(Zaman Al Wasl)- As analysts see the reopening of the UAE’s embassy in Damascus as a diplomatic boost for Bashar al-Assad from a regional adversary, the leaked Intelligence archive, obtained by Zaman al-Wasl, shows deep coordination at high levels where relations have never been cut.
A look at the wanted Emiratis for the Assad regime, would help notice an overlapping three facts. First, the number of the wanted Emiratis are less than any other nationalities, especially when compared to the rest of the Gulf countries.
Second, the names of those wanted by Assad’s regime match those wanted by the governors of the UAE. Third, the issuing of several warrants by the Syrian regime coincided with the issuing of the same warrants by Emiratis regime; suggesting that the list of wanted Emirati by Assad's intelligence is only a copy sent by UAE intelligence, or vice versa.
The United Arab Emirates' share of the Intelligence warrants is suspended at 187 warrant, which makes the UAE’s share the smallest relatively to its population. Whereas Kuwait, which has a population of only one-third of the UAE, has about 680 warrants against its citizens. Also, Bahrain, who has a population of about one-tenth of the UAE, has 122 warrants against its citizen.
Of the 187 warrant against the Emiratis, 51 were arrest warrants, one of which was targeting Colonel Mohammed Ahmed Al-Abdouli, who fought fierce battles in the ranks of the rebels against Bashar’s regime, and he had - considering his military experience -an active participation in the liberation of large areas, who died in March 2013, during the battle of the Liberation of Raqqa.
In 2015, the UAE authorities arrested the two daughters of Al-Abdouli and one of his sons (an officer who was discharged from the army). This caused a widespread resentment, especially that the arrest of the late man's daughters came as a kidnapping and crossed the red lines of society that refuses to involve women in such cases.
shortly after, the authorities have arrested the eldest son of Al-Abdouli, to join his brother and his sisters, reaffirming that the arrest of relatives, is a legitimate behavior for the UAE security services, repeated on more than one case, similar devices used by the intelligence of Assad.
In 2015, Zaman al-Wasl has obtained the Syrian intelligence archive that includes 1.7 million documents.
The leaked archive contains records from the beginning of 2015 includes people from more than 150 nations not just Syrians. It dates back to the 1960s.
The iron rule of the Assad family, including father and son, made maintaining security services a top priority in order to watch Syrians and foreigners alike, according to NDR.
Among the Emiratis listed in the regime's intelligence records, is the name of Issa Khalifa al-Suwaidi, a well-known academic who was the regional director of the Abu Dhabi Educational services. The UAE authorities arrested him and then arrested his three sisters for demanding his release. Al Suwaidi is a member of the "Opinion Detainees" and is considered one of the UAE's top educators in the field of educational development.
Among those singled out by Assad's intelligence are the Emirati citizen Sultan Kayed al-Qassimi, who heads a reformist association, which has brought him into detention by the UAE authorities, along with tens of others like him.
Al-Qassimi, who comes from the veteran tribal family that lead two emirates in UAE, is an academic who founded and headed the University of Al Etihad. He is described by some as the "Sheikh of the Opinion Detainees" in the UAE and has been a detainee for five years.
Not a coincidence
It is interesting to see Emirati women in Assad's intelligence records, Zaman Al-Wasl pointed out that most, if not all, of whom the UAE issued sentences in 2013 accused them of belonging to a "secret organization" … They were listed on the Assad’s intelligence lists, and in the same year.
In the summer of 2013, the UAE authorities sentenced dozens of citizens to various prison terms, including 15 years for 8 defendants, 10 years followed by 3 years of monitoring for 56 detainees and, 7 years for 5 other detainees, all accused of belonging to a "secret organization" sentenced to 69 detainees, all of them were listed in full name on Assad’s lists!
The Syrian intelligence rushed in the same year, to comply with these provisions and issue warrants for the 69 detainees in the UAE. This complete congruity and time-coherence between the Syrian regime’s lists and the Emiratis’ regime lists, raise questions about the cooperation between the intelligence services of both countries, despite the public disruption of relations.
To resolve this mystery, we must have a look at the 94 cases issued in 2013, the same year as the trial of UAE activists, and 94 is the same number pointed by the regime’s media in the case of their trial, where the case was called the "94 cell" case!
If we remove the names of the 94 listed on the Assad lists in 2013, we will have less than half of the total number of warrants (93 warrant of 187). This also holds another indication that most of the ones who evokes the rage of the Assad’ regime, the same ones who evoke the rage of the Emiratis’ regime.
According to Human Rights Watch, "The location of 64 of these detainees (who have links to the Peaceful Islamic Reform Group) is still unknown, which opens the way for fear for their safety." Among the UAE detainees are two prominent human rights lawyers. Human Rights Watch has documented how the lawyers used by the only UAE law firm that provided legal aid to detainees were arrested and how some were deported and intimidated.
This is a long list of names that the UAE authorities sentenced in mid-2013, which are identical to the Assad’s lists, which was issued the same year. Zaman al-Wasl keeps records of these lists in addition to the other names of the “wanted” by the Syrian regime.
Zaman Al Wasl
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