Hussein Salem facts for kids

Hussein Salem (born November 11, 1933 – died August 12, 2019) was an Egyptian businessman. He was known for his role in the East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG) and his connection with former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. He also led HKS Group, a company that runs the Maritim Jolie Ville Resort in Sharm El Sheikh. People often called him "one of the most private businessmen in Egypt" and a close friend of Mubarak. He was also known as the "Father of Sharm El Sheikh" because he helped develop many resorts there.

Early Life and Education

Hussein Salem was born on November 11, 1933, in Sinai Peninsula, Egypt. Some records suggest he was born in Helwan, a suburb of Cairo. His father, Kamal el-Din, was a school teacher who passed away when Hussein was young. After his father's death, his family moved to Heliopolis, a district in Cairo.

His mother, Hosnia Tabozoda, was of Turkish origin. She found it hard to support her children with only her late husband's pension. This meant Hussein, being the oldest of his two siblings, became the main helper for his family. He also had five half-siblings from his father's first marriage, but he was not responsible for them. There were rumors that he had Bedouin roots, which some say he spread to help his business deals with Bedouin tribes in southern Sinai Peninsula.

When he was a child, Hussein Salem had an eye injury. This prevented him from joining the mandatory military service. He finished high school at Heliopolis Public High School, but he had to repeat his final year. In 1956, he graduated from Cairo University with a degree in Commerce. Soon after, a relative helped him get a job as a clerk at the Textile Support Fund. This fund was created by then-president Gamal Abdel Nasser to help with high unemployment.

In 1959, he married Nazimah Abdel-Hamid Ismail. They moved into an apartment in Heliopolis. Their first child, Khaled, was born in 1961, and their daughter, Magda, was born two years later. For many years, Salem did not own a car or many luxury items. He often had to borrow money to pay for his son Khaled's private school education. Hussein Salem passed away on August 12, 2019, in Spain.

Business Career

Working in Baghdad

In the early 1960s, Hussein Salem worked as a branch director for the Arab Company for External Trade in Casablanca, Morocco. This company was thought to be connected to the Egyptian Intelligence Services. A former CEO of the company remembered Salem as a very private employee who traveled a lot. It is believed Salem was involved in supervising arms deals to support nationalist movements against European colonialism in North Africa.

In 1963, Salem moved to Baghdad, Iraq, to work for the same company. There, he became friends with important staff at the Egyptian embassy. He was known for being "likable" and good at building relationships. He helped embassy employees buy cars at low interest rates. Salem wanted to move to Europe to start his own business, but instead, he was sent on missions to Arab States of the Persian Gulf. These trips helped him build important connections for his future business ventures.

Moving to Abu Dhabi

In 1972, Salem moved to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). He became the CEO of the Arab Emirates Trade Company, which imported food supplies. He was helped by Hassan Abbas Zaki, a former Egyptian economy minister and an adviser to the UAE president, Sheikh Zayed. Between 1972 and 1977, Salem built many business connections in Western countries, as well as India and Pakistan. He gained a lot of money and started moving large amounts of cash to Switzerland, where he also bought several hotels.

Salem's financial situation improved greatly starting in 1977. He left the UAE that same year. Some sources say he left because other Emirati business families felt his operations were harming them. One source claims he was arrested and spent a few days in an Emirati jail, but a high-ranking official denied this, stating Salem was not charged and was pardoned by Sheikh Zayed.

Return to Egypt and Washington, D.C.

After his time in the UAE, Salem returned to Egypt. He had made connections with influential people in Egypt by hiring their relatives for positions in his company. In late 1977, he met Hosni Mubarak, who became Egypt's vice president in 1975. Salem moved into a new apartment building he built in Heliopolis. Although he was a millionaire, he took a job at the economy ministry, managing trade deals. He kept his other business ventures private. In 1979, he was appointed Minister of Trade at the Egyptian embassy in Washington, D.C..

That same year, Salem became CEO of the Egyptian American Transportation Company (ETSCO). This company was set up in Delaware with a branch in Cairo. In 1982, The Washington Post published an article about issues the company had with arms deals after the Camp David Accords were signed in 1979. These deals involved using money from Persian Gulf states to support efforts against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. The Egyptian foreign minister denied these claims.

Investing in Sinai Tourism

When Hosni Mubarak became president in 1981, Hussein Salem had already become his friend. By 1987, the southern Sinai Peninsula saw a big increase in real estate investment, especially in Sharm al-Sheikh. That year, Salem started building a very large hotel called the Jolie Ville in the city. People wondered how Salem managed to get land in Sinai, as it was usually hard for locals to buy even small plots. High-ranking officials believed Salem got land contracts because of his close friendships with Mubarak and his son Gamal.

From 1987 into the early 2000s, Salem built a tourism business in Sinai, owning several hotels. He expanded his operations to include a large conference hall, a golf course, and even a luxurious mosque for Mubarak. In 1997, the Jolie Ville hosted a major conference about peace in the Middle East.

Local Bedouin people living along the Sinai coast sometimes felt that Salem's projects did not help their community. They complained that his businesses did not contribute to their well-being. A former governor, Abdel-Moneim Said, agreed, saying, "Salem did not contribute anything that benefited ordinary people in the governorate."

Egyptian-Israeli Gas Deals

In 1993, after peace agreements between Israelis and Palestinians, Egypt and Israel began working on a gas pipeline. This pipeline would supply Israel with natural gas. Mubarak gave Salem licenses to work on this project and to build a petroleum refinery in Sinai. Salem had connections with Israeli business circles since the 1970s. In 1996, Salem sold most of his shares in the new refinery company, Midor, and made a good profit. In 2007, he sold most of his shares in the East Mediterranean Gas Company.

Later Life

Hussein Salem left Egypt on February 3, 2011, during the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. He went to Spain, where he also had citizenship. He was later arrested in Spain on June 14, 2011. He faced accusations related to his business dealings in Egypt. Spanish judges set his bail at a high amount.

In March 2012, a Spanish court ruled that Salem and his son Khaled should be sent back to Egypt to face charges. Spanish authorities also froze money in his bank accounts and seized homes he owned. In June 2012, an Egyptian court found Salem and a former Petroleum Minister guilty and sentenced them to prison while they were not present.

In 2016, Salem made a deal to allow him and his family to return to Egypt without facing further legal action. This deal required Salem to give up a large part of his wealth. However, Salem remained in Spain until his death because Spanish authorities did not send him back to Egypt. He passed away on August 12, 2019, in Spain.

See also

In Spanish: Hussein Salem para niños

• Ahmed Ezz (businessman)