Uzbekistan has reformed the way it identifies extremists, releasing lesser offenders from prison and focusing instead on radicals who advocate hatred and violence against society. Saidbek Azimov, representative of a parliamentary secretariat for human rights in Uzbekistan, announced in December 2019 that the State Security Service, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the prosecutor’s office plan to eliminate blacklists of people suspected of being involved in extremist religious organizations. The measure would be the latest in a series of actions that alter the Uzbek government’s approach to suspected extremists. After a wave of violence in 1999, blacklists were introduced to…
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Since starting in the 1970s with a few thousand Soldiers possessing basic military skills, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Armed Forces has grown into a well-equipped military of 63,000 in 2020. But the country’s leaders have even greater ambitions: to make the Emirates a global leader in the production of advanced weaponry in fields such as cyber defense, missiles and jet propulsion. With that in mind, Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan launched a government-owned conglomerate called Edge in November 2019. Edge consolidates 25 entities with a combined 12,000 employees and $5 billion…
Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah promotes stability through military cooperation BRIG. GEN. KHALID ALKHAYAREEN QATAR SENIOR NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE TO U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND I have the honor of writing this article highlighting a leader from my own country: a fighter pilot in the Qatari Air Force, an entrepreneur, and a politician who has held many positions of service in his country, and who, throughout his career, is known for his generosity, spontaneity and candor. I am speaking of Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah, Qatar’s deputy prime minister and minister of state for defense affairs. Dr. Al Attiyah was appointed to his…
The late Sultan Qaboos was a bold leader who transformed Oman for the better UNIPATH STAFF The death of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said in January 2020 has left behind a legacy of service, security and stability that has benefited not just Oman but the entire region. And the inauguration of Haitham bin Tariq Al Said as the new sultan of Oman promises a continuation of that progress. He is Sultan Qaboos’ cousin, a seasoned diplomat and a former minister of heritage and culture. Arab and Western countries offered condolences for the death of Sultan Qaboos, praising his prudence…
The country’s Armed Forces updates its military doctrine to address hybrid warfare COL. OLIMJON SAMATOV, HEAD OF MILITARY INTELLIGENCE, UZBEKISTAN ARMED FORCES GENERAL STAFF Lt. Col. Umed Ahmedov, Uzbekistan Senior National Representative to U.S. Central Command Regional and global security experts suggest that hybrid operations constitute the foundation of modern geopolitical rivalry. Hybrid warfare is a strategy that seeks to wear down a nation without the direct confrontation of traditional, conventional warfare. A wide range of instruments are used to pursue this objective. They include regular military units and irregular forces. There are also activities carried out within the framework of…
Kuwait’s Intisar Foundation provides psychological treatment through drama therapy to Arab women affected by war UNIPATH STAFF | Photos by The Intisar Foundation The Middle East and North Africa region has witnessed war and armed conflict that have wrought havoc on countries and the victims within them. But while the world focuses mostly on physical destruction and bodily injury caused by war, it often disregards the psychological trauma that intensifies the suffering of people living in the region. Unipath interviewed Her Highness Sheikha Intisar Salem Al-Ali Al-Sabah, president of the Intisar Foundation. The United Kingdom-registered charity, operating in the Arab…
Security services focus on countering violent ideologies through religious education, rehabilitation and community policing SALTANAT BERDIKEEVA Threats from extremist ideologies and terrorism have increased in Kyrgyzstan in recent years. If Kyrgyzstan’s problems were previously limited to containing the spread of violent extremist propaganda and infiltration of foreign terrorist groups across the border — such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan that clashed with Kyrgyz security forces in 1999 in southern Kyrgyzstan — it now deals with issues closer to home. The small Central Asian nation is trying to figure out how to rehabilitate citizens who returned after fighting in wars…
UNIPATH STAFF Vast areas of Yemen, including densely populated regions, have been planted with anti-personnel and anti-vehicle land mines by the Houthis. The United Nations is calling for an international and regional effort to clear the country of these deadly explosives. Official estimates place the number of Houthi mines, many manufactured with the support of the Iranian government, at 1.2 million across 15 Yemeni governorates. The city of Taiz is among the large Yemeni cities severely affected by the war between Yemeni government forces and the Houthis. And its province is among the most contaminated by anti-personnel mines. Out of the 22…
Afghan stability would benefit the entire Central and South Asia region PROFESSOR ADIB FARHADI | Photos by AFP/GETTY IMAGES The United States is placing greater emphasis on “great power competition” in fashioning its foreign policy. In its most recent iteration in the U.S., the concept figures prominently in the 2017 National Security Strategy and 2018 National Defense Strategy and commits the country to containing expansionist ambitions of China and Russia in places such as Central Asia and Afghanistan. Nevertheless, this shift in strategy offers prospects for compromise, committing the U.S. to “seek areas of cooperation with competitors from a position…
Iraqi military forces enlisted bulldozers to overwhelm terrorists in the streets of Mosul UNIPATH STAFF During the battles to liberate Iraqi cities from Daesh, one particular hero preferred to work from the shadows, assuming the role of an unknown Soldier. Yet this hero spearheaded advancing columns, repelled terrorist car bombs, and plowed through their barricades. His presence sowed terror in the hearts of the enemy, shaking their morale as he breached their defensive positions. This hero is Chief Warrant Officer Mohammed Ali Abdullah of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service, and his weapon of choice was a 29-ton hulk of steel called…