A memorial to Sergeant William Donnelly, a member of Britain's Royal Air Force who was killed when his plane crashed in Sayh Dhadnah in the emirate of Fujairah during the Second World War, was dedicated by members of the British Consulate and family on January 27, 2010 in Fujairah. Amy Leang / The National
A memorial to Sergeant William Donnelly, a member of Britain's Royal Air Force who was killed when his plane crashed in Sayh Dhadnah in the emirate of Fujairah during the Second World War, was dedicated by members of the British Consulate and family on January 27, 2010 in Fujairah. Amy Leang / The National
A memorial to Sergeant William Donnelly, a member of Britain's Royal Air Force who was killed when his plane crashed in Sayh Dhadnah in the emirate of Fujairah during the Second World War, was dedicat
Peter Hellyer was a UAE cultural historian, author and journalist
December 16, 2021
As my friends and readers will know, my interests include the history of the UAE during the Second World War, and trying to promote ties between the Emirates and my other home, the British Channel Island of Jersey. Now, recent research undertaken by a local collaborator and Jersey Heritage, the island’s leading heritage body, has tied the two together.
Some details in terms of the history of the war show that the UAE was not isolated from this great conflict. Although the Emirates that today comprise the UAE were not formally involved in the Second World War, the conflict did not pass us by. German, Italian and Japanese submarines came into the Gulf of Oman, with planes and ships from Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) and Royal Navy trying to track them down. One German and one Italian submarine were sunk, the former by a plane from 244 Squadron, based in Sharjah, and the latter by the Royal Navy. Several British, American and other allied personnel died in plane crashes.
One crash occurred at Dhadnah, on the east coast. A memorial now stands at the site to the British navigator who died, Peru-born Billy Donnelly.
As was recently reported, during “Operation Countenance”, the joint British-Soviet invasion of Iran in 1941, Mohammed Bin Lahej, a young dhow captain from Dubai, helped to ferry British troops to southern Iran.
My recent research has focused on a 244 Squadron Blenheim bomber lost at sea in September 1942 during an anti-submarine patrol. Of the three-man crew, one was British, one came from Australia and the third, Pilot Officer Anthony Pontius, appears in the military record as having come from the island of Jersey.
Billy Donnelly’s grave. Lesley Botten
Born in Manchuria, to an American father and a Jersey-born mother, he and his brother, along with their mother, returned to Jersey after his father died young. He was educated there, and then went to work abroad, before joining the RAF after the war broke out. Sent to the Gulf, he then became the only known person from Jersey who died here during the war.
It is an interesting story, a tiny piece of an emerging jigsaw of relations between Jersey and the Emirates that helps to add something historical to the better-known links between the two in financial services or the presence of the world-famous Jersey cow at Fujairah’s Rumailah Farms.
To my amazement, however, I found that it is more personal than that. Anthony Pontius’s mother had a sister who married my grandmother’s brother, making him a distant relative – not something I had expected to find in researching the history of the Emirates during the Second World War.
I wonder, though, what other little nuggets of family history are yet to be found that link the UAE population of today back to that now-receding conflict.
Mohammed Bin Lahej was not the only Emirati sailor who was involved in Operation Countenance, though possibly the only one who is still alive. Are there descendants of others with tales to tell? Members of other Emirati families with a maritime tradition may have stories of their fathers or grandfathers encountering German, Italian or Japanese submarines.
There are, surely, stories that are not yet forgotten about the severe deprivation that prevailed in the Emirates during much of the period of the War, not as a record of the conflict itself, but as evidence of the way in which it affected life here.
In the UAE today, we have many Iraqi expatriates. Are any related to, or descendants of, members of the RAF Levies, recruited in Iraq, who guarded the Sharjah air base?
Among our Indian and Pakistani residents, do any have connections to the men who sailed on dhows to and from the Indian sub-continent during the war? Are there stories to be told?
RAF portrait of Billy Donnelly . Lesley Botten
Are there any German residents here related to the single survivor and the other 52 crew members of the U-533 submarine that lies on the seabed off Fujairah?
The discovery that a cousin-by-marriage of mine died here in the Second World War has been made thanks to the presence of records in archives in London and Jersey and to the persistence of colleagues and friends who have helped me with research.
Much, though, of the history of the UAE during that period was never written down.
When over 10 years ago I attended the unveiling of the Dhadnah memorial to Billy Donnelly, among the villagers who came to watch was an old man. A boy at the time of the crash, he described to Donnelly’s relatives, who were attending the ceremony, how the plane had come in low from the sea, clipping the tops of the palm trees before crashing. He witnessed the grievously wounded Donnelly being carefully lifted out of the plane before he died.
What other personal tales of that conflict, from surviving eye-witnesses or from their children are yet to be recorded? In them lies the real impact of war upon that past generation, here and on families far away, like mine in Jersey.
They are part of the links that tie people together from all over the world.
National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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.”
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood. Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues. Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity. Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni
Rating: 2.5/5
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last-16. first leg
Atletico Madrid v Juventus, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
