Region

BAGHDAD — Twice a week, a small football pitch in Iraq offers the 25-member national squad of little people a chance to fulfil dreams and tackle prejudice.

Omar Abdel Rahman’s team has set its sights on an ambitious goal: To travel to Argentina for their first international tournament.

Despite modest means, the players come from across the country to train, leaving behind their daily troubles, discrimination and jibes.

“The team has changed the course of my life and that of the other players,” said Abdel Rahman, who works in a Baghdad cafe where he prepares shishas.

“I’m good at football, but we’re treated with contempt and it’s impossible to play in mainstream teams,” said Abdel Rahman, who stands at 1.42 metres. 

“But now everything is changing,” said the forward, clad in a number nine jersey, with green socks hiked up to his knees.

The team has just returned from a friendly match in Jordan. Next year, they aim to travel to Argentina to take part in the tournament for little people.

‘International dream’ 

In 2018, a “Dwarf Copa America” was held in Buenos Aires, the first of its kind.

The date of the 2022 edition has yet to be set, said Facundo Mariano Rojas, head of the Argentina-based international football federation for little people.

This will depend mainly on restrictions imposed for the coronavirus pandemic, he told AFP.

“We’re also looking for financial resources to help the participating countries.”

The matches will be played by seven-member teams in indoor stadiums and on futsal fields.

A key difference will be the size of the goals, fixed at 1.7 metres in height and two metres in width, compared to the regular 2.44 by 7.32 metres.

It was the Copa America that inspired Hussein Jalil to start up the Iraqi team in 2019.

Other players come from Erbil, Sulaymaniyah and Kirkuk in northern Iraq, from Nasiriyah in the southeast, and the eastern city of Kut.

Salah Ahmed, a 37-year-old forward, takes time off from work as a bike-repairman to attend.

“Before joining the team, I suffered from society’s attitude towards little people,” said the father of one.

Dwarfism is a medical or genetic condition that results in a stature below four foot, 10 inches, according to Little People of America, a support organisation.

Those with the condition, who refer to themselves as little people, face several challenges when it comes to playing football.

“Some players suffer harassment in public places and on the streets,” said Jalil. “But the situation is changing, football has given them more confidence.”

He pointed to other problems, such as finding football kits in the right sizes in the shops, so they have had to improvise.

There are also financial difficulties. When they travel, they have to borrow money to pay for their tickets.

“Upon our return, the youth and sports ministry reimburses up to $7,000 to cover our expenses,” Jalil added.

Abdel Rahman, a father of three, said the sport needs more backing.

“In other countries, a team like ours has the support of football stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi,” he said.

“In Iraq, the stars of the sport don’t even know that our team exists.”

TRIPOLI — Libya is less than a month from elections seen as crucial to ending its long-running civil war, but deep political divisions could provoke a delay or even fresh violence.

In theory, the North African country is preparing to move beyond a decade of conflict since the 2011 overthrow of longtime dictator Muammar Qadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising.

Western officials have talked up a UN-led peace process and insist on "inclusive" and "credible" elections starting on December 24, despite serious disputes over how they should be held.

Libya's electoral commission has said it is ready to organise the process and has published an initial list of candidates and handed out voting cards.

The United Nations has said that nine international organisations have sought accreditations to observe the conduct of the vote.

But despite a year of relative calm since an October 2020 ceasefire, Libya's deep political divisions remain.

Analysts warn that violence could easily flare again, with camps around eastern military chief Khalifa Haftar and the eastern-based parliament still mired in bitter disputes with a rival camp in the western capital Tripoli.

"The electoral process imposed by the parliament is so fragile, incomplete and dysfunctional and institutions in Tripoli are so eaten away by political factionalism that the dynamics of violence and polarisation are bound to come back before December 24," said Libya expert Jalel Harchaoui.

"That's almost certain, even assuming that the vote somehow takes place."

'Vague electoral law' 

On Monday, gunmen backing eastern military chief Khalifa Haftar blocked roads leading to a court in the southern city of Sebha that had been set to examine an appeal by Seif Al Islam Qadhafi after he was barred from running for president.

