DUBAI // Vulnerable young men are being targeted by extremists recruiting fighters for ISIL, a senior police officer warned on Tuesday.
Some had already been reported missing by their families, said Lt Col Omar Al Zood of Sharjah Police’s preventive security department.
He said police were “aware of the destination of some of these students” but they were unable to stop them from travelling because they had not committed a criminal offence.
Lt Col Al Zood said police had intercepted a letter to ISIL from a man being treated for drug addiction at a rehabilitation centre. He wanted to send it to the group via his brother.
“He was seeking to join ISIL … but his family said he was not serious and was merely seeking revenge on them because they had forced him into rehab.”
In another case, Lt Col Al Zood said, a man in prison for fraud had claimed to be a member of ISIL and painted the group’s flag on the wall of his cell.
In a lecture to school principals and social workers, he said preventive measures to protect young people need to be adopted and reinforced by families, schools and universities.
School staff and families must be aware of the dangers and protect young people through greater awareness.
“We depend on the educational institutions to find out any extreme ideology adopted by any student so we can intervene at an early stage,” he said.
Thousands of young men and women from other countries are already known to have travelled to join ISIL in Syria and Iraq, a serious cause for concern among western governments.
There are about 3,000 Europeans in Syria fighting for ISIL, according to Europe’s anti-terror chief Gilles de Kerchove.
Three British teenage girls went to Syria via Turkey to join ISIL last month, and last week three young men from the UK were stopped in Istanbul and sent back to London on suspicion of planning terror attacks.
ISIL uses social media to spread its message, tapping into the platforms where it knows impressionable and vulnerable young people can be found.
When its accounts are shut down, the group adapts quickly and finds new outlets.
“There is a danger of targeting and recruiting through social media,” Lt Col Al Zood said. “Security challenges are becoming more intense, and the methods used by extremists to lure our youth more diverse.”
salamir@thenational.ae
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
Villains
Queens of the Stone Age
Matador
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Roger Federer's 2018 record
Australian Open Champion
Rotterdam Champion
Indian Wells Runner-up
Miami Second round
Stuttgart Champion
Halle Runner-up
Wimbledon Quarter-finals
Cincinnati Runner-up
US Open Fourth round
Shanghai Semi-finals
Basel Champion
Paris Masters Semi-finals
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Scoreline
Liverpool 3
Mane (7'), Salah (69'), Firmino (90')
Bournemouth 0
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Brief scores:
England: 290 & 346
Sri Lanka: 336 & 243
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
What She Ate: Six Remarkable Women & the Food That Tells Their Stories
Laura Shapiro
Fourth Estate
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
Messi at the Copa America
2007 – lost 3-0 to Brazil in the final
2011 – lost to Uruguay on penalties in the quarter-finals
2015 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
2016 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
Points Classification
1. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 63
2. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 38
3. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 25
4. Sonny Colbrelli (Italy / Bahrain) 24
5. Mark Cavendish (Britain / Dimension Data) 22
6. Taylor Phinney (U.S. / Cannondale) 21
7. Geraint Thomas (Britain / Team Sky) 20
8. Thomas Boudat (France / Direct Energie) 20
9. Stefan Kueng (Switzerland / BMC Racing) 17
10. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 17
Analysis
Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
New schools in Dubai
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees
Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme
Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks
Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets
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