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
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results
Final: Iran beat Spain 6-3.
Play-off 3rd: UAE beat Russia 2-1 (in extra time).
Play-off 5th: Japan beat Egypt 7-2.
Play-off 7th: Italy beat Mexico 3-2.
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
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Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
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November 30-December 2, at The Sevens, Dubai
Gulf Under 19
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Pool D – Dubai Exiles, Dubai Hurricanes, Al Ain Amblers, Deira International School
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The biog
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Favourite city: Cape Town, South Africa
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Favourite spot in Abu Dhabi: Saadiyat beach
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3.5/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Ramez Gab Min El Akher
Creator: Ramez Galal
Starring: Ramez Galal
Streaming on: MBC Shahid
Rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Haltia.ai
Started: 2023
Co-founders: Arto Bendiken and Talal Thabet
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: AI
Number of employees: 41
Funding: About $1.7 million
Investors: Self, family and friends
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
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CABINET OF CURIOSITIES EPISODE 1: LOT 36
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Stars: Tim Blake Nelson, Sebastian Roche, Elpidia Carrillo
Rating: 4/5
How to avoid getting scammed
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Kill
Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat
Starring: Lakshya, Tanya Maniktala, Ashish Vidyarthi, Harsh Chhaya, Raghav Juyal
Rating: 4.5/5
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
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Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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TO CATCH A KILLER
Director: Damian Szifron
Stars: Shailene Woodley, Ben Mendelsohn, Ralph Ineson
Rating: 2/5
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government