“I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank.”
The words of one Barack Obama on October 27, 2007, uttered during his presidential campaign two years before he assumed office in the White House. And, true to his word, Obama has overseen the steady withdrawal of United States troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. But there was, until recently, one pawn left in the game – one piece of unfinished business – in the shape of an American soldier called Bowe Bergdahl.
Bergdahl had, until his release on May 31, been held captive by Taliban forces after being taken prisoner on, or just after, June 30, 2009. Yet, while any “normal” release of an American prisoner of war would be a catalyst for national high-fiving, the US hasn’t really known what to think this time around because, in the eyes of many, Bergdahl is a deserter and a traitor who abandoned his post, put himself into the hands of the enemy and then expected his country to rescue him. Right now, nobody knows for sure what happened on that night five years ago, but it’s a political hot potato because, to secure his release, five ex-Guantanamo Bay prisoners were released in exchange – something that had been on the negotiating table since January 2012.
“They’re the five biggest murderers in world history. They killed Americans. I suppose Senator [John] Kerry is OK with that?” fumed the US senator John McCain, when it emerged that they were to be freed. Known as the “Taliban Five”, the prisoners were being held for “at least” 12 months in Qatar after being transferred from the infamous Cuba base – the people in question are high-ranking members of the Taliban, including the army chief of staff, the deputy minister of intelligence, a former interior minister and two other senior figures.
Questions immediately began to be shouted, not only by the US public, but also by various lawmakers and Congress representatives. Did this action tell the world at large that America does, after all, negotiate with terrorists? Would this action encourage any nefarious group or individual to take hostage US troops, safe in the knowledge they’d end up getting what they wanted? And, even ignoring these two concerns, why, when US federal law states that when any Guantanamo prisoners are to be released or transferred, Congress must be given 30 days notice by the president himself, didn’t this happen here?
The answers to these concerns, as well as those surrounding Bergdahl's initial disappearance, may or may not come to light, but it's obvious that this is a story that won't be going away anytime soon – apart from anything else, it raises serious questions regarding army recruitment in America. On Wednesday this week, the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph reported that friends of Bergdahl had come forward to say that, in 2006, when he was 21 years old, he had been given an "uncharacterised discharge" from the US Coastguard after just 26 days of basic training. One close friend of Bergdahl's told The Washington Post that the reasons for his discharge were "psychological".
"A discharge on those grounds," said The Telegraph, "would normally disqualify a recruit to the armed forces. But in 2008, when Bergdahl enlisted for the military, the US army was issuing regular waivers for new recruits as it struggled to fill the ranks for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Indeed, Bergdahl’s mental state might mean the difference between returning to life as a free man or being tried and prosecuted as a deserter who put the lives of his fellow soldiers in grave danger by going AWOL and needing to be rescued. “When one of your shipmates goes overboard, you go get them. You don’t ask whether he jumped or he was pushed or he fell. You go get him first and then you find out,” said the White House spokesman Jay Carney this week. That finding out process will now be in full swing.
In an incredible report for Rolling Stone magazine in June 2012, the late Michael Hastings dug deep into the history and the state of mind of Bergdahl, visiting his parents at their home while they watched YouTube videos of their emaciated and incoherent son pleading for his life, begging to be rescued. Bob and Jani Bergdahl were, by all accounts, very open about their family's past.
Their son was born Bowe Robert Bergdahl, on March 28, 1986, in Sun Valley, Idaho, where they had moved to from California after college, building a two-bedroom farmhouse deep in the mountains of Wood River Valley. Bob was a construction worker and Jani worked “odd jobs”, both keeping a low profile while schooling their two children at home.
By the time that he was five years old, Bergdahl could ride horses and shoot rifles and he went on to develop a love for motocross and stereotypical boys’ adventure stuff. When he was 16, however, he’d had enough of home life and he absconded to be with a girl he’d met at a nearby fencing school. “To me,” said his father, “it was the normal path teenagers take. Like going to college – you get into all this stuff.”
Four years later, his thirst for adventure led him to Paris, where he tried to learn French so that he could enlist in the French Foreign Legion. His application was refused, something that his father said devastated him. “They just didn’t want an American home-schooled in Idaho. They just said: ‘No way.’” Or had the Legion’s recruiters picked up on something in Bergdahl that was missed by the US army?
Bergdahl became more and more obsessed with the life of an adventurer, regularly tuning in to the Man vs Wild television show, presented by a rather famous ex-soldier. "This became his role model," said his father. "He is Bear Grylls in his own mind."
In the spring of 2008, Bergdahl confessed to his parents that he had signed on the dotted line and that he had joined the US army. His mother dearly wished that he’d joined the navy instead, where he wouldn’t have been put on the front line in Iraq or Afghanistan, and both parents said that he’d joined under a false premise. They said that their son thought he was going over to help villagers rebuild their lives, not to engage the enemy.
According to his fellow officers, Bergdahl isolated himself and was known as a loner, and he was relocated to Afghanistan from his Alaska training base in March 2009. “If this deployment is lame,” he’d allegedly said to another soldier, “I’m just going to walk off into the mountains of Pakistan.”
Three months later, some of his critics would argue that he appears to have done exactly that, although there’s no clear evidence to support the claims that he simply deserted his post – it’s almost entirely circumstantial. The American public, though, wants answers and it wants them right now.
It’s clear, though, that this is and was a troubled young man, one that perhaps should not have joined up. He wanted an adventurous life, possibly to escape the mundanity of small-town America, and ended up being possibly the last piece in a war that has split opinion the world over. He has, he says, endured starvation, torture and solitary confinement in a pitch-black metal box and, while he’s no doubt ecstatic to have been freed, the pressures that he’s so far felt are likely to be nothing compared with what’s to come.
“Bowe’s own tour of duty in Afghanistan,” remarked Hastings, “mirrored the larger American experience in the war – marked by tragedy, confusion, misplaced idealism, deluded thinking and, perhaps, a moment of insanity.” As with so many things in this age of information overload, perhaps we will never know for sure.
khackett@thenational.ae
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Company%20profile
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 611bhp
Torque: 620Nm
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Price: upon application
On sale: now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Company%20profile
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Results:
Men's wheelchair 800m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 1.44.79; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 1.45.88; 3. Isaac Towers (GBR) 1.46.46.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The six points:
1. Ministers should be in the field, instead of always at conferences
2. Foreign diplomacy must be left to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation
3. Emiratisation is a top priority that will have a renewed push behind it
4. The UAE's economy must continue to thrive and grow
5. Complaints from the public must be addressed, not avoided
6. Have hope for the future, what is yet to come is bigger and better than before
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Teams in the EHL
White Bears, Al Ain Theebs, Dubai Mighty Camels, Abu Dhabi Storms, Abu Dhabi Scorpions and Vipers
The bio
Academics: Phd in strategic management in University of Wales
Number one caps: His best-seller caps are in shades of grey, blue, black and yellow
Reading: Is immersed in books on colours to understand more about the usage of different shades
Sport: Started playing polo two years ago. Helps him relax, plus he enjoys the speed and focus
Cars: Loves exotic cars and currently drives a Bentley Bentayga
Holiday: Favourite travel destinations are London and St Tropez
Abu Dhabi GP weekend schedule
Friday
First practice, 1pm
Second practice, 5pm
Saturday
Final practice, 2pm
Qualifying, 5pm
Sunday
Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps), 5.10pm
RESULT
Arsenal 0 Chelsea 3
Chelsea: Willian (40'), Batshuayi (42', 49')
Monster
Directed by: Anthony Mandler
Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., John David Washington
3/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Thor: Ragnarok
Dir: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson
Four stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
