Ariana Grande said she had “no words”. But in its own way, her short tweet after the bombing of young fans leaving her Manchester concert oozed eloquence and humanity.
For she also stated that she felt “broken … from the bottom of my heart, I am so so sorry” after Salman Abedi, 22-year-old Manchester-born of Libyan origin, murdered 22 people, including children and teenagers, on Monday night.
Grande had no cause to apologise, despite the offensive remarks of the “alt-right” British writer Milo Yiannopoulis, accusing the singer of being “ferociously pro-immigrant, pro-Islam and anti-America”. Nor do Britain’s overwhelmingly lawful Muslims bear culpability for an act proclaimed, wickedly and falsely, in their name.
Abedi’s ghastly last act of a life without value had nothing to do with Islam except in a distorted interpretation swallowed whole from whatever indoctrinating elements infiltrated his mind.
His parents were welcomed by the UK as refugees from the tyranny of Muammar Qaddafi. It must be hoped they now feel abject shame. His father and two brothers have been arrested, in the UK and Libya, and we must await the outcome of those developments.
But however blameless they and Abedi’s three siblings may all be shown to be, it is no longer unreasonable to expect the sins of the terrorist to be visited upon friends and relatives.
Some of the young men – or women – lured into extremism would be unmoved by the knowledge that their involvement in atrocities, planned or executed, will inevitably bring uncomfortable consequences for their families. They are, after all, brainwashed into regarding natural relatives as unworthy of obedience or respect.
But where a shred of love survives, some might stop short of acts likely to lead to the detention of family members and friends, long hours of questioning and, in appropriate circumstances, deportation. A society under threat is entitled to resort to rough justice.
Abedi’s case also reminds us once again of the compelling argument for some system of internment, detention without trial when legitimate suspicion cannot be proved.
In common with so many who pass from fanatical views to terrorism, he turns out to have been “known” to the police. Simply by asking questions, reporters have dug out ample anecdotal evidence of his radicalisation.
Round-the-clock surveillance is impractical without unimaginable increases in the intelligence services’ resources. If, however, there seems genuine ground for suspicion, as appears yet again to have been the case in Manchester, they can surely be rounded up and properly investigated.
An empowered panel of judges could decide each case on its own merits, ordering releases and even compensation where justified. Equally, any suspect with foreign or dual nationality should face the possibility of being expelled, in some cases – rough justice again – with family members.
Internment was not a success in Northern Ireland during Britain’s fight against the Irish Republican Army. Only a refined model, learning from past failures, would stand a chance of working now.
ISIL strives to make Muslims feel victimised. In the interests of justice as well as fairness, extremists of non-Muslim origin should accordingly be no less liable to imprisonment without trial. Consider the cases of those from far-right European movements with truly sinister connections and outlooks.
But the broad principle is that society must at last begin to defend itself more rigorously.
No one should ever be hounded for disagreeing with their country’s domestic or foreign policies. However the only acceptable manner for expressing dissent is by peaceful means.
In so turbulent a world, it beggars belief that individuals are able to leave others in no doubt about pro-ISIL sentiments without attracting more than passing interest from the authorities.
Colin Randall is a former executive editor of The National
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
More on Quran memorisation:
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S24%20ULTRA
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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
RACECARD
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
The%20specs
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Teri%20Baaton%20Mein%20Aisa%20Uljha%20Jiya
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