Baginda Al Mutawakkil Alallah Sultan Iskandar Al Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail, who has died aged 77, was the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong, or king of Malaysia, for five years from 1984 to 1989.
Although the tributes poured in after his death, he was not quite the model royal he might have been. His extra-curricular interests certainly befitted his status: he played polo, and bought helicopters and a ship for cruising the shores of Johor, the state of which he was sultan.
He liked fast cars, race boats and hunting, and if his youthful passion for boxing and go-karts waned with age, his appetite for life's luxuries did not. Nor did his enjoyment of the immunity enjoyed by the monarchy in Malaysia.
In 1992, Iskandar attacked Douglas Gomez, a state hockey coach. Incensed at his son's exclusion from the Johor side, he had decided consequently to withdraw the entire team from the tournament. Gomez's criticism of this decision was intolerable to the sultan, and the coach suffered for his audacity. It was not the first time that Iskandar had shown his temper. In 1987, while serving as Agong, he was accused of attacking a golf caddie at the Cameron Highlands golf club and, in some reports, was said to have killed him. Away from the greens, Iskandar patrolled the roads of Johor in a Rolls-Royce with a red light and siren - and a shotgun strapped to the dashboard. If any driver dared pass his car, he would mete out justice, either by imposing exorbitant fines for speeding, or requiring them to perform squat jumps. Rumours of assaults in Kuala Lumpur's nightclubs and gambling debts tried the loyalty of the Malay people.
After an early education in Johor, Iskandar studied at Trinity Grammar School in Australia and later in Britain, before joining the state civil service as a cadet officer. He received basic military training with the Johor Military Forces, founded by his great-grandfather in 1885.
As his father's eldest son, he was named Tunku Mahmood Iskandar. However, as all other sultans of Johor who bore the name "Mahmood" had met with unfortunate luck, he dropped it on succeeding to the title. It was perhaps already a little too late. In 1961 - a mere two years after he had been appointed Tunku Mahkota, or Crown Prince of Johor - his father dismissed him after an incident in which Iskandar reportedly chained two policemen in a dog kennel for a day after they had displeased him. Notwithstanding, in 1981 on the death of his father, he assumed the role of sultan.
In 1984, he became King of Malaysia. With his prime minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Iskandar maintained friendly relations until Mahathir led a campaign in parliament to remove legal immunity from royal members. Iskandar took the slight badly.
Iskandar was born on April 8, 1932, and died on January 22. He is survived by his second wife, Tengku Zanariah binti Tengku Panglima Raja Ahmad, two sons and eight daughters.
* The National
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
WHAT ARE NFTs?
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are tokens that represent ownership of unique items. They allow the tokenisation of things such as art, collectibles and even real estate.
An NFT can have only one official owner at one time. And since they're minted and secured on the Ethereum blockchain, no one can modify the record of ownership, not even copy-paste it into a new one.
This means NFTs are not interchangeable and cannot be exchanged with other items. In contrast, fungible items, such as fiat currencies, can be exchanged because their value defines them rather than their unique properties.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 4 (Gundogan 8' (P), Bernardo Silva 19', Jesus 72', 75')
Fulham 0
Red cards: Tim Ream (Fulham)
Man of the Match: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
T20 World Cup Qualifier fixtures
Tuesday, October 29
Qualifier one, 2.10pm – Netherlands v UAE
Qualifier two, 7.30pm – Namibia v Oman
Wednesday, October 30
Qualifier three, 2.10pm – Scotland v loser of qualifier one
Qualifier four, 7.30pm – Hong Kong v loser of qualifier two
Thursday, October 31
Fifth-place playoff, 2.10pm – winner of qualifier three v winner of qualifier four
Friday, November 1
Semi-final one, 2.10pm – Ireland v winner of qualifier one
Semi-final two, 7.30pm – PNG v winner of qualifier two
Saturday, November 2
Third-place playoff, 2.10pm
Final, 7.30pm
MATCH INFO
Pakistan 106-8 (20 ovs)
Iftikhar 45, Richardson 3-18
Australia 109-0 (11.5 ovs)
Warner 48 no, Finch 52 no
Australia win series 2-0
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
Squads
Sri Lanka Tharanga (c), Mathews, Dickwella (wk), Gunathilaka, Mendis, Kapugedera, Siriwardana, Pushpakumara, Dananjaya, Sandakan, Perera, Hasaranga, Malinga, Chameera, Fernando.
India Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Rahane, Jadhav, Dhoni (wk), Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Thakur.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Midnights'
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How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5