Seif Al Islam is the second son of the ousted dictator, who was slain in the 2011 revolt.

The interim government in Tripoli said it was following the situation in Sebha with “great concern”.

But as forces led by Haftar — himself a presidential candidate — dominate eastern Libya and much of the sparsely populated south, the Tripoli-based administration admitted it could do little to intervene.

That was the latest in a string of ominous events that have overshadowed preparations for the polls and threaten to spark renewed violence.

With just weeks to go, the list of candidates has yet to be finalised.

A Tripoli appeals court on Wednesday rejected two petitions against interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, allowing him to take part, his lawyer Abdulraouf Qanbij said.

On Tuesday, Interior Minister Khaled Mazen warned that the presidential election might have to be delayed if “violations” threatening the electoral process do not stop.

“We must not continue on a path that would lead to the deterioration of the security situation until it is out of control,” Mazen said.

Claudia Gazzini, a Libya expert at the International Crisis Group, said: “At the base of all these problems there is a vague electoral law and its contradictions.”

Parliamentary speaker Aguila Saleh sparked controversy in early September when he signed off on the bill without a vote in the assembly, putting into law a piece of legislation critics say was custom-made for his ally, Haftar.

In late September, the parliament based in the eastern city of Tobruk, itself well past its mandate, passed a vote of no confidence in the interim government.

This month, notables in several cities called for a boycott and several voting offices were shut down by groups hostile to Kadhafi’s candidacy, preventing voters collecting their voting cards.

As Libya’s main political players wrangle, the security situation on the ground, controlled by an array of militias and foreign forces, has voters asking whether they will be able to cast their ballots in safety.

And even though 2.4 million voting cards have been collected in the country of seven million, some voters have arrived at electoral offices to find their cards have already been picked up by someone else.

“Nobody seriously has any illusion that security will be guaranteed at every voting station in Libya,” Harchaoui said.

“In any scenario, there will be fraud, boycotts, blockades, voter intimidation and clashes. The most optimistic scenario is that these irregularities aren’t too spectacular or big.”

For Gazzini, it is very unlikely that the elections will take place — “but a coalition of people on the international level continues to insist that they must happen on December 24”.

If they do, the results are “completely unpredictable”, she said.

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon launched a fresh probe Monday into a 2019 air strike that killed civilians in Syria, two weeks after a New York Times investigation claimed the US military concealed dozens of non-combatants' deaths.

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin instructed Army General Michael Garrett to "review the reports of the investigation already conducted into that incident" and "conduct further inquiry into the facts and circumstances related to it", Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.

Garrett's three-month review will assess "civilian casualties that resulted from the incident, compliance with the law of war, record keeping and reporting procedures", Kirby added.

It will also probe whether measures taken after the earlier investigation were effectively implemented, if "accountability measures" should be taken and if "procedures or processes should be altered".

According to a Times investigation published mid-November, a US special force operating in Syria, sometimes in complete secrecy,  bombed a group of civilians three times on March 18, 2019, near the Daesh terror group bastion of Baghouz, killing 70 people, mainly women and children.

The Times report says a US legal officer "flagged the strike as a possible war crime" but that "at nearly every step, the military made moves that concealed the catastrophic strike".

The Times found the strike "was one of the largest civilian casualty incidents of the war against Daesh", but was never publicly acknowledged by the US military.

"The death toll was downplayed. Reports were delayed, sanitised and classified. United States-led coalition forces bulldozed the blast site. And top leaders were not notified," the report said, adding findings of a Pentagon probe were "stalled and stripped of any mention of the strike”.

A statement released by the Pentagon after the report said the initial investigation into the incident by the US Army Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, found the strikes were "self-defence," "proportional" and that "appropriate steps were taken to exclude the presence of civilians".

A US-led coalition and Kurdish-led allies announced the defeat of the Daesh's self-claimed "caliphate", at the end of March 2019 after overcoming the last extremist holdout of Baghouz.

KHARTOUM — Sudanese security forces fired tear gas on Tuesday at protesters rallying against last month's military takeover and a deal that saw the prime minister reinstated after his ouster in the coup, witnesses said

Thousands of demonstrators gathered in central Khartoum and marched on the presidential palace when security forces fired tear gas to disperse them, they said.

