The Embassy of the United States in Egypt extends its condolences to the family of former President James Earl (Jimmy) Carter, who died peacefully on December 29 at age 100. President Carter served as the 39th President of the United States from 1977 to 1981. During his tenure, he focused on securing peace between Egypt and Israel, inviting President Anwar Sadat and Prime Minister Menachem Begin to Camp David for in-person negotiations in September 1978. Those negotiations culminated in the signing of the Camp David Accords, which remains a cornerstone of our shared efforts to promote peace and stability in the region.
After leaving office in 1981, President Carter remained close to President Sadat, stating: “I have never had a better and closer personal friend than Anwar Sadat. His family is close to mine. We have visited back and forth. We have shared great events and achievements, and we’ve shared tragedies as well.” Sadat was “the greatest world leader I have ever known in my life,” Carter said, and “I don’t know how to pay tribute to a man like him. Words are not enough.”
In retirement, President Carter founded The Carter Center which pursued humanitarian projects around the world. He remained active in Habitat for Humanity, building homes across the United States and internationally. In 2002, he received the Nobel Peace Prize “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden praised President Carter’s leadership, saying: “Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman, and humanitarian. With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe.”
Ambassador Herro Mustafa Garg stated that: “As President and in retirement, Jimmy Carter was dedicated to improving the lives of others. For Americans and Egyptians, the bonds forged between Presidents Carter and Sadat, particularly during the historic Camp David negotiations which played such a transformative role in advancing peace in the Middle East, are emblematic of the profound friendship and vision for peace shared by our two great countries.”
To learn more about President Carter’s legacy and read original materials from the historic Camp David Accords, please visit The Jimmy Carter Presidential Library & Museum. View a photo tribute in honor of President Carter’s 100th birthday, held at Misr Public Library in Luxor on November 18, 2024. The exhibit was also displayed at the American University in Cairo October 1-10 and will travel to other cities within Egypt in the coming year.
