Sulim Yamadayev, a rival of Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, was shot dead in a car park near his beach-front apartment in Dubai on 28 March 2009.

The two convicted men pleaded not guilty. They will be deported from the United Arab Emirates after their term.

Dubai police say an aide to Mr Kadyrov, Adam Delimkhanov, ordered the killing.

Last year Interpol issued arrest warrants for seven Russians in connection with the killing.

Mr Delimkhanov, a Chechen deputy prime minister and a Russian MP, rejects the allegations and has accused the police of incompetence.

It is alleged that the Iranian handed over a briefcase containing the murder weapon. The Tajik was accused of collecting intelligence for the assassination and of helping the killers flee the UAE.

Yamadayev led an elite division of Chechnya’s security forces and was once close to President Kadyrov, but fell out with him in 2008 and fled Russia.

In September 2008 Yamadayev’s brother Ruslan was shot dead in Moscow.

Mr Kadyrov has denied any involvement in the killings. Both he and Yamadayev were Chechen separatist commanders in the first Chechen war against Russia in 1994-96, but they switched sides when Russian forces poured into the breakaway republic in 1999 to retake it.

Yamadayev then became commander of the elite Vostok security forces battalion, a unit of former rebels who have helped quell separatist resistance. In 2005, he was named a Hero of Russia, the country’s top honour.

Source: BBC News

The Burj Khalifa (some of you may know it as the Burj Dubai before it was renamed Burj Khalifa) has finally opened its doors amid fanfare and fireworks. The building  is the tallest man-made structure ever built, at 828 m, some 300 m taller than its nearest rival, Taiwan’s Taipei 101. It cost over US $1.5 billion to construct and has already made headlines all over the world.

The Burj Dubai was renamed Burj Khalifa as Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai and Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, announced that the name would honour the President of the UAE, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is also Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Khalifa had very little to do with the building BUT Abu Dhabi has rescued Dubai three times in the last twelve months, first buying $10 billion in Dubai bonds, then lending $5 billion, and on December 14 making $10 billion available for payment of immediate debts.

Not everyone is raving about the Burj khalifa with the Human Rights groups’ objections of the ill-treatment of 12000 labourers and the environmentalists protesting against the already enormous carbon footprint of Dubai. Still its a nice view if you can get all the way to the top.

The Dubai debt saga has shaken global investors since the emirate’s shock Nov. 25 announcement that it sought a standstill on Dubai World debt as it restructured the sprawling state firm, which builds and operates everything from ports to luxury flats.

Nakheel, the developer at the centre of Dubai’s debt crisis, added to already battered sentiment on Wednesday after its financial statements showed liabilities jumping 7 percent in the first half to a loss of more than $3.6 billion.

While the Dubai government has tried to ring-fence profitable firms from the $26 billion restructuring at Nakheel’s parent, Dubai World, its debt woes have led to credit downgrades for all government-linked firms amid investor fears that state aid would not be forthcoming in times of trouble.

Ratings agencies said such downgrades could lead to an accelerated payment clause for the $2 billion debt of Dubai’s power and water provider, though a DEWA official dismissed the report as speculation. Adding to confusion among investors, Dubai’s finance chief said on Tuesday the Gulf business hub would need more than six months to restructure Dubai World. A banker close to discussions between Dubai World and its creditors said the firm had yet to show them a proposal.

Underscoring the grim mood, a group representing a potentially blocking minority of holders in Nakheel’s bond has written to Dubai World rejecting a standstill, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. “Investors, especially foreign institutions, want a strong statement from Dubai officials that they’ve found a clear way to help these companies,” said Samer al-Jaouni, General Manager of Middle East Financial Brokerage Co.

“There’s no reason to buy back into the market without having a clear picture on what’s going on. Confidence has been lost.” Dubai’s stock index tumbled to a 32-week low falling 5.9 percent at 0640 GMT with construction and real estate companies all down by the daily limit.

Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered, which is one of Dubai World’s creditors, said any losses it suffers in Dubai were unlikely to be material. Its shares have fallen 12 percent since Dubais’s announcement. Nakheel’s Islamic bond maturing on Dec. 14 fell 3 points to 47 cents on the dollar on Wednesday, compared with 110 just before Dubai World’s announcement.

