In Mubarak’s Egypt, director Charlie Smith investigates America’s role during the final years of Hosni Mubarak’s regime. By then Egypt, once the Arab world’s most important power, had become a regional bit-player stagnating in corruption and cronyism. Smith shows how successive US presidents tried to force Mubarak to reform and how, along with most of Egypt’s population, Washington finally ran out of patience.
With contributions from many of the leading players in Cairo – such as Mubarak’s Foreign Minister, Adel Aboul Gheit, and cabinet minister Farouk Hosni – the film show how revolution became the only option left to the millions betrayed by the rule of a modern-day pharaoh.
The film also shows how Mubarak’s fall marked a watershed for America’s role in the Middle East. US witnesses include Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, George Bush’s adviser Elliott Abrams, and Assistant Secretary of State Mike Posner.
