US embassy cable - 05CAIRO8403

UNCLAS CAIRO 008403 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
FOR L AND NEA/ELA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, KCRM, EG 
SUBJECT: ASSURANCES FOR FUGITIVE MURDER SUSPECT SAMEH 
KHOUZAM 
 
REF: A. STATE 173542 
     B. CAIRO 6755 
     C. CAIRO 1672 
     D. STATE 25810 
 
Sensitive but Unclassified.  Please protect accordingly. 
 
1. (SBU) Assistant Public Prosecutor Ahmed Zohny told poloff 
on November 1 that it would be "impossible" for the Egyptian 
Public Prosecution to provide to the U.S. assurances that 
explicitly promised that fugitive Sameh Khouzam would not be 
subject to torture in the event of his return to Egypt.  "As 
a judicial authority, we investigate and prosecute cases of 
torture; it would be impossible for us to promise that we 
will not commit a crime; this would be illogical."  (Comment: 
 Our GOE judicial/law enforcement contacts have repeatedly 
told us offline that they consider insulting requests that 
they promise not to commit a criminal act.  End comment.) 
 
2. (SBU) Zohny, a senior aide to Public Prosecutor Maher 
Abdel Wahed (Egypt's equivalent to the U.S. 
Attorney-General), drew a distinction between the Khouzam 
case and the case of Nabil Soliman, who had been returned 
from the U.S. to Egypt in 2002.  "Khouzam's case is criminal 
in nature, while Soliman's was a terrorism case," Zohny 
stated - the murder charges against Khouzam put his case 
under the Public Prosecutor's jurisdiction, while Soliman's 
case was handled by the security services. 
 
3. (SBU) Zohny lamented that Public Prosecutor Maher Abdel 
Wahed's letter of August 4 (ref B), which confirmed that 
Khouzam was wanted for murder, noted that torture was 
criminized in Egypt, and affirmed that Khouzam would be 
accorded the protections and rights stipulated by the law, 
apparently did not constitute sufficient assurances for the 
USG. 
 
 
RICCIARDONE