The West’s capacity to tackle terrorism in Afghanistan without ground forces will be “clumsy and much less effective” from now on, a former US deputy national security adviser said.
Prof Meghan O’Sullivan said the war on terror, that kicked off in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, will remain “part of the landscape” for the years.
Prof O'Sullivan spoke at a Chatham House forum on two decades since the September 11 attacks as Ken McCallum, director general of Britain's MI5, said there was “no doubt” that events in Afghanistan will have “heartened and emboldened” extremists and predicted a return of “Al Qaeda-style” terrorist plots.
Mr McCallum said that although the government has pledged to judge the Taliban by their actions, security forces will plan for the possibility that “more risk, progressively, may flow our way”.
Like all western security agencies, MI5 is grappling with how can it deter terrorists without infringing on civil liberties.
Prof O’Sullivan, who advised former US president George W Bush on the security of Iraq and Afghanistan between 2004 and 2007, drew a parallel between the fight against terrorism and the battle with the coronavirus.
She said “not having intelligence on the ground, not having close partnerships with indigenous forces on the ground is going to mean that our counterterrorism approach is going to be much more clumsy, it’s going to be probably less effective”.
The new approach would carry even more baggage than having a presence in the country, she said.
Looking back on the 9/11 attacks before the 20th anniversary on Saturday, Prof O’Sullivan said that after the Twin Towers collapsed many experts predicted “an age of terror” would follow.
However, she said the threat of terrorism was miscalculated by many and the years that followed were not marked by constant attacks.
As the US reeled from the disaster, she said the country’s energy was absorbed by four main areas over the following years.
These comprised the war in Iraq, the conflict in Afghanistan, the reorganisation of military, intelligence and law enforcement both domestically and internationally, and counterterrorism co-operation, the latter of which became a focal point of bilateral co-operation around the world.
Dr John Sawers, who was chief of MI6 from 2009 to 2014, said western leaders today have more on their plate than merely tackling the threat of terrorism, and said the current terrorist threat is “not an existential challenge to western democracy”.
Now, he said, the priorities for leaders in the US and other western nations are broadening to include managing the threat from Russia, tackling the climate crisis, addressing the rise of China and preventing nuclear war.
But he said the combination of Islamic extremism and right-wing terrorism would be “continuing challenges” for western leaders and that the Taliban’s victory in Afghanistan had inspired terrorists.
Hina Rabbani Khar, former Pakistani minister of foreign affairs, was critical of much of the West’s approach to countering extremism and terrorism in Afghanistan, saying leaders were guilty of making “massive tactical errors and massive strategic errors” there.
She said the wider region is home to a new wave of terrorist groups, which are arguably more dangerous than those 20 years ago, and used ISIS as an example.
Ms Khar said the US and coalition forces invading Afghanistan after 9/11 could be perceived as akin to a “call for revenge rather than a realistic assessment of what can be achieved” in terms of making the country safer.
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.
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
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”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Neo%20Mobility%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20February%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abhishek%20Shah%20and%20Anish%20Garg%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Logistics%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Delta%20Corp%2C%20Pyse%20Sustainability%20Fund%2C%20angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Day 2, stumps
Pakistan 482
Australia 30/0 (13 ov)
Australia trail by 452 runs with 10 wickets remaining in the innings
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Ukraine 2 (Yaremchuk 06', Yarmolenko 27')
Portugal 1 (Ronaldo 72' pen)
Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The years Ramadan fell in May
The years Ramadan fell in May
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Wednesday's results
Finland 3-0 Armenia
Faroes Islands 1-0 Malta
Sweden 1-1 Spain
Gibraltar 2-3 Georgia
Romania 1-1 Norway
Greece 2-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Liechtenstein 0-5 Italy
Switzerland 2-0 Rep of Ireland
Israel 3-1 Latvia
