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Khashoggi crisis may tip Middle East power balance towards Turkey

Agencies
November 3, 2018

Istanbul, Nov 3: The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi could alter the power dynamic in the Middle East by strengthening Turkey's influence at Saudi Arabia's expense as they compete for leadership of the Islamic world, analysts say.

This certainly appears to be the goal of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the main regional supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood, which Saudi Arabia and its allies Egypt and the United Arab Emirates consider a terrorist group.

The killing inside the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul by a team sent from Riyadh on October 2 has already severely tarnished Saudi Arabia's global reputation.

But it is the potential involvement of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the oil-rich Gulf nation's de facto leader known by his initials MBS, that could permanently damage Riyadh's influence in the region.

After initially insisting Khashoggi left the consulate unharmed, then saying he died in a brawl, the Saudi regime finally stated he was killed by a "rogue operation" and arrested 18 suspects, some with links to the crown prince.

Analysts say Erdogan could use the ensuing crisis to weaken the 33-year-old prince, even potentially leading to the royal family removing him from power -- though that seems unlikely.

"The killing of Khashoggi has proven to be a golden opportunity for President Erdogan to pressure Saudi Arabia and work towards presenting Turkey as the new leader of the Muslim world," said Lina Khatib, director of Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House.

"The Khashoggi crisis is a big geo-political gamble for Turkey and so far it looks like it is playing the game masterfully. But Turkey alone will not be able to push for the removal of MBS. The ball lies in the American court," she added.

For Erdogan, promoting the Muslim Brotherhood — which Saudi Arabia has sought to marginalise in the Arab world and which was ousted from power and brutally repressed in Egypt in 2013 by current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi — is at the heart of this power struggle.

The Turkish leader could also try to extract concessions from Riyadh for its ally Qatar, facing a Saudi blockade backed by the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt since 2017.

"I think that Erdogan sees this as an opportunity to push back against a triple entente in the Middle East that opposes his policies. That triple entente is composed of MBS, MBZ's (Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan) UAE and Sisi's Egypt," said Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkey Research Program at the Washington Institute.

"These three countries, all Arabs, oppose Erdogan's policies of supporting the Muslim Brotherhood. Now Erdogan sees a golden opportunity because MBS is vulnerable."

But Sinan Ulgen, president of the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy, said "it remains to be seen whether Ankara can continue to leverage this conjuncture and turn it into a permanent advantage raising Turkey's regional influence to the detriment of Saudi Arabia".

Nicholas Heras, an analyst at the Center for a New American Security, said the Khashoggi case was the "latest chapter in Turkey and Saudi Arabia's ongoing contest over which country is better" to lead the Muslim world.

"Erdogan clearly seems to believe that he can use the Khashoggi crisis as a way to cut Prince Mohammad bin Salman, and by extension, Saudi Arabia, down to size," Heras added.

By not directly pointing the blame at the crown prince over Khashoggi, Erdogan is seeking to keep him under pressure, according to Karim Bitar of the Paris-based French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs think-tank.

"Erdogan knows that he still has ammunition that could weaken MBS in the international arena so basically he is rolling the dice these days trying to figure out how to maximise his profit after this huge Saudi blunder," he told news agency.

While the Muslim Brotherhood is important to Turkey, the West -- especially the United States -- is wary of the group and wants to focus any pressure on the crown prince towards ending the Yemen war and lifting the blockade on Qatar, the experts said.

"I expect the blockade on Doha will likely come to an end in the near future and the Saudis find a way to support the UN's efforts in Yemen," said Steven Cook of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Bitar noted that the US administration relies on Prince Mohammed's support for any possible peace plan for the Israel-Palestinian conflict as well as containing Iran, long a Saudi foe.

Washington could also push the crown prince towards "a rapprochement with Israel and to maintain a hawkish line towards Iran", Bitar added.

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News Network
April 16,2020

Dubai, Apr 16: Most of the patients who have fully recovered from Covid-19 in the UAE followed healthy behaviours that helped strengthen their immune systems, said Dr Farida Al Hosani, Official Spokesperson for the UAE Health Sector.

