I appreciate the opportunity from U.S. Central Command to provide an introduction for this special edition of Unipath magazine, devoted to the role of militaries in helping civilian leaders manage crises. Events during the year 2020 validated this important concept throughout Oman, the region and the world. Throughout much of 2020, militaries supplied front line troops in the battle against the global COVID-19 pandemic. Airmen, Soldiers and Sailors enforced quarantines, established mobile hospitals in virus hot spots, disinfected public spaces and delivered lifesaving medicine and equipment to remote areas. Here in Oman, the Sultan’s Armed Forces played a pivotal role in…
Unipath
At approximately 6:10 p.m. August 4, 2020, a massive explosion in the Port of Beirut rocked the capital and surrounding areas, leaving behind a great number of dead, wounded and missing persons in a matter of seconds and destroying an essential part of the port, including the wheat silos. It also caused enormous damage to properties and residential buildings in the port’s vicinity (within a diameter of 7.5 kilometers), some of which collapsed, including historic structures. Shortly after the explosion, the Lebanese government declared a state of emergency in Beirut, tasked the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) with carrying out the…
When troops engage in combat, the need for rapid access to advanced trauma care is critical. The chances of surviving potentially fatal injuries rise dramatically when a highly capable hospital is located within an hour of the battlefield. Physicians call it the “golden hour.” Thanks to a medical partnership between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States, Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City (SSMC) in Abu Dhabi is developing advanced trauma, burn, and rehabilitative medicine capabilities that serve not just civilians across the region, but also battlefield casualties. The Trauma, Burn and Rehabilitative Medicine (TBRM) mission in Abu Dhabi involves…
Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Muhammad Samrez Salik, Pakistan Army sing military force against people within your own borders can be the most dreaded and detested scenario for any army of the world. In Pakistan, misguided and opportunist segments of society took up arms and challenged the writ of the state. Reestablishing order wasn’t possible without kinetic operations that involved collateral damage and property loss. These losses were extremely undesirable but essential for achieving peace. But after the military cleared and held areas formerly occupied by militants, it was time to win the hearts and minds of the population. Sustaining the authority…
Criminals have always found ways to exploit new technologies, and the internet is no exception. By now, most computer users are familiar with such novel terms as phishing, spoofing and spamming. And while the terminology may be new, the ultimate goals of cyber crime are ancient — they include theft, coercion and extortion. Governments and private cyber security firms have made steady but uneven progress since the advent of cyberspace, combating this latest trend in criminal activity. Like modern-day Sherlock Holmes, cyber security professionals use an array of tools and tradecraft to track cyber criminals. Unipath interviewed Maj. Gen. Saad…
MOAMMAR AL-ERYANI, YEMINI MINISTER OF INFORMATION, CULTURE AND TOURISM It is no exaggeration to say that the planting of land mines by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen since the coup in 2014 is the largest since World War II and is considered one of the most serious crimes against humanity committed by the militia against Yemenis’ present and future. The Houthi militia has placed mines in all the areas it reached, withdrew from and still controls. It does so without differentiating between military and civilian sites. Houthi mines lurk among homes, schools, mosques, markets, and grazing and agricultural areas.…
Brig. Gen. Engineer Salem Abusherida, Qatar Senior National Representative to USCENTCOM When Maj. Gen. Salem Al-Nabet reviews the achievements of the Qatar Emiri Air Force, two stand out. It possesses not just one of the world’s most modern air defense systems, but also a stellar training academy: Al Zaeem Mohammed Bin Abdullah Al Attiya Air College. A fighter pilot who commands the Qatar Air Force, Maj. Gen. Salem has spent much of his 37-year career organizing, training and equipping Air Force units to ensure the security, sovereignty and integrity of his nation’s airspace. He was instrumental in the creation of…
An Omani cadet was named top international student at Great Britain’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The Sandhurst commandant awarded Omani Officer Cadet Al Azhar bin Zahir Al Zakwani the Overseas Sword in August 2020. The award is given to the best international cadet in every class at the academy. More than 5,000 foreign nationals from 120 countries have studied at Sandhurst since 1947. Omani cadets have a long history of attending the academy, thanks to the two countries’ robust relationship dating back decades. Oman’s Royal Armed Forces were established in the 1950s with the help of the British Armed Forces.…
Qatar’s investment in maritime security is paying off with the delivery of a new naval ship from a Turkish shipyard in October 2020. The Al Doha QTS-91, built at Anadolu Shipyard in Istanbul, is one of the largest training ships in the world, designed for search and rescue operations and maritime patrols. The ship displaces 2,150 tons and can hold 150 Sailors and naval cadets. The Qatar Emiri Navy bought the ship as part of a larger deal signed during the 2018 Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference. Qatar held a ceremony to mark the delivery of Al Doha…
UNIPATH STAFF The Jordanian government has reinstated military conscription for 25- to 29-year-old men lacking job, family or educational prospects. The reintroduction of the draft required enlistment of 5,000 men in 2020 and will affect another 15,000 in 2021. A memorandum of understanding was signed in August 2020 between the Jordanian government represented by then Prime Minister Omar Razzaz and the Jordan Armed Forces represented by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Maj. Gen. Yousef Al-Hnaity. The period of military service is 12 months, during which new recruits will spend three months at boot camp to acquire basic military…