UNIPATH STAFF Kuwaiti troops joined forces with their French counterparts to complete the Pearl of the West exercise in November 2018. Pearl of the West was held in accordance with a 1992 Security Cooperation Agreement between the two countries and is designed to raise the performance and combat efficiency of Kuwaiti ground, air and naval forces. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense acclaimed the 2018 exercise the largest ever. Thousands of troops participated. Drills included the use of live ammunition at the shooting range complex northwest of Kuwait City. French Ambassador to Kuwait Marie Masdupuy noted that Pearl of the West…
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UNIPATH STAFF The United Arab Emirates could be one of the first countries to capture criminals using flying motorcycles that can bypass congested roads by taking to the air. Brig. Gen. Khalid Nasser Alrazooqi, director of the Dubai police artificial intelligence unit, aims to use the electric motorcycles as first responders. Called hoverbikes, they are equipped with four drone-like vertical propellers that thrust them as high as 16 feet in the air. Brig. Gen. Khalid has established the ambitious goal of equipping his force with the new technology by 2020. Two police crews are already training to drive the motorcycles,…
Yemeni women gathered in Amman, Jordan, in November 2018 to outline ways to ease the conflict raging in their homeland. United Nations Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen Martin Griffiths chaired a meeting of the Yemeni women’s technical advisory group, created during peace talks in 2013 to give women a greater voice in the country’s civil affairs. “It is the women of Yemen who pay the highest price of the war; the voice of women is crucial to build peace,” technical advisory group member Somaya Al-Hussam told the U.N. Somaya’s contribution to local conflict resolution in Yemen has been…
UNIPATH STAFF Air forces from across the Middle East trained together in Bahrain in November 2018 to reaffirm their defensive partnership. Despite heavy rain, multinational aircraft split the sky over the Arabian Gulf during the Basic Liaison 2018 exercise hosted by the Bahrain Defense Force. Participating directly were air forces from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman and Pakistan participated as observers. The exercise began with advanced tactical joint air defense operations and command and control missions in airspace allotted to Basic Liaison. Commanders praised the high efficiency displayed by flight crews. Basic Liaison…
UNIPATH STAFF Calling for unity in the fight against terrorism and instability, Lebanese military leaders graduated a fresh crop of young officers in November 2018. Lebanese Army Commander Gen. Joseph Aoun presided at the graduation ceremony at Tripoli Municipal Stadium, joined by Brig. Gen. Yaqoub Muawad, commander of the Army’s 12th Brigade. Brig. Gen. Muawad commended graduates on their decision to join the Army to defend the homeland and preserve its dignity at this critical time. “These men, who come from all over the country, reflect the cohesion between the military establishment and Lebanese society and the overall role played…
UNIPATH STAFF In a meeting between His Majesty King Abdullah II bin Al Hussein of Jordan and Pakistan Army Chief of Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, the two countries vowed to become stronger security partners. Gen. Bajwa’s official three-day visit to Amman in October 2018 resulted in a promise to hold more joint military exercises, increase training and partner in the production of armaments. Jordan’s king awarded the Order of the Military Merit to Gen. Bajwa for his efforts to improve defense and security relations between the countries. Pakistani dignitaries also attended a counterterrorism drill by the King Abdullah II…
UNIPATH STAFF Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Defense hosted an international sniper competition in August 2018 attended by dozens of the world’s best military marksmen. Called Altyn Uki (Golden Owl) 2018, the five-day competition attracted snipers from countries such as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan. The United States and the United Arab Emirates sent observers. The eighth annual competition was held at the Spassk Training Center in the Karaganda region, a lightly populated area of vast steppes, providing ideal terrain for unobstructed sniping. The 2018 competition was the largest ever and attracted some countries for the first time. It included shooting…
Terrorist organizations thrive in a fragile environment plagued by societal neglect and poor services. Populations lose trust in government and become susceptible to extremist ideology, which promises to rectify injustice and reduce their suffering. Extremists work to promote discontent against the state, stir up ethnic and sectarian strife and highlight injustice and marginalization. This makes it easier to recruit youths to join terrorist movements. Jordan was one of the first countries to join the fight against extremism. His Majesty King Abdullah II first publicized the Amman Message in 2005, which affirmed the fundamental values of Islam: mercy, mutual respect, tolerance,…
The Jordan Armed Forces has developed a cutting-edge counterextremism curriculum UNIPATH STAFF Three indispensable factors are necessary to defeat terrorism: a professional army skilled in fighting, an accurate intelligence apparatus, and experts who can diagnose the extremist thinking that feeds terrorism. The strongest armies in the world cannot defeat terrorism with just battle tanks and aircraft, because terrorism will rise again wherever it finds another security gap. However, when terrorist forces are destroyed, sleeper cells and financiers are traced by intelligence agencies and religious men denounce the lies of terrorists and prevent society from falling into the trap of extremist…
Tehran pushes its radical political and ideological agenda in the Middle East MAJ. GEN. MOHAMMED ZAYED MAHMOUD IBRAHIM. YEMEN’S MILITARY ATTACHÉ IN WASHINGTON, D.C. Iran, formerly known as Persia, today is called the Islamic Republic of Iran, with Tehran as its capital. Its system of government is based on the supreme leader, considered to be the highest authority in the state and the decision-maker. The nation has adopted the “Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist,” a modern political theory that allows clerics to govern in Iran. The Iranian constitution, issued in 1979, gives the supreme leader broad powers, with the most important…