Category Archives: UAE

Peninsula Mercenaries, Peninsula Foreign Legion, UAE……..

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I have been wondering, nay worrying, what is behind this large mercenary force being gathered in the UAE? The al-Nahayan autocrats surely don’t expect these Colombians, South Africans, Europeans, Americans, Israelis (possibly) and others to just sit in the desert. They must have a goal for them. Is it as reported to keep the peace by putting down popular uprisings in the UAE and possibly other Gulf areas? Then what is the Peninsula Shield doing in Bahrain (actually it is the Saudis doing it all in Bahrain)?

I suspect that the reason for gathering this mercenary force in the UAE has to do with Saudi Arabia. The al-Nahayan have at best cool relations with their fellow despots in Riyadh. There have been cases of friction in the past few years, and there are still pending border territorial issues that their media tries not to report. The UAE has sparse native population, and has to import foreign labor for almost everything that needs to be done. About 85% or so of the people are temporary imported foreigners (mostly housemaids and laborers, but professionals as well). They can’t form any substantial military force out of that. Even the natives eschew military service in the harsh climate in favor of government jobs. Hence the idea of forming a Foreign-Legion style mercenary force. That would save the al-Nahayan from having to depend on the al-Saud. Apparently (at least to me) they do not like what they have seen in Bahrain and have concluded that if anyone will have to commit atrocities in their country it better be a force under their own command. Hence this large mercenary force.
Cheers
mhg




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United Arab Emirates, NYU , University of Sorbonne, Louvre, Guggenheim, Money, Lots of it…………

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Numerous death threats, his employer’s demand to transfer out of the country and a middle-of-the-night visit from state security forces were not enough to intimidate the prominent Emirati rights activist Ahmed Mansoor, who recently called for political reforms. Security forces managed to silence him only by whisking him away from his family during a raid on his house on April 8…… Six weeks later, leading international institutions with major stakes in the United Arab Emirates, like New York University, University of Paris-Sorbonne, and the Louvre and Guggenheim museums, remain silent over the detention of Mansoor, a member of Human Rights Watch’s Middle East and North Africa advisory committee. They have looked the other way as the government widened its crackdown on civil society by arresting four other activists and purging the elected boards of two prominent civil society organizations. By refusing to condemn this repression despite their prominent presence in the UAE, these public institutions are complicit in the abuses of their partner — the UAE government — and do a disservice to their mission of serving the enlightenment of humanity. ………….. Also sprach a good young man.
Samer Muscati
apparently doesn’t understand the different missions of these great institutions of learning and museums. NYU, Sorbonne, the Louvre, and the Guggenheim have dual missions.  (1) Their mission at home in Europe and the USA is to educate, enlighten, and improve human conditions. But that is in places like Paris and New York. (2) In other places, in my Gulf region, especially in a place like Abu Dhabi, their role can be put succinctly in one five-letter word: M-O-N-E-Y. In French it is a six-letter word: A-R-G-E-N-T. As for those of us, like Mr. Muscati, myself and many others, who expect more and better from such lofty institutions, their leaders have one word for us: it is a FOUR-letter word. They are too genteel to say it, but we all know what it means.
(Remember, we should try to understand how they see things: what the hell do we, in our region, know about humanity and self determination and freedom? Not enough to offset the good money).
Cheers
mhg



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UAE: a Tribal State of the Union………

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This year is an ideal time for the UAE, the only successful union in the Arab world, to also institutionalize an annual State of the Federation address. In fact, the Emirates isn’t far behind in this regard. Both the UAE’s president as well as the prime minister issue comprehensive public statements annually on the UAE’s National Day. For instance, the UAE’s first parliamentary elections were announced by the President in a statement marking the federation’s anniversary in 2005 . The text is published in Dira Alwatan or Nation’s Shield magazine and is also made available on the prime minister’s internet portal. There is something to be said for a public address though. It is a major media event, a collective celebration of achievements over the past year and the spelling of hopes and challenges for the upcoming one. Next December is an opportune occasion to institutionalize a state of the union address custom……..

Oh boy, I can’t wait to hear the proposed speech by Shaikh Whatishisface of Abu Dhabi address the other six tribal leaders. I bet he won’t stumble more than twice in every sentence. Also, shouldn’t they start freeing their political prisoners, those who called for freedom and were imprisoned? Shouldn’t they have real not fake elections before having a state of the tribes speech?
Besides, wtf in the world would want to hear it? Unless he talks about the effeorts to advance the country from the second biggest importer of weapons in the whole world to the first importer of weapons in the whole world. And given that his nation is composed mostly of foreign temporary workers and housemaids (some 85%), should he not have simultaneous translation of the speech into several languages?
Cheers
mhg




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The Abu Dhabi Empire Extends to Pakistan?…………..

