CAIRO // After 23 years in exile, Osama Rushdi looked past the violence unfolding on his television in his house in Birmingham, England and saw a chance to return home, something that hundreds of Egyptians abroad had not been able to do for decades.
Mr Rushdi, 52, a former member of the radical Islamist group Al Gamaa al Islamiya, fled Egypt in 1989 after a period of what he describes as serial harassment, an eight-day torture session and a three-year stint in prison without ever being charged. After fleeing the country, he passed through Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Albania and the Netherlands, before finally ending up in the UK.
"At this time, I knew Egypt was going to hell," he says. "It was a very bad situation. There was no place for me there and they forced me to leave."
But on June 15, he stepped off a British Midland International flight onto the soil of his homeland for the first time in more than two decades. The only problem, he says, is that he stepped straight into police custody.
Security officials kept him in a cell at the airport overnight before transferring him to the State Security Prosecutor's office in Cairo. There, they pointed to an old case, No 502 of 1994, where there were allegations that he was trying to overthrow the old regime.
"I [asked] them: 'what regime?'" Mr Rushdi says. "You just had a revolution. We are working for a new Egypt and you are still working with the old strategies. There are many people in the security who are from the old days."
He was released on the evening of June 16. Since then, he has been preparing for the return of his entire family to Egypt and contemplating getting back into politics. He is considering running as an independent Islamist candidate for parliament.
Under Hosni Mubarak's government, Islamist groups were violently suppressed, but Egypt's revolution has changed the political spectrum.
New political parties are forming with membership ranging from the moderate Muslim Brotherhood to ultraconservative Salafists and former militants.
John Calvert, a professor at Creighton University in Nebraska and an expert on the Islamic thinker Sayyid Qutb, said: "Chastened by the state, these groups have been lying low over the past decade or so. Now they are coming out of the woodwork and becoming politically involved for the first time."
Even Mr Rushdi's old group, the Al Gama'a al Islamiya, has announced it would create a party. This is a far cry from the terrorist attacks the group took credit for in the 1990s that killed hundreds of people.
The group's spiritual leader is Omar Abdel Rahman, who is serving a life sentence in the US for his role in the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York in 1993.
Hundreds of Islamists, barred by Mr Mubarak from the country, are preparing to return, says Montasser El Zayat, an Islamist lawyer and one-time prison mate of Al Qaeda's new chief, Ayman Al Zawahiri.
"I get calls every day" from exiled Islamists, he says. "For now, I have told them to wait. They will have their chance soon."
Mr El Zayat says there was nothing wrong with their return. They were unfairly targeted by the old government for their views and now sought to come home, he says.
"These are sons of this country," he says. "It's strange to ask: 'Why does an Egyptian want to return to his country?'"
Some of the returnees may associate themselves with Mr El Zayat's political party, the Union for Freedom, which calls for a government ruled by Sharia that focuses on an equal system of justice for all citizens and a greater role of the state in promoting the virtues of Islam.
The Egyptian security establishment has been keeping a close eye on the return of exiles and in some cases detained those that have been abroad indefinitely, on their return.
Rabie Abdullah, an alleged member of Al Qaeda, was arrested in mid-June when he fled Yemen with his wife and three children. Abdullah had been convicted in absentia for an undisclosed act of terrorism and sentenced to five years to prison. He is now being held by the authorities.
Mr Rushdi says that many exiles had false cases fabricated against them or simply could not return for fear of harassment, but there is a minority of the group who have actually been involved with terrorist activities.
"For these people, Egypt cannot handle their return," he says. "But for the others, this is important. The country needs to open up to them. If you close the door, you push them to continue acting in the wrong way. If all countries in the world did this, it would be more peaceful."
It is a touchy subject for the United States, which last month said the return of extremists to the Middle East was a counter-terrorism concern, particularly in light of the popular revolutions that have toppled governments in Egypt and Tunisia. John Brennan, the assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism, said at the time that regional "changes may bring new challenges and uncertainty in the short-term, as we are seeing in Yemen".
For Mr Rushdi, however, returning to his homeland is an important act of justice, crucial to prompting a wider debate in the upcoming elections.
"I will keep my independence, but I want to build many relationships with political people in Egypt from all directions," he said. "I think there are so many opportunities now. But after 23 years, I need some time to think. I'm not in a hurry to take any step."
It is also a long-awaited reunion with his family, some of whom he hasn't seen throughout the period he has been abroad.
"My siblings were girls and boys when I left," he says. "Now they are married and have children.
"It is a completely different world."
bhope@thenational.ae
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
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THE%20SPECS
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Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
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.”
Company%20Profile
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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.
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Specs
Engine: 3.0L twin-turbo V6
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 405hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 562Nm at 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.2L/100km
Price: From Dh292,845 (Reserve); from Dh320,145 (Presidential)
On sale: Now
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Super Bowl LIII schedule
What Super Bowl LIII
Who is playing New England Patriots v Los Angeles Rams
Where Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, United States
When Sunday (start time is 3.30am on Monday UAE time)
Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
If you go
Flying
Despite the extreme distance, flying to Fairbanks is relatively simple, requiring just one transfer in Seattle, which can be reached directly from Dubai with Emirates for Dh6,800 return.
Touring
Gondwana Ecotours’ seven-day Polar Bear Adventure starts in Fairbanks in central Alaska before visiting Kaktovik and Utqiarvik on the North Slope. Polar bear viewing is highly likely in Kaktovik, with up to five two-hour boat tours included. Prices start from Dh11,500 per person, with all local flights, meals and accommodation included; gondwanaecotours.com
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Company%20Profile
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