The U.A.E has recently been gracing the headlines of major news channels for the horrendous murder that occurred last week in Abu Dhabi by a person who was initially called "The Reem Island Ghost." Since then I wanted to inform everyone of the details and set your minds at ease that I am okay. For those of you who are not yet aware I'll summarize what happened last week:
Two months ago the U.S issued a warning to teachers living in the U.A.E as they had received an anonymous threat that American expats in the U.A.E would begin to be targeted. Then last week a teacher who was shopping with her two 11 year old sons was fatally stabbed in a bathroom by a woman in a niqab. The Yemen born Emirate woman entered the Reem Island mall in full niqab (black abaya with black gloves, and nothing showing except the eyes). She then attacked the victim who entered the bathroom and had left her two sons outside to wait for her. The woman escaped the mall unnoticed, but was later caught the next day attempting to plant a bomb at the home of an Egyptian-American doctor. They arrested her and her husband within 24 hours of the fatal stabbing and the woman has since confessed to both crimes. Since her arrest the Sheikh has informed the family of the victim that the U.A.E government will fund the education of all three of the woman's children for their entire lives.
Is this scary? Yes, anytime something happens so close to home it shakes a person up. Yet, am I in danger? The answer is no. There has yet to be conclusive evidence that this woman had ties to ISIS or whether she was working on this act of terrorism individually. The government here was so swift in their response and has since provided even further protections for the expatriates in this country that I am sure nothing like this will happen again.
The fact of the matter is that terrorism and bad people exist everywhere. Terrorism is not exclusive to one religion or one group of people. So, while it is terrible what happened do not worry, I am safe here in the U.A.E. My students expressed many fears to me since the incident. The fear of wearing the niqab and being ridiculed for it. The fear of going to the mall. The fear that their teachers will leave. I simply told them that we can't let bad peoples actions define how we live our lives. And that while ignorant people may judge them they can take that as an opportunity to teach the world that this woman's actions does not define the U.A.E.
