http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/uae/ en-us Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:20:38 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416788/posts THE Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a US jetliner on Christmas Day was a student at the University of Wollongong's Dubai campus just months before he disappeared. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was studying for a master's degree in international business for about seven months this year, vice-chancellor Gerard Sutton said. He defied his family's pleas to remain at the university and graduate by travelling to the terrorism hotbed of Yemen to study Arabic and Sharia law, the Wall Street Journal reported. The 23-year-old vanished from the Dubai campus about mid-year, Professor Sutton said. "He commenced in January 2009... news.com.au http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416788/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:20:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416793/posts A Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a US jetliner on Christmas Day was a student at the satellite campus of an Australian university just months ago before disappearing. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was studying for a master's degree in international business at the University of Wollongong's campus in Dubai, vice-chancellor Gerard Sutton said on Tuesday. Abdulmutallab took classes for about seven months, from January to the middle of 2009. He defied his family's pleas to remain at the university and graduate by travelling to the terrorism hotbed of Yemen to study Arabic and Sharia law, the Wall Street... Nine News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416793/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 06:46:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416124/posts ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- The United Arab Emirates picked a South Korean-led consortium for a $20 billion contract to build and help run four nuclear power reactors, officials said. The New York Times said the nuclear power reactors would be the first in the Middle East. Under the deal announced in Abu Dhabi Sunday, Korea Electric Power will lead a group that includes Westinghouse and the American subsidiary of Toshiba. The power company is to build, design and help operate the plants for the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. UPI http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2416124/posts#comment Mon, 28 Dec 2009 07:24:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415959/posts The rich kid with a brilliant school record was a ticking time bomb even before he turned up as an international student living in his father’s mansion block apartment in Britain. Classmates remember Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab as such a pious youth that he was nicknamed “Imam” and “the Pope” after rebuking them for failing to live up to religious principles. Suicide bombers typically take half a dozen years to descend from religious fanaticism to “martyrdom”, which appears to be the case for this young Nigerian, a security expert said. Acting alone as a “clean skin” rather than by mingling with... Times Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415959/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 23:41:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413592/posts The commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East made an observation that the Gulf Arab nations wished he hadn't. General David Petraeus noted that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force, and it's 80 F-16E fighters could probably quickly destroy the entire Iranian Air Force. The Gulf Arabs would prefer the Iranians to believe their own propaganda, that the Iranian military is much more powerful than it actually is. The Iranian Air Force is mainly a mighty force only in terms of Iranian propaganda. The Gulf Arabs don't want the Iranians to make a strong effort to upgrade their... The Strategy Page http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413592/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:04:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412590/posts U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptors fly in formation during a training mission in southwest Asia, Dec. 6, 2009. The F-22 fighters and crews are deployed from the 27th Fighter Squadron at Langley Air Force Base, Va., and entered the Air Forces Central area of responsibility for the first time as part of a multi-national exercise where aircrews from France, Jordan, Pakistan, the U.A.E., the U.K. and the U.S. trained together in fighting a large-scale air war. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Michael B. Keller. SOUTHWEST ASIA — U.S. Airmen here marked a milestone recently, completing the first deployment... Multi-National Force-Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412590/posts#comment Mon, 21 Dec 2009 23:51:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2410779/posts Centcom commander Gen. David Petraeus tells Bahrain conference calls in Mideast countries to join forces in order to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions WASHINGTON - The United Arab Emirates, a key US ally in the Persian Gulf, has the capability to overpower Iran's Air Force, US Centcom commander Gen. David Petraeus said last week. ynet http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2410779/posts#comment Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:59:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396852/posts Dubai's government will not guarantee the debts of state-owned Dubai World, a senior finance official said on Monday. "Creditors need to take part of the responsibility for their decision to lend to the companies. They think Dubai World is part of the government, which is not correct," Abdulrahman al-Saleh, director general of Dubai's department of finance, said on Dubai TV, according to Reuters. The comments raised worries about how creditors and companies with exposure to Dubai World will fare in a restructuring without a government guarantee of the debts. Dubai World, the conglomerate behind the emirate's astonishing rise, triggered a... Telegraph UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396852/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:52:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396820/posts DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – A top Dubai finance official says heavily indebted Dubai World is not guaranteed by the emirate's government. Abdulrahman