Abu Dhabi // Thirty men accused of establishing and running a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood have gone on trial at the Federal Supreme Court.
Twenty of the accused are Egyptian, and six are being tried in their absence.
The remaining 10 are Emiratis, who were also convicted of sedition in July.
One of the Egyptians, M A, is accused of obtaining documents, images and maps copied from a computer to an external memory drive.
The drive was given to him by a board member of a sports club, an Emirati, for the purpose of copying images of the club’s activities.
The board member is also a First Warrant Officer in the Supreme Council for National Security, and prosecutors say the memory drive also contained confidential government data.
The group is accused of sharing this data among themselves and the members of the secret organisation who were convicted in July.
The Egyptians are accused of establishing and administering a branch of a secret organisation without the Government’s consent or licence, and of collecting donations and alms without a licence.
Four of the Emiratis are accused of being accomplices in that they knew about the secret organisation but did not report it to the authorities.
All the accused deny the charges and say they were forced into confessions and were mistreated in prison.
Judge Mohammed Al Jarrah Al Tunaiji told the accused and their lawyers: “I assure you all, you are in safe hands and we are here to verify the truth. Nothing will interfere in the proceedings of the case. This is my responsibility.”
A defence lawyer, Abdulhameed Al Kumaiti, asked that the media not report the case, on the ground that reporting would have a negative effect.
The judge denied the request. He said everyone was welcome to attend the trial, and Egyptian and Saudi media representatives were in court.
The defence team asked that doctors examine the accused in light of their claims to have been mistreated in prison. The judge agreed.
Mr Al Kumaiti asked to be allowed to meet the accused to discuss the case and to be able to provide each of them with the case files. The judge said lawyers could meet their clients for an hour each.
Another lawyer, Hamdan Al Zeyoodi, asked that his client A K be released on bail and allowed to wear traditional Emirati dress for the hearings.
A K was sentenced to 10 years in prison at the July sedition trial, in which 69 of 94 accused Emiratis were jailed for up to 15 years. The judge did not respond to his lawyer’s request.
Mr Al Kumaiti also asked that the First Warrant Officer who supplied the memory drive and the electronics officer who inspected it be called to give evidence in court.
Judge Al Jarrah Al Tunaiji summoned six witnesses for the next hearing, which will take place on November 12, and the trial was adjourned until then.
aalkhoori@thenational.ae
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