Dr Al Hosani made the remarks during the UAE Government's regular briefing on the latest developments related to the spread of coronavirus in the country, which was held on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi.

During the briefing, Dr Al Hosani spoke about the precautionary measures that aimed to prevent the spread of the virus.

Ammar Al Muaini, Official Spokesperson of the National Programme for Happiness and Quality of Life, also explained the outcomes of the National Mental Health Programme.

During the briefing, Dr Al Hosani affirmed that recorded cases in the country, especially recoveries, were related to key factors and reasons.

"In most cases of recoveries, we noticed that they have followed several daily health behaviours, such as doing exercise, eating a healthy diet, strengthening the immune system, and maintaining an ideal weight, as well as abstaining from bad habits, such as smoking and unhealthy eating. The psychological aspect is also important, and it is necessary to support the mental health of individuals, along with their physical health," she said.

"These practices, which we always emphasise and promote, will help raise a person's immunity and resistance to diseases, in addition to medicines, and can speed up the process of recovering from disease," she added.

Dr Al Hosani also talked about the importance of not being complacent if one's temperature rises. "We highlight the importance of periodic temperature checks for family members at home. This step is one of the health measures that we are encouraging.

"Everyone who has a high temperature must contact the nearest health centre or hospital or go to a drive-through testing centre because personal health is linked to the health of those around us and we are responsible for it. There is no room for hesitation in protecting our families," she stressed.

Dr Al Hosani highlighted the importance of covering the nose and mouth, whether by wearing surgical, paper or cloth masks, or any other covering or clothing.

"This procedure is important for everyone leaving home to avoiding the transmission of any infection and preserving the safety of everyone, along with leaving a safe physical distance between people in public places, markets and workplaces, and following the precautions," she explained.

Regarding high temperatures and their relationship to the coronavirus, Dr. Al Hosani said: "All studies that attempt to understand the relationship between the virus and climate have not been able to confirm that higher temperatures will help kill the virus. We are continuing to monitor the results of these studies."

Al Muaini explained the details and developments of the national campaign, titled, 'Don't Worry,' which aims to support the mental health of community members.

"The UAE Government, represented by the National Programme for Happiness and Quality of Life, has launched, under the current circumstances, the national campaign, titled, 'Don't Worry,' that aims to provide psychological support to members of society facing the repercussions of the novel coronavirus, in line with relevant national efforts," Al Muaini said.

"The campaign reflects the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, affirming that quality of life is a high priority, and health is the most important pillar of quality of human and society," Al Muaini added.

Al Muaini stated that the phrase, 'Don't Worry,' is profound in its meaning, according to His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, and reassures everyone that everything will be fine. "Today, the concept of health is not limited to physical health, but it also includes mental health. During this period, and due to the social, professional, and educational changes that directly affect our lives, we need to support and enhance our mental health to overcome these challenges," he  added.

Al Muaini said that over 50 specialists, psychologists and social workers are voluntarily participating in the national campaign to serve the country, which includes three main components focusing on providing psychological support to all members of society, especially as this type of support is one of the necessary community needs during the current circumstances.

The first component, 'Let's Support Together,' aims to answer enquiries regarding psychological challenges, provide educational advice, and support individuals in facing challenges, through daily live broadcasts on the social media networks of the National Programme for Happiness and Quality of Life, @HappyUAE. Two events are broadcast every day, with the first being at 17:30 in English and the second at 20:30 in Arabic to benefit all segments of society.

Al Muaini explained that the number of live broadcasts on the programme's social media accounts has reached 30 and covers various topics, including psychological care for senior citizens, psychological care for children, psychological support for working mothers, and how to address anxiety and psychological concerns.

According to scientific studies, fear and anxiety are among the strongest influences that weaken human immunity, and, therefore, it is necessary to learn about how to deal with them. The duration of each broadcast is one hour, attracting some 250,000 views each.

Al Muaini explained that the second component of the campaign is the hosting of closed virtual sessions, entitled, 'Let's Talk Together,' which aim to provide psychosocial support to specific groups of society, to enable them to talk to each other in a safe environment to discuss the psychological challenges they are facing.

