KUWAIT CITY // Several pro-Palestinian activists who were released from Israeli detention centres yesterday recounted details of their ordeal aboard the Gaza flotilla's lead ship on Monday when Israeli commandos stormed it.
A Kuwaiti on board the ship said Turkish passengers had captured three Israeli soldiers as the ship was attacked. The passengers who had captured the men "called them Shalit One, Shalit Two and Shalit Three", after the captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit, said Salah al Ahmed, 45.
Mr al Ahmed, along with his wife, Sanan, was one of 16 Kuwaitis who were greeted yesterday by politicians and 300 supporters after flying home from Jordan on a jet of the emir's fleet.
The crowd chanted "Allah Akbar", threw petals over the activists and placed chains of flowers around their necks. As they disembarked in the airport's Emiri terminal, the passengers looked ragged.
Mr al Ahmed said the Israelis were captured by Turkish passengers on the top deck of the ship after they had descended from helicopters. He said the captives were held in a lower deck and handed over at the end of the attack.
The Israelis "were shooting the Turks in the head because they were trying to catch many of them", Mr al Ahmed claimed.
The Kuwaiti group included the Islamist parliamentarian, Waleed al Tabtabae, and five women. Many of them had gathered on the lower, outer deck of the Mavi Marmara, before the Israelis began their attack.
"They attacked ? at 4am; we were praying and they started attacking. At 5am they had control of the whole ship," said Wael al Abduljader, 47. "In the beginning, they were firing rubber bullets, then live bullets."
He said the people on board fought the Israelis with wooden sticks "because they were trying to defend themselves", but did not use knives or guns, which Israel had claimed.
Mr al Abduljader's daughter, Sundus, 22, who was also on the boat, said that after the Israelis landed and started shooting, passengers "started searching for anything they could find - even garbage cans - for self-defence".
The activists were held in a lower chamber of the boat with the dead bodies then held under the sun on the upper deck for five hours, she said. The bus that took them to Jordan was greeted by the Kuwaiti ambassador who "brought us mobile and pin cards because we could not talk to anyone".
Ms al al Abduljader said the Israelis confiscated all of the passengers' belongings except money and passports.
The Kuwaitis were among about 125 citizens of Muslim countries released yesterday and who crossed into Jordan from Israel via the Allenby Bridge.
Sabah Gheghissi, 38, a consultant at the Algerian ministry of trade, remembered being on the deck of the ship "when we saw two huge war ships approaching us. The captain told us that they were asking about the ship's identity.
"We were in the international waters. He told us to remain calm. We were not expecting attacks; not least when we were [so] close to Gaza. But as the ships became closer, we thought it was meant to intimidate us. The ship crew distributed life jackets because we thought that that they would drown us. The men on board stood side by side forming a human barrier trying to prevent the soldiers from getting into the ship.
"Then we felt the danger. It wasn't normal, it was as if we were in a war.
"We heard running at first [when the commandos landed], then there was shooting, blood and people were injured. I have blood stains on one of my shawls. I took one of the martyr's prayer caps that had blood stains on it but then an Israeli [female] soldier twisted my arm, pushed me and forcibly took the cap from me, but I pushed her and snatched it back.
"Next time, I will return to Gaza on a military ship and not on a peace ship."
Another Algerian aboard the ship said that once captured they had been denied food and water or even to go to the toilet.
Allali al Arabi, an Aljerian MP, said: "They asked us to sign a paper that we are illegal immigrants, which according to their 1952 [law] means that they can deport us forcibly. I refused and told them that I didn't enter Israel, but I was kidnapped in the international waters. We will return again to Gaza again. What happened will not stop us."
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Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13
Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier
Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife
What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents.
Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.
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Not Dark Yet
Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer
Four stars
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.
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
RESULTS
Main card
Bantamweight 56.4kg: Mehdi Eljamari (MAR) beat Abrorbek Madiminbekov (UZB), Split points decision
Super heavyweight 94 kg: Adnan Mohammad (IRN) beat Mohammed Ajaraam (MAR), Split points decision
Lightweight 60kg: Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Faridoon Alik Zai (AFG), RSC round 3
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Taha Marrouni (MAR) beat Mahmood Amin (EGY), Unanimous points decision
Light welterweight 64.5kg: Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE), Unanimous points decision
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Haroun Baka (ALG), KO second round
