One of Donald Trump’s most outspoken defenders, Sebastian Gorka, was pushed out of his position as counterterrorism adviser late on Friday, joining a long list of ousted officials since retired Gen John Kelly became chief of staff last month.
"Sebastian Gorka did not resign, but I can confirm he is no longer with the White House,” a US official said, indicating that the former national security aide was fired. But other reports indicate that Mr Gorka submitted his resignation to Mr Kelly after realising that he will not be assigned a “meaningful role going forward”. Mr Gorka is mostly known for his regular appearances on US airwaves fiercely promoting the US president.
Mia Bloom, a professor at Georgia State University and a critic of Mr Gorka since his appointment in January, was not surprised by his dismissal.
"Following [former chief strategist Steve] Bannon's departure last week, there was no reason to keep him if Gen Kelly was cleaning house," she told The National. Mr Bannon and Mr Gorka worked together at the conservative Breitbart News website prior to joining the Trump campaign and shared common dire views on Islam and terrorism.
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However, according to Ms Bloom, Mr Gorka’s departure will unlikely have much effect on policy.
“He did not have a security clearance and was literally only there as the president's bulldog for Fox News and other media interviews,” she said.
Instigating a fight with US secretary of state Rex Tillerson may have been the straw that broke the camel’s back in Mr Gorka’s case. While rumours on his eventual resignation have been circulating since last April, his criticism of Mr Tillerson may have hastened the process.
Last week and while commenting on the situation with North Korea, Mr Gorka told the BBC: “You should listen to the president; the idea that secretary Tillerson is going to discuss military matters is simply nonsensical.”
Mr Gorka's short seven-month tenure at the White House was marred with controversy. The Jewish monthly magazine, Forward, accused him of having ties to a far right Hungarian group allied with the Nazis. Others, who studied counterterrorism, "saw him as a phoney", said Ms Bloom.
"[Mr Gorka's] reputation is shot; even Steve Sloan, his adviser, admitted he wasn't actually an expert," she said.
Still, the former aide has a fan base among Mr Trump’s supporters and those on the far right.
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Mr Gorka follows a long list of officials who left or were fired from their position since Gen Kelly took office late July. Those include Derek Harvey, Rich Higgins and Ezra Cohen-Watnick at the National Security Council. At the White House, Anthony Scaramucci, who served as director of communications, and Mr Bannon were also dismissed this month.
Analysts see the changes as enforcing Gen Kelly’s hand in the White House and helping National Security Adviser HR McMaster in his bid to structure a more coherent and less ideological team.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
EMILY%20IN%20PARIS%3A%20SEASON%203
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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.”