RAS AL KHAIMAH // When Sheikh Saqr asked his men who should be responsible for his sheikhdom's protection before unification, they suggested a tall Briton whose blond hair was hidden by his checked ghutra.
Aged 30, Lt Col David Neild was the youngest officer of the Trucial Oman Scouts (TOS), the British security forces present in the Trucial States.
The men of his regiment knew of his loyalty to the region, a loyalty some felt ran too deep.
It was Lt Col Neild's second posting to the Trucial States, where he had first come in 1959, just out of his teens. After his first tour, he served in Kenya, Berlin, Northern Ireland and other parts of the UK before reapplying for the TOS.
"I started getting hungry for the desert again. I think once the desert has got into your blood, it's hard to get it out again," he said.
"They said, 'You are not Lawrence of Arabia'. But I said 'No, you know, I really must go back or I will consider leaving the army'."
He returned in 1966, weeks before the accession of Sheikh Zayed, father of the UAE and its founding President.
Lt Col Neild, who is originally from Portsmouth, came to know the late Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed, the Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, in 1967, during his time as the first squadron commander based at Hamham.
"I just had enormous respect for him from the start," Lt Col Neild said. "He just had an aura about him. Sheikh Zayed was the same. They were just very special people. Sheikh Rashid of Dubai was the same. Those three stood out as giants."
The respect ran both ways.
Lt Col Neild, who is now 75, caught the sheikh's eye when he helped to resolve a dispute with outlying tribes. He was summoned to the palace and asked to leave the British army to command a local force that would protect the royal family and the emirate's internal affairs.
"It's not every day you get asked to form your own private army," said Lt Col Neild. "I was very honoured but I said I would have to think about it. I was a bachelor and it didn't take long for the adrenalin to kick in.
"It wasn't the money," he said. "It was the challenge.
"Any professional soldier who suddenly is told, 'Form your own private army' - it has only happened to very, very few people ever."
The RAK Mobile Defence Force was formed in 1969. It was the fourth private army to be established along the coast after the British announced plans for a withdrawal from the Trucial States in 1971.
Negotiations were under way for the formation of a union among the seven emirates, Bahrain and Qatar. Two thirds of Ras Al Khaimah's borders were in dispute and American companies were still optimistic about the discovery of oil there.
"We started literally from scratch," said Lt Col Neild. "I was the only British officer ever in it."
Within three years, he had trained 300 RAK citizens and armed the emirate with armoured cars, mortars and machine guns.
"I've never been the most patient of people and one needed a lot of patience and tolerance ... I was very lucky I had very good Arab officers in senior ranks. Without them, we could never have achieved it."
Soldiers did three months of basic training with assistance from the TOS. Many had never held a weapon before.
"It was very much down to a tribal allegiance," said Lt Col Neild. "Sheikh Saqr had the loyalty of his people because he was a great man and everything he ever did, he looked at what was best for Ras Al Khaimah and its people, always."
Having completed three years of service, the Briton left in January 1972, once the mobile force was self-sufficient.
"We had a very close relationship and I said, 'You know I didn't want to stay around if you don't need me any more'."
Weeks later, in Lebanon, he received a telegram requesting his immediate return. The Ruler of Sharjah, Dr Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed, had been assassinated.
Lt Col Neild came to Sharjah for a year to set up the Sharjah National Guard. Eventually, the Sharjah and RAK units merged into the Union Defence Force.
The forces established a peace that laid the foundation for a modern, independent and united national army.
Lt Col Neild recently returned to live in Ras Al Khaimah with his wife, Eileen, to write his memoirs with regard to the region.
The decision to return to his "true home" came after a visit in February last year with other Britons who had lived in Ras Al Khaimah during the 1960s. They included Ruth Ash, an English nurse who established close ties with mountain tribes, and Margaret McKay, whose husband introduced dairy cows to the region.
More than 40 years have passed and Lt Col Neild is still known by tribesmen as Al Kayad, The Commander.
"If he gave an order, everybody obeyed him," said Rashed Naghmoush, who was 18 when he started training with Lt Col Neild in 1969.
