted in February 2011, Aboul Gheit retired from the foreign ministry to write his memoirs.
In March 2016 Aboul Gheit was electedSecretary-General of the Arab League succeedingNabil el-Arabi although his election was contested due to his age.[12] His term commenced on 3 July 2016.
In 2019, Gheit called the2019 Turkish offensive into northeastern Syria a blatant violation of Syria's sovereignty.[13] On 11 May 2021, he calledIsraeli air strikes on Gaza indiscriminate and irresponsible.[14]
(2025)[15]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 2004–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary-General of the Arab League 2016–present | Incumbent |
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