“This does not really enhance Nakheel’s ability to meet near-term obligations,” said Roy Cherry, vice president research, real estate and construction at Shuaa Capital.

Source: Daily Times

The images give a very errie feeling of the Camels with the skyline of the Dubai dream in the background.

All the following images were taken by Imre Solt and are being used with permission. You can see more of his work at ImreSolt.com

In America, the leading Dow Jones industrial index, fell 104.14 points to 10,285.97.

Earlier today, Abdulrahman al-Saleh, Dubai’s finance minister, admitted that six months may not be enough to restructure Dubai World, the state-owned conglomerate which owns Nakheel, the property developer.

It later emerged that Nakheel made first half losses of $3.65 billion, according to Bloomberg, after taking a huge writedown on the value of its land and developments. Two weeks ago, the Dubai Government asked creditors to grant Dubai World a six-month standstill on its repayments of nearly $60 billion of debt. Dubai World then announced plans to restructure $26 billion of its liabilities.
In London, the FTSE 100 index of blue chip companies tumbled 87.53 points to 5,223.13 with banks driven down by worries over their exposure to Dubai borrowers.

Royal Bank of Scotland, the state-owned bank and the biggest underwriter of loans to Dubai World, was the biggest faller, down 2.55p or 7.7 per cent at 30.69p.

The London Stock Exchange, which is 20.56 per cent owned by the Dubai state-controlled Borse Dubai, which lost 23.5p or 3.18 per cent to 716.5p.

Standard Chartered, also exposed to Dubai World debt, fell 55.5p to £14.37 and Barclays lost 9.5p to 287.5p.

London traders were also unnerved by new data on industrial production, revealing flat output in October, signalling that Britain, which is still in recession, has made a weak start to the fourth quarter. The CBI also published its industrial trends survey, which showed factories expect output to fall in the coming months.

The weak data was released ahead of the Pre-Budget Report tomorrow when the Chancellor is widely expected to reduce his forecast for Britain’s economic growth this year from a decline of 3.5 per cent to 4.75 per cent.

Meanwhile, European markets were unsettled by Fitch’s decision to cut Greece’s sovereign debt rating to BBB+ from A- with a negative outlook – the first time in 10 years a major ratings agency has put Greece, the eurozone’s weakest economy, below an A grade. Fitch cited fiscal deterioration as the reason.

Also weighing on European stock markets was worse-than-expected German industrial production data. German industrial output fell 1.8 per cent in October, largely as a result of weaker production of machinery and cars, against expectations of 1.1 per cent growth.

Source: Times

Abdul Rahman Al Saleh, Director-General of Dubai Finance Department, termed the Dubai World restructuring as a natural procedure that can happen in many countries and companies.

In an interview with the televsion channel Al Jazeera, Al Saleh said: “Articles of association of Dubai World stipulate that the emirate’s government shall not guarantee its debts,” he said, noting that a distinction should be made between the Government of Dubai and the group which is made up of several companies – including Nakheel and Limitless World – operating in various sectors.

“The media has blown the issue of restructuring part of the group’s debts including the delay of repaying Nakheel’s debts out of proportion,” he said, affirming that restructuring of companies is a frequent practice worldwide.

“The aim of restructuring is to allow the group to steam ahead with a new shape and keep abreast of changes.”

Asked about the possibility of putting off projects being undertaken by the group, Al Saleh said: “It is better and wise to delay projects that have not been executed yet.” He did not rule out selling of some assets in Dubai or abroad, saying: “Selling of some assets is a natural act in order to bolster the financial situation of the group in such circumstances.”

He added Dubai World is active in many sectors but it was only the real estate sector that was impacted by the international financial crisis.

According to agency reports, Dubai World was to meet its main creditors yesterday to discuss its request to delay repayment of $26 billion (Dh95bn) debt, bankers said.

The bankers, who declined to be identified as the talks are private, said the meeting would take place in the afternoon without being more specific. A Dubai World spokesman declined to comment

Source: Emirates Business

Four British-listed banks — HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds Banking Group and Standard Chartered — and two local lenders — Emirates National Bank of Dubai and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank — met NM Rothschild and Deloitte, Dubai World’s advisers, in the Group and SGulf State yesterday.