"Because he is a good leader, he controlled the situation. He taught us how to adapt to all situations. We learnt to stop fighting, stop quarrelling, stop shooting.
"Before there was nothing. After the army, there was self-respect."
azacharias@thenational.ae
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
WE%20NO%20LONGER%20PREFER%20MOUNTAINS
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Mobile phone packages comparison
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
THE BIO
Age: 33
Favourite quote: “If you’re going through hell, keep going” Winston Churchill
Favourite breed of dog: All of them. I can’t possibly pick a favourite.
Favourite place in the UAE: The Stray Dogs Centre in Umm Al Quwain. It sounds predictable, but it honestly is my favourite place to spend time. Surrounded by hundreds of dogs that love you - what could possibly be better than that?
Favourite colour: All the colours that dogs come in
The%20specs%20
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (11.30pm)
Saturday Freiburg v Borussia Monchengladbach, Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund, Cologne v Wolfsburg, Arminia Bielefeld v Mainz (6.30pm) Bayern Munich v RB Leipzig (9.30pm)
Sunday Werder Bremen v Stuttgart (6.30pm), Schalke v Bayer Leverkusen (9pm)
Monday Hoffenheim v Augsburg (11.30pm)
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
BMW%20M4%20Competition
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Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPAD%20PRO%20(12.9%22%2C%202022)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012.9-inch%20Liquid%20Retina%20XDR%2C%202%2C732%20x%202%2C048%2C%20264ppi%2C%20wide%20colour%2C%20True%20Tone%2C%20ProMotion%2C%201%2C600%20nits%20max%2C%20Apple%20Pencil%20hover%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EChip%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Apple%20M2%2C%208-core%20CPU%2C%2010-core%20GPU%2C%2016-core%20Neural%20Engine%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Storage%20%E2%80%93%20128GB%2F256GB%2F512GB%20%2F%201TB%2F2TB%3B%20RAM%20%E2%80%93%208GB%2F16GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPlatform%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20iPadOS%2016%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMain%20camera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dual%2012MP%20wide%20(f%2F1.8)%20%2B%2010MP%20ultra-wide%20(f%2F2.4)%2C%202x%20optical%2F5x%20digital%2C%20Smart%20HDR%204%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EVideo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20ProRes%204K%20%40%2030fps%2C%204K%20%40%2024%2F25%2F30%2F60fps%2C%20full%20HD%20%40%2025%2F30%2F60fps%2C%20slo-mo%20%40%20120%2F240fps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFront%20camera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20TrueDepth%2012MP%20ultra-wide%20(f%2F2.4)%2C%202x%2C%20Smart%20HDR%204%2C%20Centre%20Stage%2C%20Portrait%2C%20Animoji%2C%20Memoji%3B%20full%20HD%20%40%2025%2F30%2F60fps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAudio%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Four-speaker%20stereo%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBiometrics%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Face%20ID%2C%20Touch%20ID%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20USB-C%2C%20smart%20connector%20(for%20folio%2Fkeyboard)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Up%20to%2010%20hours%20on%20Wi-Fi%3B%20up%20to%20nine%20hours%20on%20cellular%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinish%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Silver%2C%20space%20grey%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20iPad%2C%20USB-C-to-USB-C%20cable%2C%2020-watt%20power%20adapter%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20WiFi%20%E2%80%93%20Dh4%2C599%20(128GB)%20%2F%20Dh4%2C999%20(256GB)%20%2F%20Dh5%2C799%20(512GB)%20%2F%20Dh7%2C399%20(1TB)%20%2F%20Dh8%2C999%20(2TB)%3B%20cellular%20%E2%80%93%20Dh5%2C199%20%2F%20Dh5%2C599%20%2F%20Dh6%2C399%20%2F%20Dh7%2C999%20%2F%20Dh9%2C599%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
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Messi at the Copa America
2007 – lost 3-0 to Brazil in the final
2011 – lost to Uruguay on penalties in the quarter-finals
2015 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
2016 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Afghanistan squad
Gulbadin Naib (captain), Mohammad Shahzad (wicketkeeper), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
A Cat, A Man, and Two Women
Junichiro Tamizaki
Translated by Paul McCarthy
Daunt Books