Security forces were stationed around the palace to prevent demonstrators from approaching.

"No partnership, no negotiation, no legitimacy," protesters chanted, urging the military "to go back to their barracks".

"I'm here to demand the fall of military rule," demonstrator Mohamed Alaaldin told AFP.

Sudan's top general, Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, seized power and detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok on October 25, but after international condemnation and mass protests he reinstated the premier in a deal they signed last week.

Critics lambasted the agreement as "whitewashing" and accused Hamdok of "betrayal" as pro-democracy activists vowed to maintain pressure on the military-civilian authority.

At least 43 people have been killed in anti-coup protests since last month, according to medics.

Doctors have accused security forces of using live rounds but police denied the allegations saying it only used "minimum force" to disperse protests.

'Clear and decisive response' 

The Sudanese Professionals Association, an umbrella of unions which called for Tuesday's protests, accused Hamdok and Burhan of seeking to "reproduce the former regime" of president Omar Al Bashir who was ousted in April 2019 following mass protests.

"Taking to the streets is a clear and decisive response to the putschists' nonsense," said the SPA, which was also instrumental in the anti-Bashir protests.

Hamdok, who has been prime minister in the transitional government since the ouster of long-time autocratic ruler Bashir, has defended the deal which was signed on November 21.

He has told local media he had partnered with the military to “stop the bloodshed” and to “not squander the gains of the last two years”.

The Burhan-Hamdok agreement was welcomed by the United Nations, African Union, Western countries as well as Arab powerhouses Saudi Arabia and Egypt, which have strong ties with the Sudanese military

The military has vowed to release detainees kept in custody since the coup and several politicians have since been freed.

Burhan has also pledged to lead Sudan to “free and transparent elections” in July 2023.

He has insisted the military’s move “was not a coup” but a step “to rectify the transition.

DUBAI — Ehab Fouad was a teenager when he marched in the parade marking the birth of the United Arab Emirates, that has gone from desert outpost to regional powerhouse in 50 years.

The retired civil engineer, now 64, vividly recalls December 2, 1971, when he proudly held aloft the photo of the oil-rich Gulf state's founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and saw its new flag for the first time.

Fouad, who strode directly behind the flag-bearer, tears up when he remembers the Abu Dhabi parade and reflects on the decades that followed.

"Fifty years later, I feel special," said the Egyptian father of one.

"It was a remarkable journey for me, and a remarkable journey for this country," said Fouad, who lives with his family in Dubai, one of the country's seven emirates.

Foreigners make up 90 per cent of the UAE's population, which has grown to 10 million from around 300,000 when its emirates came together to form a federation, even if its tough laws make most of them ineligible for citizenship.

Driven by major oil wealth, the former British protectorate has left behind its humble beginnings of tents and simple, mud-brick houses to become one of the biggest players in the Middle East, both economically and politically.

Dubai, a former pearling town and now a brash trade and financial centre, boasts a forest of skyscrapers including the world's tallest building, the 830 metre Burj Khalifa.

"Some people here used to build their houses from date tree branches, then mud bricks, and today it is all villas and towers," Fouad said.

'Activist foreign policy' 

The late Sheikh Zayed "believed deeply in Arab nationalism, and worked to unite the seven emirates into a single federation", said Elham Fakhro, senior Gulf analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank.

"It remains the only functional system of federalism in the Arab world."

Among the world's top producers of crude, the UAE's rapid growth since the 1970s is linked closely to its oil and gas wealth.

However, Dubai, with scant oil resources compared to the capital Abu Dhabi, has blossomed as a financial, transport, tourist and media hub

The Arab world's second-biggest economy behind Saudi Arabia also wields growing political influence, filling a space ceded by traditional powers such as Egypt, Iraq and Syria.

It is also a beacon for many Arab youth fleeing conflict-ridden countries.

"The UAE has long been concerned about its relative vulnerability, in a region where it is surrounded by larger, more powerful states," Fakhro told AFP.