al-Saleh, director general of Dubai's Finance Department, says lenders to the conglomerate bear some responsibility for the current crisis. (snip) Al-Saleh said while Dubai owns Dubai World, it has been known since the conglomerate was established that it was independent and that it "is not guaranteed by the government." AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396820/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 13:57:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396520/posts Don't you dare show Shekih Mohammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum drowning. Foreign media better be on notice. Dubai's mess doesn't give you an excuse to take shots at the ruling family. WSJ: The Sunday London Times newspaper was removed by authorities from shelves in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday amid intensive reporting of Dubai's debt problems, an executive at the paper said. The National Media Council ordered the paper blocked by distributors without providing a reason, an executive at the paper in Dubai told Zawya Dow Jones. The Sunday Times edition available in the U.A.E. on Nov. 29 featured a... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396520/posts#comment Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:13:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395662/posts World financial markets are quaking in the wake of a request by Dubai World, a principal investment vehicle for the Emirate of Dubai, to suspend debt service amounting to billions of dollars in the next 6 months. The company owes a total of $59 billion. Islam, of course, opposes interest payments on borrowed money, so much of the debt is so-called Islamic debt, in which different labels are applied, but the concept of paying for the use of money remains. Dubai's fabulous skyline has been built on a vast pool of debt, and property there was often pre-sold and re-sold... American Thinker http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395662/posts#comment Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:29:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395714/posts Dubai...a Harbinger of Financial Armageddon? Martin Banner 11/27/09 We have been warning of the coming economic collapse and the ramifications to follow, which will be food riots, chaos in the cities world wide leading to rioting, looting and bringing on a climate that will require declarations of martial law to try and quell that chaos, for some time now. This economic chaos, coupled with higher prices for food and lower harvest yields world wide, will set the scene for the four horseman of the book of revelations to ride and bring us into the time of the great tribulation period... info@periloustimes.net http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395714/posts#comment Sat, 28 Nov 2009 03:47:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395731/posts If Countries Like Dubai Begin To Fail, Who Will Save Them?Dubai's plea this week for debt deferment could just be the thin end of the wedge, fears Jeremy Warner. By Jeremy Warner Published: 6:46PM GMT 27 Nov 2009 As one financial crisis recedes, another may be beginning. In Dubai this week, we've had a foretaste of what may be to come as governments around the globe seek to grapple with the explosive growth of fiscal deficits and public debt. [snip] Yet the important question for markets today is not whether Dubai and Sheikh Mohammed can survive the sandstorm; in fact,... The Telegraph(UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395731/posts#comment Sat, 28 Nov 2009 04:51:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395341/posts FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures fell on Friday but traded off their lows, as Dubai World's debt woes fueled a sell-off in commodities and stocks, while the U.S. dollar gained against its rivals. Gold for December delivery tumbled from a high of $1,195 an ounce to an intraday low of $1,130.10 an ounce in electronic trading on Globex. That is a decline of nearly $65, or more than 5%. In recent trading, gold fell $26.80, or 2.3%, to $1,160.20 an ounce. Marketwatch http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395341/posts#comment Fri, 27 Nov 2009 13:41:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395157/posts November 27, 2009 Dubai in Deep Water As Ripples From Debt Crisis Spread Patrick Hosking and David Robertson Work has been halted on the artificial islands Fears of a dangerous new phase in the economic crisis swept around the globe yesterday as traders responded to the shock announcement that a debt-laden Dubai state corporation was unable to meet its interest bill. Shares plunged, weak currencies were battered and more than £14 billion was wiped from the value of British banks on fears that they would be left nursing new losses. Nervous traders transferred the focus of their anxieties from the... London Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2395157/posts#comment Fri, 27 Nov 2009 01:12:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393274/posts Note: The following text is a quote: Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, November 23, 2009 Arms Dealer Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Supply U.S. Fighter Jet Engines to Iran Jacques Monsieur, a Belgian national and resident of France suspected of international arms dealing for decades, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama to conspiracy to illegally export F-5 fighter jet engines and parts from the Untied States to Iran. Monsieur along with Dara Fotouhi, aka Dara Fatouhi, an Iranian national currently living in France, was charged in a... US DOJ.gov - JUSTICE.gov/opa - Press Release http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393274/posts#comment Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:18:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2202292/posts Note: The following text is a quote: http://treas.gov/press/releases/tg46.htm March 3, 2009 TG-46 Treasury Designates Companies Tied to Iran’s Bank Melli as Proliferators Washington, DC -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated 11 companies under Executive Order 13382 for their ties to Iran's Bank Melli. E.O 13382 is an authority aimed at freezing the assets of Weapons of Mass Destruction proliferators and those who support them. Bank Melli has been designated as a proliferator by the United States, the European Union, and Australia for its role in Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Additionally, United Nations Security Council Resolution... TREAS.GOV - UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2202292/posts#comment