The programme has organised over eight closed psychological support sessions to maintain the privacy of participants, under the supervision of certified physicians and psychologists. Some 300 people have participated and some sessions were held for those under quarantine, including working mothers, school and university students, and doctors working in the first line of defence.

Some 300,000 people watched "Let's Reassure Each Other" programme Al Muaini noted that the third component of the campaign, titled, "Let's Reassure Each Other," focuses on raising awareness of the importance of psychological resilience and promoting its importance to society. The programme has so far posted more than 21 video clips containing messages of support and reassurance to the community.

The number of people who watched the programme reached some 300,000 viewers.

Al Muaini stressed that the campaign is an effective interactive platform available on a daily basis, to provide psychological support to all segments of society at a time when people require reassurance and psychological support to overcome the current crisis. The campaign hosted doctors working in the first line of defence and their enquiries were answered directly. A group of people under quarantine was also involved in the closed support sessions, which were also popular with participating doctors.

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Agencies
May 31,2020

Riyadh, May 31: Over 90,000 mosques in Saudi Arabia reopened their doors to worshippers on Sunday morning after over a two-month closure as part of an ease in the curfew restrictions to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The worshipers were allowed to enter the mosques, except the mosques in Makkah, from Fajr prayers today morning (Shawwal 8) with a limit of 40 per cent capacity.

The reopening of mosques was be undertaken in accordance with the guidance of Minister of Islamic Affairs, Dr Abdullatif Al Asheikh, and in line with advice issued by the Senior Council of Ulemas.

The ministry has embarked on a vigorous media campaign to urge all worshippers to abide by preventive measures for their own safety to curb the spread of Covid-19.Among the instructions are doing ablution at home, hand-washing and using sanitisers before going out to the mosque and after coming back home.

On Saturday, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has approved opening the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah in stages to the public.

The elderly and those with chronic diseases are advised to perform their prayers at home. Reading and reciting the Holy Quran online is advised, too, from one's own mobile phone or at least reading from a privately owned copy of the Holy Quran.

Bringing one's prayer mat to perform prayers in mosques is highly recommended as well as keeping a two-metre distance between one another prayer.

Accompanying children under the age of 15 to the mosques is prohibited. Putting on a face mask and avoiding shaking hands and other contact is also recommended.

Meanwhile, the ministry managed, during the closure of mosques, to undertaking a massive cleaning, sanitising and maintenance drive in all mosques Kingdom-wide, according to world-class standards and best known practices. This included sanitising over 10 million mosques, 43 million copies of several sizes and volumes of the Quran, more than 600,000 Holy Quran cupboards, in addition to repairing and maintaining about 176,000

water closets, annexed to mosques.

 

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Agencies
July 28,2020

Dubai, Jul 28: Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) (ADCB.AD) is letting go hundreds of employees, sources said, the latest in a round of lay-offs by regional banks as pressure mounts to cut costs amid lower oil prices and the coronavirus crisis.

The UAE’s third-biggest lender is laying off 400 employees, two sources familiar with the matter said, after it had committed to not cutting staff because of the crisis.

In a statement, a spokesman said ADCB had pursued efficiency over the last decade by managing out its lowest underachievers after regular reviews, while ensuring talent was deployed in high-growth areas, such as digital banking.

“A certain number of redundancies are therefore expected every year in the normal course of business,” the bank spokesman added.

The sources said the cuts would involve ADCB’s consumer business and several in top management were among those being let go. One source said the bank was looking to close 20 branches.

In March, ADCB had declared, “No employee will be made redundant during 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

UAE banks have been hit by government measures to rein in the spread of the virus, forcing many businesses to shut temporarily.

Last week, Dubai’s largest bank, Emirates NBD, reported a slump of 58% in profits. In June, sources told Reuters the bank started a new round of hundreds of lay-offs.

In May, ADCB reported a fall of 84% in first-quarter net profit as it took impairments of $292 million on debt exposure to troubled hospital operator NMC Health and payments group Finablr.

It was a major lender, with an exposure of about $981 million, to NMC Health, which went into administration this year after months of turmoil following questions over financial reporting.

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