Having travelled from northern England to the wilds of Texas to take hostages in a synagogue, Malik Faisal Akram could not be described as an accidental terrorist. Indeed, his trajectory encapsulated some of the darkest threats to life at play in the world.
According to leaked audio of the man’s final phone call, he had nurtured his attack plan for just about the entire period of the Covid-19 pandemic. Akram had, before that, been in some of the UK’s prisons that are most prone to extremist radicalisation among the population.
His demand for the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistan-born US terrorist, touched on a core cause resonating among Al Qaeda sympathisers. Choosing to use a synagogue siege to further his demands was an act predicated on anti-Semitism and the conviction that the power of Jewish communities runs unseen but absolute through the political elites.
Whatever internal thoughts and motives were at play for Akram may never be properly established. Looking at the early factors, there is an amalgam of history, heritage and ideology in the attack. Blackburn, the English town that Akram left last year, is one of a string of old industrial conurbations where pandemic has represented a successive blow after years of decline.
Akram says he made his pledge to free Siddiqui to a brother.
Damian Hinds, the UK security minister, has a new term for the type of security threat posed by the conditions of lockdown in 2020 and 2021: self-initiated terrorists. Speaking late last year, Mr Hinds's words can now be read as anticipating the type of action that was perpetrated by Akram.
Explaining the spectrum of dangers, he said there should be no loss of focus by the authorities. “Islamist extremism terrorism, though, remains a potent threat,” he said. “We also have quite a few people who you might describe as having a sort of mixed or unclear or unstable mindset. Sometimes they are looking at flirting with different ideologies, different groups, sometimes apparently mutually exclusive – very, very different types of ideology.”
Not many could have predicted that a man would leave desolate northern England, fly to New York and find his way down to Texas. But intelligence failures are apparent because he had criminal convictions that should have barred him from entering America. Considering his trip happened just after the US opened up to travellers from the UK, one is driven to ask whether the long interregnum meant that the information-exchange systems were not working.
Akram was, by his own words, spurred by his death-bed promise to his now dead brother Gulzameer, a man who was a master forger previously jailed for operating a money printing press in his house.
When in the US, Akram’s phone records reveal that he zeroed in on Jewish religious figures that he wanted to target. He searched for influential rabbis, according to The Washington Post, including Angela Buchdahl, who had been named in most powerful lists.
By these means, he zeroed in on the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue near Dallas. He was also searching for gun shops, eventually buying his stolen weapon on the street. He searched online for information about Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year sentence for a plot to kill US soldiers. Siddiqui, a Pakistani-born scientist, is often a focus for Al Qaeda-inspired extremists.
Akram’s generational pull would have been to that stream of extremism. Those radicalised by ISIS terrorists tend to focus on death rates and extreme violence, having been instructed in operational details online. Akram, instead, was prepared for a long siege. He asked his hostages to call Buchdahl, to whom he referred as a guitar player, so that she would make the demand for Siddiqui’s freedom.
There is plenty in this sorry tale to cause the authorities to review how extremism is detected and deterred before the perpetrator gets to the stage of action.
Akram's cultivated extremism means he needed saving from himself
Structural issues within communities such as those in Blackburn need to be addressed. Powerful family dynamics are obviously at play here; another brother pleaded with Akram to give up and ensure that he did not lose his life – advice that proved futile.
The UK’s counterextremism programme, called Prevent, needs to be reinforced. It picked up suspicions about Akram and monitored his views. Eventually, however, the security service MI5 decided on taking no further action and the file was closed.
There is an ongoing national review of Prevent. Mr Hinds seems confident that it operates at an “industrial scale” and that it has the standing to cope with the threats the country faces. In fact, this incident should stand as an empowering moment for counterextremism in the UK and beyond.
Mr Hinds talked about the diffusion of motives and the make-up of terrorists. The commonality of anti-Semitism between extremists on both the left and right of the political spectrum needs to be tackled.
Broadening the focus of anti-extremism and raising the systemic ambition that lies behind the programmes means that help could have been available to Akram. For that in the end is critical about Akram, whose cultivated extremism means he needed saving from himself.
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
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TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
Favourite things
Luxury: Enjoys window shopping for high-end bags and jewellery
Discount: She works in luxury retail, but is careful about spending, waits for sales, festivals and only buys on discount
University: The only person in her family to go to college, Jiang secured a bachelor’s degree in business management in China
Masters: Studying part-time for a master’s degree in international business marketing in Dubai
Vacation: Heads back home to see family in China
Community work: Member of the Chinese Business Women’s Association of the UAE to encourage other women entrepreneurs
The Bio
Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride
She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.
Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years
Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves
She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in
Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
MATCH INFO
What: India v Afghanistan, first Test
When: Starts Thursday
Where: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengalaru
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Ant-Man and the Wasp
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas
Three stars
Family reunited
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was born and raised in Tehran and studied English literature before working as a translator in the relief effort for the Japanese International Co-operation Agency in 2003.
She moved to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies before moving to the World Health Organisation as a communications officer.
She came to the UK in 2007 after securing a scholarship at London Metropolitan University to study a master's in communication management and met her future husband through mutual friends a month later.
The couple were married in August 2009 in Winchester and their daughter was born in June 2014.
She was held in her native country a year later.
SPEC SHEET
Display: 10.4-inch IPS LCD, 400 nits, toughened glass
CPU: Unisoc T610; Mali G52 GPU
Memory: 4GB
Storage: 64GB, up to 512GB microSD
Camera: 8MP rear, 5MP front
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, USB-C, 3.5mm audio
Battery: 8200mAh, up to 10 hours video
Platform: Android 11
Audio: Stereo speakers, 2 mics
Durability: IP52
Biometrics: Face unlock
Price: Dh849
FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Saint-Etienne v Montpellier (10.45pm)
Saturday
Monaco v Caen (7pm)
Amiens v Bordeaux (10pm)
Angers v Toulouse (10pm)
Metz v Dijon (10pm)
Nantes v Guingamp (10pm)
Rennes v Lille (10pm)
Sunday
Nice v Strasbourg (5pm)
Troyes v Lyon (7pm)
Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (11pm)
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
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Company%C2%A0profile
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Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
The%C2%A0specs%20
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
3.5/5
MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Brighton, Sunday, 6pm UAE
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