Mon, 9 Mar 2009 07:11:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2382824/posts Note: The following text is a quote: November 6, 2009 U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and World Customs Organization Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya announce preliminary results of largest global cash smuggling operation BRUSSELS - Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and World Customs Organization (WCO) Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya today announced the preliminary results of Operation ATLAS-the largest multilateral operation in history targeting cash smugglers which took place from Oct. 26-30. More than 80 countries participated in Operation ATLAS (an acronym for Assess, Target, Link, Analyze and Share)-leading to more than $3.5 million in cash seized and... ICE.gov http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2382824/posts#comment Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:14:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2360863/posts Construction of the long-awaited rail network that will link the six members of the GCC is expected to start in 2010 or 2011. Abu Dhabi: The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries' proactive approach to building railroad networks, whose estimated cost is more than $60 billion (Dh220 billion), will help boost cross-border trade, cut freight costs and result in faster movement of cargo and passengers, experts have said. "Rail is safer, faster, cleaner and [a] more economical mode of transportation. Strong logistics networks encourage trade and provide industry with a competitive advantage," Hussain Al Nowais, chairman of the UAE's newly created... Gulf News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2360863/posts#comment Mon, 12 Oct 2009 21:36:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2360232/posts S&P: Dubai Is Nearly Out Of Cash Joe WeisenthalOct. 11, 2009, 12:07 PM Don't assume that the economic comeback means Dubai is out of the woods. Holders of its debt may be in trouble, unless the Emirate can raise more money. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An analyst at credit rating firm Standard & Poor's says Dubai has "insufficient" funds to pay back billions of dollars worth of debt coming due, putting added pressure on the city-state to raise additional cash. Farouk Soussa, S&P's head of Middle East government ratings, said Sunday that the sheikdom has about $4 billion... The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2360232/posts#comment Sun, 11 Oct 2009 23:51:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2351636/posts UAE wants its fighters its own way Ivan Gale If the UAE signs for 60 Rafale fighter aircraft from France’s Dassault later this year, as some expect, in a deal valued at €6 billion (Dh32.2bn) to €10bn, it will be purchasing a jet more advanced than those being flown by the French air force. A more powerful engine, a new air-to-air missile and cutting-edge radar systems are some of the requirements the UAE has made to Dassault and its French partners Safran, Thales and MBDA, according to media reports. Such requests for upgrades and modifications have been a central theme... The National,UAE http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2351636/posts#comment Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:04:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2347512/posts Note: The following text is a quote: Dutch Firm and Two Officers Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Export Aircraft Components and Other Goods to Iran A Dutch aviation services company, its director and sales manager pleaded guilty today in the District of Columbia to federal charges related to a conspiracy to illegally export aircraft components and other items from the United States to entities in Iran via the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates and Cyprus. The announcement was made by David Kris, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; Channing D. Phillips, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; and... US DOJ.gov/opa - Press Release http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2347512/posts#comment Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:20:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2343376/posts A Santa Monica architect known for his high-rise designs is working on what may be the ultimate "spec" building -- a 224-story skyscraper with green ambitions that would be the tallest structure in the world. The tower is envisioned for a man-made island in Abu Dhabi, if leaders of the oil-rich emirate decide they want to make a statement to rest of the world and perhaps one-up neighboring Dubai. A conceptual design for the $3.5-billion project in the United Arab Emirates is under consideration by an Abu Dhabi planning committee, said Tommy Landau, the architect who created the design and... The Los Angeles Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2343376/posts#comment Sat, 19 Sep 2009 02:36:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2340490/posts Month and a half after plan to blow up tallest skyscraper in world exposed, 45 more suspects arrested in addition to eight arrested when plot unraveled. Palestinians, Syrians, Lebanese among those detained. Iran suspected to be mastermind behind plot Roee Nahmias 09.15.09 / Israel News The defense apparatus in the United Arab Emirates arrested 45 suspects, most of them Palestinian and Lebanese, after the plot to blow up Burj Dubai (Dubai Tower) was uncovered. Dubai Tower, currently under construction, is the tallest building in the world. The current wave of arrests adds to the eight other suspects detained immediately after... ynetnews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2340490/posts#comment Tue, 15 Sep 2009 22:11:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2338774/posts A Chinese military expert has accused India of "violating" Beijing's diplomatic rights and "spying" on its military ware while inspecting the cargo plane of the United Arab Emirates air force which was detained in Kolkata. "The actions by Indian authorities violated diplomatic rights as the cargo on board belong to China," Dai Xu, a renowned military expert, said. "Any inspection onboard, which may have violated China's property rights and constituted spying on its military secrets, should be approved by both the UAE and China," Dai was quoted as saying by the state-run Global Times. It also quoted an unnamed military... Rediff http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2338774/posts#comment Sun, 13 Sep 2009 20:16:54 GMT