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During a recent, rare briefing to parliament, a top Pakistani air force commander made a surprising claim: a remote southwestern airfield long suspected of housing US drones used in missile strikes was actually under the control of the United Arab Emirates. The comment stunned lawmakers and ordinary Pakistanis, who – in the wake of the May 2 US raid that killed Osama bin Laden in northwest Pakistan – had been questioning whether their nation has been surrendering its sovereignty. But this week, a UAE official only added to the mystery by strongly denying to The Associated Press that the Gulf state has any operational role in the Shamsi airfield, although, the official, said wealthy Arabs have occasionally used it to fly to Pakistan on hunting expeditions……The extent of its involvement today is that UAE sheiks and others may use the airfield for “recreational purposes” such as hunting expeditions, the official said. Those private, civilian planes that come in for hunting and falconry trips must get clearance from Pakistani aviation authorities and file flight plans, according to the UAE official. The base “was never operated nor controlled by the UAE,” said the official, who had been briefed on the subject by the Gulf state’s Foreign Ministry and requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive subject. The US used the Shamsi field as a forward staging point in the initial period …..….
A strange story: a Pakistani airfield under UAE control that is used by the United States? It almost sounds like a script for a cheap action film.
 
Shamsi Airfield. The Shamsi are a UAE clan with close ties to the ruling family. They are like the Al Al Shaikh in Saudi Arabia: they dominate many government organizations and businesses. Could that be the source of the name? So the Abu Dhabi honchos spend millions a year on Pakistani religious schools that reportedly raise Salafi terrorists, then invite the U.S. to bomb the same from “their” base? Somehow it doesn’t sound accurate. I need to investigate it.

(It is true , though, that the Pakistanis give certain preferential treatment to some Gulf potentates from ruling families, especially Saudis and Emiratis. They are allotted areas in which to hunt even while others are banned. I read over a year ago that some potentates have set areas where they have exclusive hunting rights. Some of these are in supposedly ‘protected’ reserves).
Cheers
mhg



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UAE Flashpoint: Blackwater in Zayed Military City…………

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The Colombians had entered the United Arab Emirates posing as construction workers. In fact, they were soldiers for a secret American-led mercenary army being built by Erik Prince, the billionaire founder of Blackwater Worldwide, with $529 million from the oil-soaked sheikdom. Mr. Prince, who resettled here last year after his security business faced mounting legal problems in the United States, was hired by the crown prince of Abu Dhabi to put together an 800-member battalion of foreign troops for the U.A.E., according to former employees on the project, American officials and corporate documents obtained by The New York Times. The force is intended to conduct special operations missions inside and outside the country, defend oil pipelines and skyscrapers from terrorist attacks and put down internal revolts, the documents show. Such troops could be deployed if the Emirates faced unrest or were challenged by pro-democracy demonstrations in its crowded labor camps or democracy protests like those sweeping the Arab world this year. …… The Colombians, along with South African and other foreign troops, are trained by retired American soldiers and veterans of the German and British special operations units and the French Foreign Legion, according to the former employees and American officials……..

The al-Nahayn clan of Abu Dhabi are moving up in the world. Not only are they the second biggest importer of weapons in the world (and aiming to be the absolute biggest) with a native population of only a few hundred thousand. They are also gathering an elite foreign mercenary force under former Blackwater executives. It is not clear what their goal is, but they can probably wreak havoc in places like Oman and some of the poorer emirates that are more likely to rebel. They can also start probing around the Persian-American Gulf in a way that could start a military conflict with Iran: that is very likely to draw in the United States. In other words, this despotic oil-soaked Abu Dhabi clan could force Americans to enter yet another war in the Middle East, just as the Wikileaks cables told us they had urged the USA to do. A very dangerous situation.
Cheers
mhg




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Following Laika and Armstrong: Abu Dhabi and Iran Head Into Space………

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The world could soon see the first Emirati in space, as the Global Space and Satellite Forum 2011 (GSSF)focused on developing the regional space industry’s experts of the future. During the final day of GSSF, senior representatives from the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) delivered an interactive UAE Space Career and Exploration video uplink to a gathering of aspiring Emirati astronauts and space industry hopefuls. Dr Omar Al Emam, Voluntary Space Technology Advisor, Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF), spoke about the work of the NASA Lunar Science Institute in California and the importance of hands-on space technology for the youth of the region..……..

