In Pictures
Arabic News View
Videos
Alia Akkad
Loading ...
The great fares rip-off?
read more
Royal ruling to be out soon
Abuse allegations leveled against Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, an Abu Dhabi royal, caught the world’s attention this year. The court is expected to give a verdict in the case in January 2010.
The trial of Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family who is accused of abusing an Afghan trader, is expected to come to an end early next month. Sheikh Issa has pleaded not guilty to charges of endangering a life, inflicting bodily harm, and rape. His lawyers have alleged that he was drugged by two of the defendants in the case.
The whole incident came to light after ABC News aired a video in April this year that apparently shows Sheikh Issa abusing Mohammed Shahpoor, an Afghani grain trader in 2004. Along with a man in a police uniform, Shiekh Issa is seen hitting Shahpoor with a cattle prod, a whip, and a plank of wood with protruding nails. The video also shows him pouring salt over the trader’s wounds, and then driving over him with a 4×4 vehicle.
According to reports, Shahpoor was being punished because he lost a load of grain worth $5,000.
The 45-minute video recording was given to ABC by Bassam Nabulsi, a businessman from Houston, who was apparently a business partner of Sheikh Issa. Nabulsi claimed that he himself was abused in the UAE after having a disagreement with the sheikh and filed a suit against him in the US.
As soon the news went public, officials in the UAE claimed that the case was closed and had been settled privately. “All rules, policies and procedures were followed correctly by the police department,” officials added.
Dubai’s debt headache is putting pressure on the country’s tax-free philosophy. But a tax levy could drive out expats and businesses, and could even destabilise the UAE's political balance.
Dubai escapes the top 20 thanks to ‘spectacular decreases’ but Abu Dhabi remains and Beirut storms in. Here’s the list.
Employee-owned companies consistently perform better, according to new research. But in the Gulf, they are few and far between.
The region needs to urgently invest in its criminal training judging by these inept thieves. Just kidding, but on a serious note, perhaps security could be beefed up a little?
Twitter
Facebook
We all know what the outcome to all of this is going to be, the investigation and court appearance was just to keep everyone happy and then discreetly just move on.
They feel no need to absorb and reflect on the criticism....
Keep smiling !!! And enjoy the holidays...
At issue are the actions of a single individual, a member of the UAE royal family, who is seen torturing another person.
The government of the UAE has arrested and detained the individual concerned, his royal blood notwithstanding, and is currently prosecuting him for his actions. There is no evidence at this time the actions were in anyway condoned by the government there.
By contrast, there is plenty of evidence the torture committed in places like Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and Bagram, as well as a number of other secret so called ``black hole'' sites across the world was condoned by those in the highest offices in Washington, and there is little reason to believe the likes of Cheney, Rumsfeld and others who may have authorised it will be held accountable.
The UAE torture was carried out by an individual, and is being prosecuted. The US's torture is being condoned by the highest offices, and is unlikely to be prosecuted. That is the difference !
Furthermore, this prosecution only came out after it was revealed by someone outside the system. The cases you list relating to the United States were all revealed through internal whistleblowers who wanted to expose the system, not a single external individual who's sole bargaining chip potentially saved his life and secured his exit from the country.
The torture places you mention are indeed shameful, and reprehensible acts were/are being done there in the name of Safety and Security.
The UAE does not seem to be too keen on giving the sheikh in question any impunity for his actions, unlike the US which has so far protected the high profile torturers and torture endorsers like Rumsfeld and Cheney.
Also, I am unsure how letting the dogs loose on prisoners at Abu Ghraib could have been done in the name of security and safety, especially since none of the people tortured there were actually incriminated in attacks against the US.