Emirati heroes remembered at Wahat Al Karama ceremony

Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, gave medals to the families of those who lost their lives serving their country

Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, left, presents a medal to a family member of a martyr, during a Commemoration Day ceremony at Wahat Al Karama. All photos: UAE Presidential Court

Sheikh Diab bin Tahnoon bin Mohammed, third right, Lt Gen Hamad Thani Al Romaithi, Chief of Staff UAE Armed Forces, fourth right, Abdullah bin Muhair Al Ketbi, UAE Minister of Federal Supreme Council Affairs, and Sheikh Khalifa bin Saif bin Mohammed, attend the Commemoration Day ceremony at Wahat Al Karama.

Sheikh Saud, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, left, presents a medal to a family member of a martyr.

Sheikh Saud places a wreath during the Commemoration Day ceremony.

Sheikh Diab, left, Sheikh Saeed bin Saif bin Mohammed, second left, Sheikh Zayed bin Saif bin Mohamed Al Nahyan, fourth left, and Sheikh Khalifa bin Saif bin Mohammed, right, at Wahat Al Karama.

Left to right: Sheikh Hazza bin Tahnoon, Undersecretary to the Ruler's Representative in Al Ain Region, Rear Admiral Pilot Sheikh Saeed bin Hamdan bin Mohammed, Commander of the UAE Naval Forces, Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa, Sheikh Mohammed bin Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohammed bin Zayed, Member of Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office, Sheikha Shamsa bint Mohamed bin Zayed, Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan bin Zayed, Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Khalifa, Adviser to the UAE President, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Member of Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office, Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Managing Director of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Member of Abu Dhabi Executive Council, Lt Gen Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior and Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed, Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, attend the Commemoration Day ceremony.

Left to right: Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed, Managing Director of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Member of Abu Dhabi Executive Council, Lt Gen Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed, Vice Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, Sheikh Mohammed bin Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, Sheikh Saud, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Mohammed, Ruler's Representative in Al Ain Region, Sheikh Nahyan Bin Zayed, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation, Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Abu Dhabi Executive Council member and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Court, and Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, Minister of State for Tolerance, at the ceremony.

An image of the late President Sheikh Khalifa is projected on to the monument at Wahat Al Karama during the Commemoration Day ceremony.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Tahnoun, Executive Director of the Martyrs' Families' Affairs Office, right, and Sheikh Khalifa bin Mohammed bin Khalid, UAE Ambassador to Jordan, second right, attend the Commemoration Day ceremony at Wahat Al Karama.

An image of the President Sheikh Khalifa projected on to the monument at Wahat Al Karama.

Left to right: Sheikh Hazza bin Tahnoon, Undersecretary to the Ruler's Representative in Al Ain Region, Rear Admiral Pilot Sheikh Saeed bin Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, Commander of the UAE Naval Forces, Sheikha Shamma bint Khalid bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Sheikh Mohammed bin Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed, Member of Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office, Sheikha Salama, Sheikh Zayed bin Hamdan bin Zayed, and Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Khalifa, Adviser to the UAE President, at the ceremony.

Sheikh Saud, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, centre.

An image of President Sheikh Khalifa on the monument at Wahat Al Karama.

Sheikh Saud stands with family members of martyrs at Wahat Al Karama.

Sheikh Saud presents a medal to a family member of a martyr.

The sacrifices of the UAE’s military heroes were remembered in a poignant ceremony at Abu Dhabi’s Wahat Al Karama on Wednesday.

The event was attended by members of the royal family, ministers and officials.

Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, led the Commemoration Day ceremony that paid tribute to those who lost their lives while in service of the state, and their families.

He gave martyr medals to the families. Twenty-one ceremonial shots were fired and fighter jets flew overhead.

Ebrahim Alshehhi, the brother of soldier Ali Alshehhi, was present at the ceremony.

Mr Alshehhi said in his last message, his brother sent his regards to everyone and asked him to take care of their parents.

“People think that Martyr’s Day is a day of sadnesses but it is a day that in reality brings so much pride and we get to share the legacies of our loved ones with the world,” he said.

“National day is also immediately after it so it feels like we are celebrating twice - we celebrate the lives of our martyrs who have made the biggest imaginable sacrifice and the union of our nation.

“Ali has never left our thoughts and our prayers and we know he is in a better place. He has made us and his children so proud.”

Noora Al Hosani, the wife of Mohammed Ali Zainal Al Bastaki, one of the five Emirati diplomats who lost their lives in Afghanistan five years ago, said the country’s leaders have taken care of them ever since.

Mr Al Bastaki was carrying out humanitarian work when a bomb went off at Kandahar's governor’s guesthouse. He was meeting with the UAE delegation at the time.

Mr Al Bastaki was the deputy director general of the Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation and had dedicated his life to humanitarian work and the country.

Speaking to The National, Ms Al Hosani, mother of two, said: “My children lost a father but they gained a nation. Since my husband’s passing, never once have they felt a sense of loss but it has always been pride.”

She said the Martyr’s Affairs Family Office had made sure that all their needs have been met and regularly call to check on them.

“Before his death, my husband had a premonition that he would one day be martyred. When I told him that I felt sad for the wives of martyrs, he would tell me to be proud of their sacrifices. He lived a full life, which he dedicated to his country and his people and his family,” she said.

UAE Commemoration Day 2021 - in pictures

Ahmed Al-Humairi witnesses the Commemoration Day ceremony at the Ministry of Presidential Affairs in 2021. All photos: Wam

The Ministry of Justice, Courts and Federal Prosecutions mark Commemoration Day in 2021.

The Ministry of Interior celebrates the annual occasion.

Dubai Customs observes Commemoration Day.

The Statistics Centre in Abu Dhabi on Commemoration Day.

Workers at Dubai Health mark the occasion.

The Ministry of Defence celebrates Commemoration Day.

The Judicial Department in Abu Dhabi marks Commemoration Day.

Ras Al Khaimah Chamber of Commerce marks the event.