The former speaker of the US House of Representatives Tip O’Neill famously observed that “all politics is local”. What follows is not an attempt to excuse the humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan, but to explain why domestic politics in the US and UK is the key to understanding why it is happening and the implications for all of us.
When Barack Obama was nominated as Democratic presidential candidate in 2008, I attended his party convention in Colorado. Waiting for the big evening event, I took a drive and found myself lost in a low-income Denver suburb. I stopped to ask for directions in what turned out to be a funeral parlour. The rooms were full of American flags and pictures of US service personnel in military uniforms, along with special deals of reduced prices on coffins for US troops who died in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mr Obama inherited those two thankless foreign wars. His vice president, Joe Biden, spent years on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and became increasingly sceptical about what he and former US president Donald Trump (in surprising agreement) treated as “forever wars”. But as we have seen, Mr Biden’s first major strategic decision as president – to leave Afghanistan – has been condemned by many of America’s friends and allies. US casualties in Afghanistan in recent months were low.
Former British prime minister Tony Blair was scathing: “We didn't need to do it. We chose to do it. We did it in obedience to an imbecilic political slogan about ending ‘the forever wars’.” Mr Biden’s approval rating has dipped below 50 per cent.
But because “all politics is local”, Mr Biden, faced with Mr Trump’s existing commitment to withdraw US troops, could only reverse that policy by owning the renewed commitment, in a struggle that he clearly judged had no obvious successful end point, ever. Voters would think “how many more American men and women would end up in those specially discounted bargain coffins?” Mr Blair again got it right: “We did it because our politics seemed to demand it. And that's the worry of our allies and the source of rejoicing in those who wish us ill. They think Western politics is broken.”
In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also discovering that “all politics is local”. Afghanistan has again shown his government as missing in action. Mr Johnson himself, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and three top civil servants were on holiday when the crisis exploded. Mr Raab claimed to have delegated a phone call to a junior colleague to contact the Afghan government. The call didn’t happen. Mr Johnson’s own party colleagues publicly attacked his failures. Theresa May, his predecessor, pointed out the hollowness of the Johnson slogan of creating some fantasy “Global Britain”. She asked where Global Britain was on the streets of Kabul. Nowhere, apparently.
Yet Mr Biden may ride out his political storm. He can survive being condemned in the US media if leaving a thankless war resonates with Middle America. But Mr Johnson may well be further and permanently damaged. The debacle has exposed the key strategic failure of post-Brexit Britain. A thinking British leader such as Mr Blair understands that American presidents (not just Mr Trump) inevitably put America first.
US allies are often informed by the White House about major strategic decisions, rather than consulted. Moreover, Mr Johnson’s Brexit Britain is less useful as a US ally because the UK has lost influence in Europe. Any “Global Britain” role in future will depend upon rebuilding damaged relations with France and Germany in particular, and Mr Johnson is incapable of this. He simply is not trusted, in Berlin or Paris or Washington or even by some of his own Conservative MPs.
The former CIA counterterrorism chief for South and South-West Asia, Douglas London, this week wrote that “the decision Trump made, and Biden ratified, to rapidly withdraw US forces came despite warnings projecting the outcome we’re now witnessing". What is significant here is not that Mr London questions the decision to leave, but rather Mr Biden’s key mistake in setting a deadline of the 9/11 anniversary to leave so quickly and brutally. If there really were intelligence “warnings” of the rapid collapse of the Afghan government, British intelligence undoubtedly would know this, too.
The short-term question for both Washington and Westminster is therefore why they were surprised by a predictable crisis. The longer-term and much more important question is about the deep politicisation of foreign and security policy on both sides of the Atlantic. This makes both the US and UK seem less reliable allies.
Mr Blair again sees the British dilemma: “For Britain, out of Europe and suffering the end of the Afghanistan mission by our greatest ally with little or no consultation, we have serious reflection to do… we are at risk of relegation to the second division of global powers.” The “local politics” question is whether Mr Biden’s decision to rush through withdrawal from Afghanistan despite the predictable humanitarian cost means he can realistically claim to voters by the anniversary of September 11 that a “forever war” is forever over. I doubt it.
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Pearls on a Branch: Oral Tales
Najlaa Khoury, Archipelago Books
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
Sonchiriya
Director: Abhishek Chaubey
Producer: RSVP Movies, Azure Entertainment
Cast: Sushant Singh Rajput, Manoj Bajpayee, Ashutosh Rana, Bhumi Pednekar, Ranvir Shorey
Rating: 3/5
2019 Asian Cup final
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
RESULT
Argentina 0 Croatia 3
Croatia: Rebic (53'), Modric (80'), Rakitic (90' 1)
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
