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Reports emerged detailing UAE involvement in the most recent unrest in Tunisia as the North African country becomes the latest to be targeted by Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahiyan, following past meddling in Syrian, Yemeni, Qatari affairs on behalf of the U.S.-Israel axis.
Attack on Russian airbase in Syria
It is been said that last week’s drone attack on a Russian air base in Syria’s Khmeimim has UAE fingerprints all over it.
During President Erdoğan’s telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart on Friday, Putin noted that Russia “knows very well who’s behind the attack,” in reference to an attempt by the UAE to foil the Astana and Sochi agreements.
Tunisia, the only country to successfully complete a democratic transition after the Arab Spring, is another country that is being targeted by UAE meddling, according to reports by French newspapers Le Monde and Le Parisien.
Tunisia’s Ennahda targeted by UAE
The UAE administration, which is “uncomfortable” with Tunisia’s Ennahda party being part of the coalition government, is said to be applying pressure aimed at the assassination of several of its party members.
In a report published by the two French newspapers, it is said that the flight crisis instigated by the UAE administration was the first shot in what looks to become the first in a series of Emirati attempts at meddling in Tunisian affairs.
In December, the UAE announced that Emirates airlines would stop accepting Dubai-bound female passengers from Tunisia, which Tunisian officials responded to by suspending all Emirates flights to and from the country.
Over the past week, protests have erupted across Tunisia under the pretext of the “rising cost of living” amid reports of meddling by the Abu Dhabi administration in the most recent events, as the small Gulf nation has grown uncomfortable with Tunisia’s close ties with Ankara and Doha.
Astana accord targeted
UAE is the one of the countries whose help was elicited by the U.S.-Israel axis to revive their failing strategy in Syria following the Astana accord between Turkey, Iran and Russia.
In a bid to foil the Sochi and Astana processes, the UAE is believed to be behind the most recent attack in Hama after several armed personnel carriers that belong to an Emirati company were spotted in the restive region.
Russia and Turkey, along with Iran are sponsoring the Astana peace talks, which focuses on a cease-fire and ending the six-and-a-half-year civil war in Syria.
The United Arab Emirates’ Embassy in Turkey’s capital has a new address evoking Turkey’s Ottoman heritage in the Middle East, including its defense of Muslim holy sites.The embassy building has not moved, but the streets around it have been renamed, in the wake of a historical row between Turkey and the UAE.Under an Ankara Municipality decision, 613rd St. has been renamed Fahreddin Pasha Street - -- after the Ottoman governor of Medina, Saudi Arabia from 1916-1919 -- and 609th Ave. in front of the embassy was also renamed "Medine Müdafii" (Defender of Medina) Ave.The move comes after social media posts last month by Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the UAE’s foreign minister, accusing Fahreddin Pasha of committing crimes against Medina’s population, including theft.The post drew the ire of Ankara, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his top aide Ibrahim Kalin slamming the allegations."Where were your ancestors when our Fahreddin Pasha was defending Medina?" Erdogan asked last month.He added that the so-called “theft” was actually "protecting the holy relics of the Prophet Mohamed from [British] invaders."
Turkey renames UAE Embassy streets in Ankara
Qatar blockade
Last June, the UAE also incited a row with Qatar when several Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, along with Egypt severed all diplomatic ties with the small Gulf monarchy, leading to a full-fledged crisis, after blockade countries closed their air, land and sea traffic to Qatar.
However, the plan to isolate Qatar failed when Turkey stepped in, launching a campaign to send aid to the Qataris.
UAE financed failed coup attempt in Turkey
The UAE was also behind the failed July 15 coup attempt in Turkey after the Gulf country was revealed to have given the FETÖ terror organization $3 billion in aid.
A high-ranking FETÖ delegation visited the UAE 22 times prior to the coup attempt.
Immediately following the coup attempt, FETÖ ringleader Fetullah Gülen, who enjoys a close friendship with Mohammad Dahlan and receives financial support from the UAE made a statement through the Emirati-based Al-Ghad channel.
In the statement, Gülen openly called for the need for UAE to intervene in Turkey, proving the ties that exist between FETÖ and Dahlan.
FETÖ terrorists are led by U.S.-based Fetullah Gülen, who orchestrated Turkey's July 15 coup attempt and is the mastermind behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
UAE behind Zarrab lawsuit
Details also emerged pointing to the UAE being behind the U.S. trial of goldtrader Reza Zarrab, after an Emirati-based company called Al-Nafees Exchange was revealed to have provided the U.S. with information and documents of its dealings with Zarrab.
Qatar filed a complaint to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) against the United Arab Emirates, citing airspace violation.According to Doha based Al Jazeera television on Friday, Qatar’s UN representation filed a complaint to the UNSC, saying a fighter jet belonging to UAE violated Qatar’s airspace.The complaint, Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Alya Ahmed Al Thani handed to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, emphasized that it was clearly against the authority of Qatar, border and land security, as well as international law.The complaint also noted that Qatar would take all necessary measures in accordance with international laws to protect its airspace, borders and national security.Turkey renames UAE Embassy streets in Ankara‘UAE, Saudi played role in assassination of Syrian opposition leaders’Separately, Qatar’s official QNA news agency reported that the airspace violation took place on Dec. 21, 2017.In early June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain all abruptly severed diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism.The four threatened to impose further sanctions on Doha if it failed to accept a long list of demands, including the closure of the Qatar-funded Al Jazeera television.Qatar denies the accusations, describing attempts to diplomatically isolate it as a violation of international law and its national sovereignty.
