US embassy cable - 05CAIRO2971

UNCLAS CAIRO 002971 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, PGOV, PTER, KPAO, EG, Media Themes 
SUBJECT:  AL-AZHAR BOMBER IDENTIFIED, CO-PLOTTERS ARRESTED: 
EGYPTIAN MEDIA THEMES, APRIL 11 TO 17 
 
1.  Summary:  Egyptian Television (ETV) reported the 
identity of the Al-Azhar terrorist bomber on April 11.  The 
following day, photos of the bomber's blast-damaged face 
appeared above the fold in all of Egypt's major newspapers, 
along with Interior Ministry claims that "jihadi" 
publications had been found in his home.  On April 17, ETV 
reported the identities of four Egyptians suspected of 
planning the bombing.  ETV talk show commentators April 16 
and 17 focused on problems that might lead some youths to 
become suicide bombers.  Egypt's first government-sponsored 
human rights report received only minor coverage.  Print 
media continued to follow Muslim Brotherhood and Kifaya 
pro-reform protests.  End summary. 
 
2.  Al-Azhar bomber identified:  The suicide bomber who 
struck the Al-Azhar neighborhood on April 7 was identified 
by name on ETV on April 11 as Hassan Rafat Ahmed Bashandy, 
reportedly an engineering student, born in 1987, from 
Cairo's low-income Shoubra Al-Kheima neighborhood.  Banner 
headlines and photos of his blast-damaged face appeared in 
all major Egyptian papers the following day.  Also widely 
published were photos of his family's apartment and 
interviews with his neighbors.  Some reports cited Interior 
Ministry claims that "jihadi" CD-ROMs and publications on 
bomb making had been found in his home.  Practically all 
commentary condemned the bombing, but some opposition 
papers claimed "foreign involvement."  For example, the 
lead headline in opposition Al-Wafd (circulation:  200,000) 
on April 14 read:  "Foreign plotting and funding in the Al- 
Azhar attacks," with the subtitle:  "Security experts point 
to signs of Mossad and American planning."  In the 
afternoon of April 17, ETV reported a Ministry of Interior 
statement claiming that the bomber was linked to an 
extremist group composed of four other Egyptians, three of 
whom had been arrested.  Several commentators appearing on 
ETV talk show programs on April 16 and 17 examined what 
influences might induce youths to become suicide bombers, 
e.g. poverty, despair, injustice, and images carried via 
the Internet. 
 
3.  Egyptian human rights report released:  The government- 
sponsored Egyptian National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) 
released its first human rights report on April 11 to a 
limited audience.  Dr. Ahmed Kamal Aboul Maged, NCHR Vice 
Chairman, appeared on ETV's program Al-Bayt Baytak ("Make 
Yourself at Home") on April 13 to explain the report and to 
restate NCHR's position against Egypt's Emergency Law. 
(Comment:  Broader coverage is likely once the report is 
released to the general public.  Currently, it is only 
available upon written request.  End comment.) 
 
4.  Pro-reform demonstrations covered:  The opposition 
press covered student demonstrations in favor of reform and 
the "liberation of Palestine and Iraq" at Assiut University 
on April 13.  Pan-Arab press and Egyptian pro-reform 
websites continued to cover planned Kifaya demonstrations, 
scheduled nationwide for April 27, and ongoing pro-reform 
Muslim Brotherhood demonstrations. 
 
GRAY