The Australian government has confirmed that one of its nationals has been captured in Iraq, after reports emerged that he was detained alongside an ISIS commander central to a plot to bring down an Etihad Airways plane flying from Sydney to Abu Dhabi last year.
Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne acknowledged the detention, but would not elaborate on the identity of the male suspect.
"I can confirm advice today that an Australian is currently detained in Iraq as a result of the ongoing conflict there," Ms Payne told reporters.
But the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, citing anonymous senior Australian officials, reported those detained in Iraq earlier this year were Lebanese ISIS commander Tarek Khayat and his Australian relative Ahmed Mehri.
_________________
Read more:
Etihad Airways helps Australian police with plane attack probe
Where ISIS once thrived, beer, bingo and raki now prevail
Iraq holding 19,000 on ISIS and terrorism allegations
_________________
The arrest of the commander would represent the first arrest of an Australian national fighting for ISIS inside Iraq. One of the most notorious Australian ISIS members, Neil Prakash, was arrested trying to cross into Turkey from Syria in October 2016.
Khayat is the man believed to have directed his two brothers – Khaled and Mahmoud – to bring down an Etihad Airways flight on July 15, 2017, using a device smuggled in a meat grinder.
Australian authorities failed to detect the plot and it was only prevented by an Etihad check-in employee at Sydney airport. Police described it as one of the “most sophisticated plots that has ever been attempted on Australian soil.”
Authorities believe both Khayat and Mehri had been in touch with ISIS supporters in Australia and had played a role in several domestic plots.
The Australian government has not yet filed for the extradition of their national, but ministers have expressed a desire that he sees justice.
“We are very clear that we expect those who have joined the conflict, and those who are in breach of Australian laws – and, indeed, international law – to be dealt with according to justice,” said Ms Payne.
The Etihad flight that was targeted was carrying around 400 passengers, of which as many as 120 were Lebanese.
The explosive device never boarded the flight, as the plot was aborted at the airport. Khaled and Mahmoud Khayat allegedly organised the plot so that the devices were placed inside the hand luggage of a third brother, Amer.
Lebanese authorities had already sought the arrest of the man allegedly directing the plot, Tarek Khayat, as he had attempted to establish an ISIS affiliate in the country’s north in 2014 before he moved to Syria to join the group’s ranks.
As well as directing and inspiring local, individual attacks, ISIS has focused its attention on high-profile aviation plots. In October 2015, it brought down a Russian airliner over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula by hiding explosives inside a can. The attack killed more than 200 people onboard.
The US and UK introduced new airline security measures in 2017 because of intelligence that revealed ISIS had plans to hide explosives inside laptops to bring down an airliner.
ISIS militants have launched attacks on airport terminals on land side, too. In 2016, members of the group detonated suicide bomb devices at Brussels airport and Istanbul airport.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures
Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)
Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy
Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy
Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy
Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia
In the Restaurant: Society in Four Courses
Christoph Ribbat
Translated by Jamie Searle Romanelli
Pushkin Press
Key features of new policy
Pupils to learn coding and other vocational skills from Grade 6
Exams to test critical thinking and application of knowledge
A new National Assessment Centre, PARAKH (Performance, Assessment, Review and Analysis for Holistic Development) will form the standard for schools
Schools to implement online system to encouraging transparency and accountability
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Match info
Manchester United 4
(Pogba 5', 33', Rashford 45', Lukaku 72')
Bournemouth 1
(Ake 45 2')
Red card: Eric Bailly (Manchester United)
The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
More coverage from the Future Forum
Empty Words
By Mario Levrero
(Coffee House Press)
Mobile phone packages comparison
Origin
Dan Brown
Doubleday
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Burnley 2
Man United: Lingard (53', 90' 1)
Burnley: Barnes (3'), Defour (36')
Man of the Match: Jesse Lingard (Manchester United)
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.”
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