Space exploration sure has come a long way. Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first man in space. I believe Alan Shepard (?) was the first American in space, although Neil Armstrong is the most known. In addition to so many humans having gone into space, there are many of other species as well. The Soviet Union, the first country to invade space, sent the first dog and first human into orbit in space (not together). Laika, a dedicated communist whom some Russians suspected of being a secret Trotskyite, was the first dog and her name means “barker”, as in woof woof. The Americans also sent many animals over time. The most popular animals for sending into space were your nearest cousins the simians. Which makes sense.
The UAE is hoping to send an astronaut into space aboard an American spaceship. The Saudis sent one of their princes on an American mission during the 1980s. When the prince landed back on Earth safely he was asked what was the toughest task he faced in space, and his answer was typical “I had a hard time determining which way to face Mecca”. The prince was a pilot but apparently he was no scientist. I understand that he was never asked another question again.
Back to the United Arab Emirates: it is not clear who they will send if NASA agrees, some years down the road. Can it be another shaikh? I doubt that Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed al-Nahayn, ruler of Abu Dhabi will go: he is probably too old and looks rather lumpy. Shaikh Mohammed of Dubai looks too damn serious for anyone to be locked up with in a small spaceship. All the other Bin Zayed al-Nahayan don’t look any more cheerful for company. I was going to nominate their foreign minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed al-Nahayn, Metternich of Abu Dhabi, but then who will run the march of our world toward peace and democracy in his absence?
The Iranians have also been threatening to send a man into space during this decade. They already have some satellites up and will launch more this year or next. They have not announced yet whether their spaceman will be a mullah (cleric) or a ‘civilian’. Ahmadinejad will be out of office by that time, which may mean something in this context, or maybe not.
Cheers
mhg




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Slumdogs of Dubai: Not Your Father’s Dubai………….

     
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Dubai: A man masturbating on a public street; a woman waking up to an intruder in her bedroom; a peeping Tom spying through women’s bathroom windows… life in Mirdif isn’t what it used to be. The once-sleepy suburb of families has attracted residents of various moralities, due to the downward spiral in rents………”On weekends I’ve seen mid-teens sitting on the steps with bottles of vodka in their hands,” says a 21-year-old Sudanese. XPRESS has also witnessed teenagers making out on the steps of the back entrance, as well as groups of underage boys leering at women. A drive around the area reveals an increasing number of obscene graffiti on walls and teenagers sitting on street corners smoking. “Mirdif was never like this,” says 34 year-old Rainn Walker. “Now, everyone who’s of the wrong kind is in Mirdif. Two months ago, a boy who looked to be no older than 13 grabbed my behind as he walked past me on street 37. Last week I read about a woman who was kidnapped and held in Mirdif. Who knows what I’ll hear next. I’m having second thoughts about living here, ” she says……..

It ain’t your father’s, or your mother’s, Dubai these days. It ain’t my father’s Dubai either (he made sorties there in the old pre-oil days, along with many others). These symptoms have always existed in the backstreets of Dubai, as they have in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh and, dare I say it, Mecca. There was so much going on in Dubai for the media in the boom years that these things were overlooked: nobody wanted to cover the slums with open sewers and Kabul-quality electricity and water services. Just like nobody ever covers the truly seamy side of Las Vegas. Now with the bust and the departure of many European and Gulf investors, the owners of these formerly exclusive developments have had to lower their sights. And their rents. The slums of Dubai have begun to move into the formerly exclusive parts of Dubai. The slumdogs of Dubai are moving in.
Cheers
mhg

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Only in Dubai: an Impotent Polygamist Womanizer………

     
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Dubai: An Emirati man is being sued for Dh45 million in compensation for failing to sexually perform. The defendant’s ex-wife, told the court that she suffered from her husband’s erectile dysfunction while they were married. In her civil compensation claim, the ex-wife alleged that the accused suffered from sexual impotency that resulted in failing to fulfil her needs and forced her to have what she termed as “inhumane sex”. The case is being heard before the Dubai Courts…… She said her husband did not sleep with her in the first four months of their marriage. “When he did for the first time, he treated me inhumanly and inappropriately,” she told the court. “I discovered later on that he suffered erectile dysfunction. He was exactly the opposite of what he claimed to me before we signed the marriage contract……….”He was a sweet talker and after we got married, I discovered that he is a womanizer who married more than 12 times. Although he was a former public figure, but that didn’t prevent him from allegedly manipulating decent girls and spend weeks of pleasure with them before ditching them…….”

