CAIRO: It is possible to counter terrorism on the basis of “rule of law” and without violating basic human rights, said US Attorney General Eric Holder in a meeting Wednesday with journalists in Cairo.
Holder, on the last leg of a five-day trip to Uganda and Egypt, re-affirmed the US’s commitment to combating Al-Qaeda-inspired terrorism. His visit comes less than a month after the Al-Shabab bombings in Kampala, Uganda.
The Attorney General attended the closing days of the African Union summit in the Ugandan capital, as the representative of President Barack Obama and the American people.
The presence of a high-ranking US cabinet member at the summit indicated Obama’s recognition of the growing importance of Africa and of the fact that a safe and prosperous Africa would contribute to a safe and prosperous America, said Holder.
Holder, the top legal advisor to the US government, held meetings on Tuesday with Egyptian ministers, including the Ministers of the Interior, Justice and Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs, as well as Egypt’s Public Prosecutor Abdel Meguid Mahmoud.
In these meetings the case of Khaled Saeid, the 28-year-old Alexandrian who was allegedly beaten to death by police officers, was discussed. The Attorney General would not be drawn on the details of these exchanges.
The investigation into the death of Saeid and the trial of the two officers charged with unlawful arrest should be carried out “transparently” and anyone who is found to have exceeded their authority should be “held to account,” stated Holder.
He had explained to the Egyptian ministers the transparent and accountable manner in which such cases are dealt with in the US, and had expressed his hope to them that the Saeid case would be handled in a like manner, said Holder.
The Attorney General also reiterated the American government’s desire that the People’s Assembly elections taking place later this year should be “free and fair.”
He would not, however, comment on the role of the security services in overseeing these elections.
Holder would not be drawn on the question of the prospects of former IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei’s campaign, or of political change more generally.
Holder has been prominent in the effort to fulfill Obama’s promise to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center. He re-stated the Administration’s belief that the camp had acted as a “recruiting tool” for extremists.
Although Obama’s deadline for closing the notorious detention facility had been missed, important progress has been made in reviewing each individual case, said Holder.
On the subject of the leaked documents relating to the war in Afghanistan, the Attorney General asserted that he “deplores the release of classified information.”
Whether or not this affair will lead to prosecutions will be known only when a full investigation has been carried out, he said.