Qatar files complaint to UN against UAE
Saudi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has created a specially trained 5,000-strong army called “Al-Saif Al-Ajrab,” with help from U.S. mercenary company Blackwater, according to a report by the Saudi-based news websites Sabq and Al-Marsad.A 5,000 strong forceThe force, which is comprised from 5,000 soldiers, was created under the orders of King Salman bin Abdulaziz who acceded to the throne in 2015.Fighters in Bin Salman’s force are handpicked after undergoing high-level military training and answer directly to the crown prince.The brigade, which acts as Salman’s own private army, derives its name from the sword used by the founder of the second Kingdom King Turky bin Abdullah bin Muhammed al-Saud. The Arabic Al-Saif al-Ajrab roughly translates to “the sword that has been rusted with blood.”Cooperation with UAEAfter King Salman bin Abdulaziz acceded to the throne in 2015, a close cooperation between Riyadh and the UAE developed, and a special force consisting of mercenaries was created.The force, which was created with help from Eric Prince, the founder of the mercenary company Blackwater, plays an active role in Yemen.It is said that the idea behind creating a special force that is directly linked to the Saudi Crown Prince was hatched following a meeting between Mohammed bin Salman and his close friend UAE’s Prince Zayed.Force used during the ‘princes operation’Following the operation that detained princes from the ruling Saudi family in November last year, several news stories surfaced reporting that former Blackwater workers were part of the special security force that carried out Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman’s operation.Additionally, it is said that the Al-Ajrab brigade was also part of the operation that resulted in the arrest of influential ruling family members such as the former National Guard Minister Prince Muteab bin Abdullah and Prince Waleed bin Talal, among many others.‘UAE, Saudi played role in assassination of Syrian opposition leaders’Eleven Saudi princes detained following protest
Saudi’s crown prince creates personal ‘Blackwater’ army
The UAE is said to be behind a wave of assassinations that targeted the most prominent anti-U.S. Syrian opposition leaders between 2014- 2015, which paved the way for Daesh and Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorists to advance in opposition-held territories.After obtaining information about the whereabouts of the opposition leaders via its intelligence services, the UAE then passed on these tips to the Assad regime which carried out attacks that killed Jaysh al-Islam commander Zahran Alloush, Ahrar Al-Sham leader Hassan Abboud and 45 high-ranking group members, according to Abu Ali, a member of the opposition group.An attack that killed all leaders of Ahrar Al-ShamZahran Alloush, who was the leader of one of the biggest opposition groups in Syria, Jaysh al-Islam, was martyred on Dec. 25, 2015 following an airstrike on Eastern Ghouta.Ahrar al-Sham leader Hasan Abboud was martyred along with 45 high-ranking members of the prominent opposition groups following a chemical attack that targeted a meeting in their Idlib headquarters on Sept. 9, 2014.According to information divulged by Abu Ali, who served in the Islamic Front for two years between 2014- 2016, the UAE played a role in these assassinations, betraying Syria’s opposition with help from Saudi intelligence.Saudi roleAbu Ali stressed that Saudi Arabia initially played a crucial role in supporting the opposition against the Assad regime through a Saudi intelligence colonel named Abul Kassim who assumed an influential position during that stage. “Commander Alloush’s only communication device was a satellite phone that was given to him by the Saudis, who used it to track his movements before the attack that killed him was carried out,” said Abu Ali.“Following investigations carried out after the attack, it was revealed that UAE first pinpointed his position and then UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah Zayed tipped Bashar Assad’s brother Maher Al-Assad about his whereabouts,” he continued.“We also know that Muhammed Bin Zayed and his brother Abdullah played a role in the 2014 massacre of the Ahrar Al-Sham Emir Hassan Abboud and 45 of his friends,” concluded Abu Ali.Israel knew of the attack“Since 2015, we began to understand more clearly that some groups that were our allies during the war had a different goal. “After 2015, we also saw that some of the information we shared with some of our allies had reached Israel. We learned that information shared with us about the location of Alloush, among other confidential topics, had also reached Israel.“After the assassination, the cooperation between Israel, UAE, Russia and the Assad regime in the killing of Alloush became clear,” pointed out Abu Ali.PKK/Daesh brought to the scene“During the period that saw Ahrar Al-Sham become the target of sabotage, the PKK/PYD and Daesh terror groups were simultaneously becoming more active. That was the beginning of the decline of the resistance front. The phase of assassination and sabotage also began with the martyring of Liwa Al-Tawhid leader Abdulkadir Saleh in Aleppo’s Madraset al-Mashahd,” concluded Abu Ali.The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union and the United States.Turkey-backed National Army formed in SyriaUS attempts to incite Syria’s Arab tribes against Turkish Army
‘UAE, Saudi played role in assassination of Syrian opposition leaders’