He was an impotent husband who was a serial womanizer and had married 12 women. Twelvefuckingwomen! No wonder he was impotent. Contrary to legend, “excessive” polygamy can lead to ED, sort of like taking steroids.
I don’t assume anyone knows if his name was Whatishisface al-Nahayan.
I list this under “culture”.
Cheers
mhg

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My Gulf: Two Views of Dubai and Kabul……..

     
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A cynical foreign view: “This is a good question! Everyone knows that Dubai is the most useless city in the world, filled with entitled, arrogant, rude, mindlessly materialistic Emiratis and the shopping malls that sustain them. If Dubai receded into the sand that surrounds it or if its man-made palm shaped islands were drowned by rising sea levels, we would not feel bad for more than one minute. This is all true and not subject to debate. There is absolutely no reason to go to Dubai. Unless, of course, you are arriving from one of the neighboring shitholes (Kabul, Baghdad, Kandahar). In that case, Dubai is absolutely indispensable. It is the only place for you. Dubai must exist because Kabul does, just a short two-hour flight away. Kabul is filthy, violent, medieval and necklaced with razor wire. Thirty percent of the dust in the air is fecal matter. The blue sacks sitting in the mud (30% of which, it stands to reason, is also fecal matter) in intersections are not bags of potatoes; they are women in burqas begging. Donkey carts, armored SUVs and military convoys jam its unpaved streets. Dubai is none of these things (it’s pretty much what happens what medieval warlords do when they come into lot of money, but that’s a different post)………

A native brown-noser view:
But why did one succeed while the other failed? Why did ‘Death to America’ not resonate? I suppose, in the end, nobody wants to live in Tora Bora — not even Bin Laden apparently — but, rather Dubai. People rose because they wanted to live well. It must have been hard for Egyptians and Tunisians to understand how a city-state like Dubai, and the UAE in general, could develop with none of the resources of their countries, let alone their political and social institutions. It was no longer about being like London or Paris but rather like Dubai……..”

As for me: I have been to Dubai, both before and after, and I have been to some of those other places. I think the truth lies somewhere in between, between the cynical foreigner and the native writer who never seems to want to displease the ruling masters. My gut feeling, which does not always agree with my economist’s judgment (I have gone sour on economics these past three years), is that the cynical foreigner is closer to the truth. The native writer al-Gergawi always seems eager to please the powers that be, the rulers; but I have read only two or three of his postings. The foreign cynic Carpetblogger clearly doesn’t give a rat’s ass about pleasing anyone, and that is a good sign. Besides, I have never cottoned up to brown-nosers, even when I got so close to being one myself some years ago. Close, but never made it.
Cheers
mhg




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Shaikhs and Bins: the Rapidly Evolving UAE Police State……..

     
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The United Arab Emirates has been cracking down on any whiff of dissent. This week, the regime took over the Teachers Union and appointed its own agents on the board because they had advocated for democracy. They have not yet been charged of being Iranian agents but stay tuned. A week or two earlier they dissolved the independent human rights organization for the same reason. Several advocates of free speech and democracy have been arrested and are still in prison. Some of the latter have been charged with insulting the ruler of Abu Dhabi (president of UAE) Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan and his crown prince Shaikh Mohammed Bin Zayed al-Nahayan and the ruler of Dubai Shaikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum. I am not sure how they insulted these tribal absolute shaikhs, maybe they stuck their tongues out at their ubiquitous pictures.
The al-Nahayan, rulers of Abu Dhabi who run the whole UAE (the other shaikhs are just for show), are apparently worried about unrest. This is odd for two reasons:

Why are they worried I: The overwhelming majority of the UAE are temporary imported foreign workers and housemaids who are rotated every few years and have no interest in the internal politics of the country. They probably form around 85% of the population. Maybe the al-Nahayan can imiose masters of Apartheid the al-Khalifa in Bahrain and naturalize these millions of Asians to offset the politically demanding natives.

Why are they worried II: The UAE is the second biggest importer of weapons in the whole wide wonderful world. They are a bigger importer than Israel and Saudi Arabia. They are buying weapons faster than they can rust in their desert warehouses: they are clearly striving to become the first biggest importer of weapons in the whole wide world. Since they obviously have no intention of invading either Saudi Arabia or Iran, and they seem to think they can always buy Oman, the only reason for these weapons is to keep their people under control. I mean their native people since the Asian housemaids who form a majority of the people are not likely to start a revolution. So with all these weapons in the desert warehouses, what is there to worry about?

I still think
their best bet is to find an Iranian connection, create one if they must. If the hapless al-Khalifa could do it in Bahrain and sell it to Robert Gates and Hillary Clinton, the al-Nahayan should be able to do even better if only because they have more money. Or maybe they can blame it on the devil.
More on this later.
Cheers
mhg

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