"Its policy following independence was relatively neutral, but since the Arab Spring it has adopted a more activist foreign policy that aims to shape events in the region to its favour."

'We cannot stand by' 

The UAE, a staunch opponent of political Islam, has become something of a steward in the turbulent region.

Last year, it took the surprise step of recognising Israel, breaking with decades of Arab consensus that eschewed ties with Israel.

"As a committed regional and international actor, we know we need to take on even more responsibility for the future direction of our region," Presidential Adviser Anwar Gargash said.

"We have had numerous vacuums over the last decade... We cannot stand by and watch these vacuums filled by malign actors."

The UAE has in recent years relaxed its laws to attract more investments, branding itself a "zero tax" haven.

It lifted a cap on non-local ownership, allowed full foreign control of business ventures, and offered long-term "golden" visas to investors and "exceptional talents" such as artists, doctors, engineers and scientists.

Known in the 19th century as the Trucial States, named after a maritime truce, the seven emirates had been a British protectorate since 1892.

But Sheikh Zayed, who ran oil-rich Abu Dhabi, the biggest and wealthiest of the emirates, saw an opportunity to slowly build a powerful state by joining its family-run neighbours under one flag.

On Thursday, golden jubilee celebrations will include an airshow, a floating theatrical performance on a mountain lake, parades, concerts and fireworks.

MARIB, Yemen — Forced to flee fighting in Yemen's brutal war, Ali Yehya Hayba and his family find themselves crammed into a desert tent with dozens of others, fearing the onset of winter.

Hayba, his wife and their seven children escaped to Al Sumya camp east of Marib city, the government's last northern stronghold, after clashes escalated nearby.

The family, displaced for the second time in the seven-year civil war, have nothing but two blankets to keep them warm during the cold nights.

"It is part of the Empty Quarter desert. There are no humanitarian services, no schools, no hospitals or any other services," Hayba, 39, told AFP.

Al Sumya, with its clusters of makeshift tents, has witnessed an influx of displaced people, with hundreds arriving in a month, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

The camp, with scant resources, bears testament to a conflict that has forced millions from their homes, creating what the United Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

“We have been displaced two or three times now,” said Ali Abdullah, another of the camp’s residents. “We have not received blankets or mattresses, and the cold is going to kill us.”

The Hayba family share a tent with six other families, with only two bales of straw for around 35 people to sleep on.

“We suffer from a lot of issues here,” he told AFP. “We can’t put up a curtain for privacy, and we don’t even have the capability to set up a proper bathroom... Every three or four children share one blanket.”

 ‘They have nothing’ 

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels began a big push to seize the strategic city of Marib in February and, after a lull in fighting, they renewed their campaign in September.

Despite aerial bombardment from the Saudi-led coalition, the Houthis claim to be tightening their grip around Marib, with fighting raging to the north, west and south of the city.

IOM spokeswoman Angela Wells said about 60 families were sheltering at Al Sumya until this month, when an estimated 1,200 fleeing households arrived.

She said the IOM had started to offer services at the camp, including emergency relief items, trucking in water and building latrines and water tanks.

But concerns are growing as winter advances.

“With the winter months approaching, we worry that many do not have the clothing, blankets and other basic items they will need to stay safe and warm — especially those living in makeshift shelters that are not equipped to protect people from the elements,” Wells told AFP.

Marib city had between 20,000 and 30,000 inhabitants before the war but its population ballooned to hundreds of thousands as Yemenis fled frontline cities for its relative stability.

But with about 139 camps for the displaced in the province, according to the government, hosting around 2.2 million people, many displaced civilians are in the line of fire once again.

More than 45,000 people have been displaced by the fierce fighting in Marib province in the past two months, the IOM has said.

On Sunday, the UN children’s agency said it was supporting more than 7,500 people in the camp by providing clean water, hygiene kits and portable toilets.

Ali Al Habbash, supervisor of the Al Sumya camp, said people are still arriving.

“There was no other shelter, so we hosted them in this camp with other families, and they’ve crammed on top of each other,” he told AFP.

“Still, there is no proper shelter, no place to sleep, not enough blankets... they have nothing.”