Abdullah wanted to take family photos with a Christmas tree this year, introducing his three children to Santa Claus as a sign of tolerance towards Libya’s small Christian community.
As a difficult year drew to a close, he also wanted to buy a cake to celebrate New Year’s Eve with his wife in their home in the capital of Tripoli.
Despite the pandemic and the war, many Libyans say they have worked to keep such traditions alive. But for Abdullah, taking part in seasonal good cheer could be risky.
This is because a fatwa issued by a group of hardline clerics with enormous influence in western Libya has been reissued every year since longtime leader Muammar Qaddafi was ousted in 2011.
Today you barely celebrate with your family or loved ones secretly, you don't know what might happen to you if you don't toe the public line of the extremists. Abdullah, a Tripoli resident
The rules are clear: no buying cakes, no private parties at home and no Christmas-themed clothing or decorations. Even the symbolic gesture of breaking a glass to bring good luck is forbidden.
A mere Facebook status update marking the festive period is also banned.
The clerics say such practices are not Islamic and that there is no need to adopt the celebrations of others.
Abdullah worries not only about the religious ruling, but also about the men who may try to enforce its word.
Revellers in Tripoli ringing in the New Year and bidding farewell to the old could face severe punishments at the hands of armed militants who swear allegiance to the extremist clerics.
Violent, ideologically motivated attacks have happened with greater frequency in recent years.
"I personally like to celebrate New Year's Eve, in solidarity with those who were violently targeted by extremists for marking the end of the year or buying a Christmas tree," Abdullah, who has a degree in history, told The National.
“We were used to celebrating the New Year before the downfall of Qaddafi and sending season’s greetings publicly and openly, competing over the decoration of cakes, holding house parties and inviting friends to spend a cheerful night in front of the telly, and see how Sydney becomes the first city in the world to bid farewell to the year,” he recalled.
“We’d watch a show of spectacular fireworks on the streets. Today you barely celebrate with your family or loved ones and even then, in secret. You don’t know what might happen to you if you don’t toe the public line of the extremists.”
Anything is possible in a city under the tight grip of dozens of heavily armed militias.
But the mass intimidation of so many residents in so many districts is likely to have required, at the minimum, the tacit consent of the authorities in the capital.
One problem is that Libya has two governments and dozens of militias – and no one is in full control of the country.
The conflict in Libya, which has Africa’s largest oil reserves, has drawn in regional powers including Turkey.
It’s a power struggle with external backers, between the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord and the House of Representatives in the east backed by the Libyan National Army of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.
In the chaos after the revolution in 2011, extremists in Tripoli and other cities rose to prominence, led by local warlords and often funded by criminal enterprise.
In the capital, this has led to intense episodes of factional fighting, which reached a fever pitch at the end of 2018.
Some began enforcing unpopular conservative and extremist views. For many Libyans, these radicals are known by the derogatory term “Al Madakhila”, or the intruders.
Some see them as the ideological twin of ISIS when it comes to restricting personal freedom.
Fatwas issued by Al Madakhila-aligned clerics are not legally binding because they are not affiliated to a government ministry or the Iftaa Council, a body of Muslim clerics in Tripoli.
But the armed groups nonetheless take the law into their own hands.
The GNA head Fayez Al Sarraj, as one Libyan journalist explained the situation in Tripoli to The National, derives his strength from the staunch support he enjoys from Al Madakhila. But this also leaves him vulnerable.
“They always play on his nerves in the current conflict with the government in the east. His unspoken fear is that they can make any change in due course. He makes no effort whatsoever to arrest them if they crackdown on people’s rights,” she said.
Although most of Libya’s 6.6 million inhabitants are Muslim, there are about 38,000 Christians, mostly migrants.
The capital has two churches and Christians are allowed to go to their places of worship on Friday, part of the weekend, when many government services and businesses are closed.
But it is not common to see Christians displaying decorations associated with the holiday, such as Christmas trees, Santa figures or fairy lights, anywhere in the country.
Last year, Christmas trees were confiscated in the East, a move that met derision on Twitter. One person joked: “They arrested a Christmas tree and a fake reindeer.”
But in Tripoli, armed supporters of Al Madakhila conducted sweeps on stores and bakeries before New Year’s Eve to ensure they were not selling cakes.
Mohamed, not his real name, works in a bakery in central Tripoli.
On December 29 each year, he gets clear instructions from the owner to stop accepting order for cakes.
“It’s a common practice in several cake shops. People want cakes to celebrate New Year’s Eve at home, but we don’t want to get into trouble with Al Madakhila,” he said. “They are a thorn in Libya’s side but hopefully, the future will be sunnier and this war on Christmas comes to an end.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
The years Ramadan fell in May
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
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EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
Ireland (15-1):
Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour
Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)
The five pillars of Islam
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Read more about the coronavirus
The five pillars of Islam
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Kalra's feat
- Becomes fifth batsman to score century in U19 final
- Becomes second Indian to score century in U19 final after Unmukt Chand in 2012
- Scored 122 in youth Test on tour of England
- Bought by Delhi Daredevils for base price of two million Indian rupees (Dh115,000) in 2018 IPL auction
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.”
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
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World Cup warm up matches
May 24 Pakistan v Afghanistan, Bristol; Sri Lanka v South Africa, Cardiff
May 25 England v Australia, Southampton; India v New Zealand, The Oval
May 26 South Africa v West Indies, Bristol; Pakistan v Bangladesh, Cardiff
May 27 Australia v Sri Lanka, Southampton; England v Afghanistan, The Oval
May 28 West Indies v New Zealand, Bristol; Bangladesh v India, Cardiff
If you go
The flights
The closest international airport for those travelling from the UAE is Denver, Colorado. British Airways (www.ba.com) flies from the UAE via London from Dh3,700 return, including taxes. From there, transfers can be arranged to the ranch or it’s a seven-hour drive. Alternatively, take an internal flight to the counties of Cody, Casper, or Billings
The stay
Red Reflet offers a series of packages, with prices varying depending on season. All meals and activities are included, with prices starting from US$2,218 (Dh7,150) per person for a minimum stay of three nights, including taxes. For more information, visit red-reflet-ranch.net.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
