Policemen stand guard an entrance to Kabul university a day after gunmen stormed the campus on November 2, 2020. AFP
Policemen stand guard an entrance to Kabul university a day after gunmen stormed the campus on November 2, 2020. AFP
Policemen stand guard an entrance to Kabul university a day after gunmen stormed the campus on November 2, 2020. AFP
Policemen stand guard an entrance to Kabul university a day after gunmen stormed the campus on November 2, 2020. AFP

Former student arrested for planning Kabul University attack


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Afghanistan has arrested a former student of Kabul University for masterminding the deadly attack on its campus this month, Vice President Amrullah Saleh said on Saturday.

At least 22 people were killed and another 27 wounded when three gunmen rampaged through the university on November 2, spraying classrooms with bullets for several hours before they were killed by security forces.

The attack was planned by a militant called Adil, Mr Saleh announced on his Facebook page, giving only one name of the arrested man.

Adil had been an undergraduate student in the Islamic law faculty of the university. He left his studies to join the Haqqani militant group and later planned the attack under the command of an experienced member of the group, Mr Saleh said.

"Adil had been missing for three years amid rumours that he had gone to receive training in war and fighting."

The former student hailed from the province of Panjshir but his family lived on the outskirts of Kabul. During questioning, he revealed that he had received weapons from Haqqani network to carry out the attack, Mr Saleh said.

The attacker’s motivation was to “undermine and defame the government and to make it look weak and ineffective in the minds of people,” he said.

The Haqqani network is an affiliate of the Taliban insurgent group, which has been holding peace talks with the Afghan government in Qatar. The Taliban denied carrying out the university attack, which was later claimed by ISIS.

ISIS also claimed to have carried out a suicide bombing near an educational centre in western Kabul days before the university attack. Twenty-four people were killed in that attack.

The Taliban and ISIS are rivals in Afghanistan, but the national intelligence agency announced in May that security forces had arrested eight members of a network grouping ISIS and Haqqani militants that was responsible for bloody attacks in the capital.

The attack on the university came months after the intelligence agency, the National Directorate of Security, said it had arrested three of its teachers for being ISIS recruiters.

"Teachers and religious scholars who support jihadist groups hold a lot of influence over the community," a security official close to the investigation told The National after the arrests in July. "Young students in their care are exposed to harmful ideologies when they are extremely vulnerable and can be manipulated to do something wrong."

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He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
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Key changes

Commission caps

For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:

• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term). 

• On the protection component, there is a cap  of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated. 

• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.

• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.

Disclosure

Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.

“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”

Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.

Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.

“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.

Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.

How to avoid crypto fraud
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if you go

The flights

Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.

The hotel

Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.

The tour

Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg

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How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
  1. Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
  2. Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
  3. Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
  4. Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
  5. Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
  6. The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
  7. Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269

*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year

Red flags
  • Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
  • Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
  • Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
  • Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
  • Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.

Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching