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Shams Badran, the controversial Egyptian minister of war during the reign of former President Gamal Abdel Nasser, died in Plymouth, Great Britain, at the age of 91.
What do we know of the man whose name has long been associated with “torture” among opponents of the Nasserite era, and who was accused of being one of those responsible for the defeat of the Egyptian army in the June 1967 war?
Badran was born in the Egyptian governorate of Giza in 1929 and graduated from the Military Academy in 1948, just six months after joining it to participate in the Palestinian War. He was among the forces surrounding the Palestinian city of Fallujah, and at that time his connection with members of what is known as the Free Officers Organization against the monarchy in Egypt was strengthened.
After the 1952 July Revolution, Shams Badran rose to positions, becoming director of the office of Abdel Hakim Amer, First Vice President of the Republic and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. He was also known for his proximity to President Gamal Abdel Nasser, who elected him as Minister of War in 1966, in a decision that generated controversy for what was described as his lack of necessary competence.
Minister of War of the “reverse”
Shams Badran was considered one of those responsible for the defeat of the Egyptian army in the June 1967 war, or what is known as the “setback” in official Egyptian literature, during which Egypt, along with the Arab countries, lost lands in favor of Israel, and then resigned a few days later along with Abdel Hakim Amer, who at the time was the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces.
According to accounts from several people close to Abdel Nasser, the Egyptian president had intended to name Badran as his successor in his famous resignation speech after the 1967 defeat, before he retracted the matter and then ordered his trial with a group of army commanders for the responsibility for the defeat, amid reports of their involvement. An attempted coup in favor of Abdul Hakim Amer, who died three months after the defeat in circumstances that continue to cause controversy to this day.
Badran remained in prison until 1974, when the late President Anwar Sadat released him, to leave the country for Britain on a diplomatic passport, and he remained there until his death.
Shams Badran and the “Brotherhood”
Badran took over the file of confrontation with the Muslim Brotherhood and the dismantling of their cells in what became known as the “Organization 65” case, referring to the year in which prominent leaders of the group were brought to military trials for overthrowing the regime, and after which the death penalty was carried out against the famous leader of the Sayed Qutb Brothers in 1966.
The name Shams Badran was often associated with accusations by members of the “Muslim Brotherhood” of using torture to extract confessions during investigations in the 1960s, until its critics called it “the myth of torture.”
Badran denied these accusations in his memoirs published by the Al-Siyasa newspaper in 2014, saying that they carry much exaggeration that reaches the level of myths and delusions.