Turkey has been here before. In May 2013, two car bombs were detonated in the city of Reyhanli in the south, a stone’s throw from the Syrian border. Fifty-two civilians died. While ISIL militants claimed responsibility for the bombing, Turkey’s intelligence agencies never ruled out the possibility of Al Qaeda-linked Al Nusra Front’s involvement.
Regardless of the identity of the perpetrators, the Reyhanli attack brought Turkey’s Syria policy into sharp focus. The event forced Recep Tayyip Erdogan, now president but then the prime minister, to change his country’s border policy with Syria. Up until that point, the Turkish border with Syria was the main entry point into the civil war for militants and weapons. And motivated by its hard anti-Assad stance, Turkey had largely turned a blind eye to the movement of fighters in the borderlands. The primary result of the Reyhanli bombing was much stricter Turkish border controls. That said, given the length of the border, Ankara was not able to fully enforce absolute control. Or so it has claimed.
It is too early to say whether this week’s suspected ISIL suicide bombing in the Turkish border town of Suruc will force a change in policy. What is abundantly clear is that Turkey is yet again made aware that it is not immune to the threat posed by ISIL. That includes the threat from within – its own citizens – and that of ISIL’s increasingly long arm extending from northern Syria. It could clamp down further on its borders in a bid to completely cut off ISIL’s supply lines and it could continue the campaign to arrest Turkish ISIL recruits in major cities such as Ankara and Istanbul.
Saudi Arabia’s recent arrest of more than 400 suspected ISIL members shows that the strongest message that countries in the region can convey to the extremist group is that they will restrict its sympathisers. With one of the most extensive domestic surveillance networks in the world, Turkey is well placed to dismantle ISIL’s foothold in the country. The Suruc bombing underlines a basic fact: without action, Turkey’s perceived immunity will not protect it much longer.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
CREW
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Company profile
Company: Verity
Date started: May 2021
Founders: Kamal Al-Samarrai, Dina Shoman and Omar Al Sharif
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Size: four team members
Stage: Intially bootstrapped but recently closed its first pre-seed round of $800,000
Investors: Wamda, VentureSouq, Beyond Capital and regional angel investors
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
More on Quran memorisation:
Punchy appearance
Roars of support buoyed Mr Johnson in an extremely confident and combative appearance
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Who is Tim-Berners Lee?
Sir Tim Berners-Lee was born in London in a household of mathematicians and computer scientists. Both his mother, Mary Lee, and father, Conway, were early computer scientists who worked on the Ferranti 1 - the world's first commercially-available, general purpose digital computer. Sir Tim studied Physics at the University of Oxford and held a series of roles developing code and building software before moving to Switzerland to work for Cern, the European Particle Physics laboratory. He developed the worldwide web code as a side project in 1989 as a global information-sharing system. After releasing the first web code in 1991, Cern made it open and free for all to use. Sir Tim now campaigns for initiatives to make sure the web remains open and accessible to all.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
'Midnights'
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Neil Thomson – THE BIO
Family: I am happily married to my wife Liz and we have two children together.
Favourite music: Rock music. I started at a young age due to my father’s influence. He played in an Indian rock band The Flintstones who were once asked by Apple Records to fly over to England to perform there.
Favourite book: I constantly find myself reading The Bible.
Favourite film: The Greatest Showman.
Favourite holiday destination: I love visiting Melbourne as I have family there and it’s a wonderful place. New York at Christmas is also magical.
Favourite food: I went to boarding school so I like any cuisine really.
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