The banks tried to ascertain whether Dubai World would make interest payments due on the bonds of Nakheel, its property subsidiary, next Monday. Last night Dubai World’s intentions remained unclear.

The company said last week that it had asked creditors to restructure almost half its $59 billion (£36 billion) total liabilities, adding that it planned a six-month suspension of all debt repayments. The announcement sparked panic in stock markets around the world as nervous investors worried about a second wave of financial collapses.
The leading banks, which are forming a steering committee to represent all 90 of Dubai World’s bank lenders, also asked for detailed financial information to help them to revalue the company in the event of a default. A source close to the banks said that they will have created the steering committee and formally appointed KPMG as its adviser by Thursday. The accountancy firm has been advising the banks informally for several weeks.

The banks are expected to start formulating their negotiating stance this weekend, ahead of the formal meeting of all Dubai World’s creditors this month in the Gulf State.

Informed sources said that the banks were likely to be far less aggressive than a rival group of bondholders advised by Ashurst, the London-based law firm, because the bank lenders have significant operations in the Gulf and are reluctant to damage relations with Dubai or Abu Dhabi, its oil-rich backer.

The bondholder group advised by Ashurst, which is led by QVT, the American hedge fund, is less concerned about repeat business and has asked legal advisers to assess whether it has a potential claim over Dubai World’s trophy overseas assets, such as P&O, the ferry company. Ashurst declined to comment but it is understood that by yesterday the QVT-led group accounted for about 40 per cent of the holders of Nahkeel’s bonds by value.

Insiders close to the talks said that yesterday’s meeting had been exploratory but would establish the likely direction of future negotiations. The most immediate concern, however, is a $4 billion Islamic bond held by Nakheel, which is due for repayment on December 14. With the Nakheel bond only days away from default, further talks are scheduled this week between Dubai World and its banks and bondholders.

Earlier, a senior Dubai government finance official conceded that Dubai World was prepared to sell some of its key overseas assets as part of the restructuring. The holding company had previously sought to confine the restructuring to its real estate groups, Nakheel and Limitless World, but the comments by Abdulrahman al-Saleh, director-general of Dubai’s Department of Finance, has fuelled speculation that trophy assets such as the QE2 cruise liner and the group’s stake in Canada’s Cirque du Soleil could be sold in an effort to balance the books.

Mr al-Saleh emphasised that the Government itself would not sell any assets to bail out Dubai World.

Bargain-hunters look to cash in

Overseas property investors are “rubber-necking” in Dubai’s downtrodden housing market, trawling websites for evidence of the collapse hitting property prices and the chance to bag a bargain (Rebecca O’Connor writes).

Rightmove Overseas, the international division of the British property website, recorded a 176 per cent rise in the number of searches for bricks and mortar in the emirate in the seven days after Dubai World’s request for a standstill on debt repayments, compared with the previous week. The surge in interest took the monthly increase in searches in Dubai to 45 per cent between October and November, becoming the fourth-most popular country for people interested in property prices.

Housing prices have risen dramatically in Dubai in the past — doubling in the four years to the end of 2008. However, they sank by 47 per cent in the year to September, according to Knight Frank, the estate agency, and are forecast to fall by a further 30 per cent. There are hopes that they could bottom out next year.

Source: Times

Check this video out, which shows how scarily high the tower is.

Dnata, an airline handling operator owned by Investment Corp. of Dubai, the emirate’s main holding company, will buy cargo and ground handling operations at Heathrow and Manchester airports from Go-Ahead Group Plc for 15 million pounds ($25 million), according to a statement today. Go-Ahead’s aviation unit reported an operating loss of 4.5 million pounds in the fiscal year ended June 27.

Dubai shook global markets when it announced on Nov. 25 that it was seeking a “standstill” agreement on loans incurred by Dubai World, which has $59 billion in liabilities. Dubai World said Dec. 1 it began “constructive” talks with banks to restructure $26 billion of debt.

“I don’t believe what’s happening will have any impact on the businesses”, Dnata head Gary Chapman said in a telephone interview from Dubai. “We are a completely separate autonomous organization.”

The company has been “choosy” about acquisitions, Chapman said. “We hadn’t really seen too many opportunities.”

Dnata will provide airline handling to more than 20 airlines at Heathrow, including Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways.

Source: Bloomberg