ZANGIABAD // A captured Taliban rifle dangling at his side, commander Sultan Mohammed swaggers through a bomb-cratered district that was once a hornet’s nest of insurgents, symbolising a rare Afghan military triumph where US forces failed.
Panjwai was one of the centrepieces of US president Barack Obama’s 2009 troop surge ambitiously aimed at crushing the Taliban, but the southern district soon became a poster child of the failed intervention.
Strongmen including Mr Mohammed, the Panjwai police chief with a reputation for brutality, have done what the Americans could not – tame the insurgent haven that had come to be known as the “blood fountain”.
The Taliban are now out of sight in the district of Kandahar province, pomegranate orchards stand on fields once awash with landmines, and poppy farms that boosted militant coffers are just a memory.
“When US forces were here, the Taliban were within one kilometre of their bases. Now they aren’t even within 100 kilometres,” Mr Mohammed said, trailed by armed loyalists.
“We did what American soldiers could not – rid the area of the Taliban.”
To get a full measure of the turnaround, one only needs to compare Panjwai with the turmoil gripping the wider region, which is increasingly drawing Nato troops back into the conflict a year after their combat mission ended.
Neighbouring opium-rich Helmand, Afghanistan’s largest province, is teetering on the brink of collapse.
Overstretched Afghan troops are retreating from volatile southern districts, ceding swathes of key areas to the Taliban.
And conflict-induced displacement is edging towards a new record as the Taliban now control more territory than in any year since 2001.
Panjwai offers a striking contrast: children in schools learning algebra instead of a Taliban curriculum, grape farmers tending their vines even after sundown, and once-wary visitors jaunting around on pheasant-hunting trips.
The transformation of Panjwai, the birthplace of the Taliban movement, defies the common perception that Afghan security forces – plagued by high casualties and desertions – cannot stand alone without Nato backing.
To its advantage, observers say Panjwai is not a messy froth of tribal and economic dynamics. And unlike neighbouring districts gripped by violence, it does not fall on a major drug trafficking route.
“Being a backwater has helped Panjwai achieve detente that has seen many local insurgent fighters return to farming,” said a Kabul-based Western official.
But the turnaround is also widely credited to anti-Taliban strongmen such as General Abdul Raziq, Kandahar’s powerful police chief who controls the province with an iron hand and is accused of running secret torture chambers, an allegation he denies.
“‘His brief to his men is simple: ‘Don’t bring the enemy alive’,” said an official close to Gen Raziq.
Last week the interior ministry said it was probing a graphic video apparently showing Mr Mohammed’s men abusing an alleged suicide bomber.
His hands bound to a police vehicle, the video which went viral shows the man being dragged along the road before a mob turns on him and one officer tries to bite the flesh off his arm.
To the supporters of Gen Raziq and Mr Mohammed, such savagery has made them a bulwark against the stubborn insurgency, more vital than ever as Afghanistan spirals into chaos.
But their success is spawning ever more brutality.
“If I catch a Taliban supporter planting a landmine, I will make him sit on it and blow him up,” said Serajuddin Afghanmal, a police official credited with clearing thousands of mines in Panjwai.
“The Americans thought they could restore security by floating balloons (surveillance blimps) in the air,” said Haji Mohammad, a policeman at an abandoned US base in Panjwai.
“But the insurgents were able to plant mines next to their bases. Whenever they stepped out their armoured cars turned into coffins.”
Analysts warn, however, that Panjwai’s gains are at risk of unravelling as forced eradication of poppy crops creates economic hardship and as violence spills over from neighbouring Helmand.
But, says Mr Mohammed, the battle for Panjwai was won on the day the last US soldiers pulled out.
“With the Americans gone, the Taliban have no moral justification to be here,” he said, clasping an M4 assault rifle snatched from the insurgents, now his personal weapon.
“Foreigners can prop us up with weapons but they don’t belong here. Only Afghans can really win Afghanistan’s war.”
* Agence France-Prese
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.”
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Results
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe
For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.
Golden Dallah
For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.
Al Mrzab Restaurant
For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.
Al Derwaza
For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
