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Capt Asmaa Saeed Al Ali says flying crucial humanitarian aid into Gaza gave her a sense of honour “to offer a lifeline to embattled Palestinians”.
She is part of the first UAE team that headed to the Egyptian city of Al Arish as part of the Gallant Knight 3 operation in November to support those caught in the conflict.
The National caught up with the Emirati military pilot as pallets filled with medical and food aid were being loaded into the C-130 aircraft at Al Arish ahead of an an air operation.
“I was here from the beginning,” she said, calling it her “national duty”.
Apart from relief aid, Capt Al Ali also flew doctors and teams involved in building the UAE's floating and field hospitals and desalination plants into the Egyptian port city, along with equipment and other items required for the medical facilities.
Flying the C-130 and C-17 aircraft, she was also involved in evacuating injured Palestinians.
Capt Al Ali has also carried out three deliveries by air to areas in Gaza that were not easily accessible by road.
“It is an honour to be able to offer a lifeline to embattled Palestinians caught up in the conflict,” she said, adding how deliveries are crucial to help Gazans who face dire shortages of food and basic necessities.
“I felt honoured when I heard in the news that they were called 'Birds of Goodness'.”
'Each street has a painful story'
Flying above the besieged Gaza Strip, Capt Al Ali said she would often ask her assistant pilot to take control of the C-130 aircraft so she could survey the conditions below.
“I was curious to see what's happening on the ground.”
The images of destruction and devastation evoke a mixed feeling, she said.
“Part of me is happy to see pallets of aid being dropped to help the people, but it is sad to see cities and streets left destroyed due to the conflict.
“You feel each street has a painful story to tell.”
So far, the UAE has carried out dozens of deliveries by air since February, partnering with teams from the Egyptian and Jordanian Air Force to ensure vital aid reaches remote parts of Gaza.
Capt Al Ali believes it's a personal victory for her and her country if the air deliveries “bring a smile on a child's face”.
“Seeing the parachutes from the sky is like seeing the UAE's hands reaching the people inside Gaza.”
The UAE has offered essential financial and humanitarian assistance since the war broke out on October 7, under President Sheikh Mohamed's directives.
Figures released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in June showed the Emirates had provided 33,100 tonnes of urgent supplies to Gaza since November.
The aid was delivered by 320 flights, seven ships and 1,243 lorries up until June 13. That amounts to an additional 1,100 tonnes since May.
Talking about the “values instilled in her from a young age”, she credits the UAE Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, for teaching her to “always look for peace”.
“Our leaders represent peace, and they taught us to help people in need. It is not only a duty or our job, but we are doing what our leaders taught us,” Capt Al Ali added.
She said the “operations to help our brothers in Gaza” will continue.
“I consider myself lucky for having got the opportunity to take on this humanitarian duty,” she said, adding that she's ready to serve anytime and anywhere.
“As an Emirati military pilot, I’m always ready for any duty in any place and at any time.”
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World Series: South Africa
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UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
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International Vets: Joining Jack
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
MORE ON TURKEY'S SYRIA OFFENCE
COPA DEL REY
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
Match info:
Manchester City 2
Sterling (8'), Walker (52')
Newcastle United 1
Yedlin (30')
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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match info
Southampton 0
Arsenal 2 (Nketiah 20', Willock 87')
Red card: Jack Stephens (Southampton)
Man of the match: Rob Holding (Arsenal)
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Aymeric Laporte (Manchester City)
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Afghanistan fixtures
- v Australia, today
- v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
- v New Zealand, Saturday,
- v South Africa, June 15
- v England, June 18
- v India, June 22
- v Bangladesh, June 24
- v Pakistan, June 29
- v West Indies, July 4
Emirates exiles
Will Wilson is not the first player to have attained high-class representative honours after first learning to play rugby on the playing fields of UAE.
Jonny Macdonald
Abu Dhabi-born and raised, the current Jebel Ali Dragons assistant coach was selected to play for Scotland at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2011.
Jordan Onojaife
Having started rugby by chance when the Jumeirah College team were short of players, he later won the World Under 20 Championship with England.
Devante Onojaife
Followed older brother Jordan into England age-group rugby, as well as the pro game at Northampton Saints, but recently switched allegiance to Scotland.
Uefa Champions League last 16 draw
Juventus v Tottenham Hotspur
Basel v Manchester City
Sevilla v Manchester United
Porto v Liverpool
Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain
Shakhtar Donetsk v Roma
Chelsea v Barcelona
Bayern Munich v Besiktas
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
