UAE’s EDGE Partners With Israel Aerospace Industries to Develop C-UAS

Logo of EDGE
Logo of EDGE
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UAE’s EDGE Partners With Israel Aerospace Industries to Develop C-UAS

Logo of EDGE
Logo of EDGE

UAE’s EDGE for advanced defense technology signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to develop an advanced C-UAS (Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System) tailored to the Emirati market, with wide-ranging benefits for the MENA region and beyond.

EDGE is leveraging its subsidiary, SIGN4L, a leading provider of electronic warfare services and solutions for national security, to collaborate with IAI, Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, for developing C-UAS solutions that are applied around the world to detect, identify, and intercept a broad range of threats.

EDGE issued a statement explaining that advanced 3D radar, COMINT (communications intelligence), and Electro-Optic technologies will be integrated into a unified command and control system, which makes the C-UAS fully autonomous requiring no human intervention.

“A series of countermeasures, ranging from soft-kill solutions, such as spoofing and jamming, to hard-kill capabilities, such as lasers and electromagnetic pulses, are offered based on the level of threat and targeted operating environment.”

Both SIGN4L and IAI will leverage their technical capabilities to develop the system in response to specific customer needs. Further support will be available via IAI’s partnership with Belgium Advanced Technology Systems which has a technical and marketing presence in the region.

EDGE CEO and Managing Director Faisal al-Bannai described joining forces with IAI as a “defining moment” for the company.

“As EDGE invests extensively in autonomous capabilities, our co-development of a Counter-UAS will help strengthen our advanced technology portfolio.”

IAI President and CEO Boaz Levy asserted the company’s pride in collaborating with EDGE to provide the UAE and wider region with a unique and advanced solution.

“This MoU serves as a stepping-stone for further business and strategic alliances between our countries and will enhance cooperation for R&D and technological innovation.”

This agreement comes in light of wide cooperation between the UAE and Israel, after the signing of a peace treaty and the development of full bilateral relations, following the conclusion of the Abraham Accords last August.

UAE and Israel agreed to sign bilateral agreements in the sectors of investment, tourism, security, communications, technology, energy, health care, culture, environment, and other areas of mutual interest.



Kuwait Court Concludes Major ‘Malaysian Fund’ Money Laundering Case

Kuwait’s Court of Cassation, in its final ruling, sentenced the defendants to prison terms ranging from 7 to 10 years, ordered them to return $1 billion, and fined them $500 million (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kuwait’s Court of Cassation, in its final ruling, sentenced the defendants to prison terms ranging from 7 to 10 years, ordered them to return $1 billion, and fined them $500 million (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Kuwait Court Concludes Major ‘Malaysian Fund’ Money Laundering Case

Kuwait’s Court of Cassation, in its final ruling, sentenced the defendants to prison terms ranging from 7 to 10 years, ordered them to return $1 billion, and fined them $500 million (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kuwait’s Court of Cassation, in its final ruling, sentenced the defendants to prison terms ranging from 7 to 10 years, ordered them to return $1 billion, and fined them $500 million (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Kuwait’s Court of Cassation on Thursday concluded the country's largest money laundering case, known as the “Malaysian Fund” scandal.

The court, led by Judge Saleh Al-Muraishid, sentenced Sheikh Sabah Jaber Al-Mubarak, son of the former Prime Minister, and his associates Hamad Al-Wazzan, Bashar Kiwan, and two expatriates to 10 years in prison.

A lawyer involved in the case received a seven-year sentence.

The court also ordered the defendants to return $1 billion and collectively fined them 145 million Kuwaiti dinars (about $500 million).

The “Malaysian Fund” case involves fake transactions and forged contracts between companies in Kuwait and China. Investigators from Malaysia and the US estimate that around $4.5 billion was embezzled from the fund since 2009, implicating the former Malaysian prime minister.

Kuwait’s Public Prosecution reopened the case after a two-year pause due to lack of information.

On March 28, 2023, the Criminal Court sentenced a member of the ruling family, his associates, and two expatriates to 10 years in prison, with a lawyer receiving seven years.

They were ordered to return $1 billion and fined 145 million Kuwaiti dinars.

The original case in Malaysia dates back to 2016 when US prosecutors filed a lawsuit to recover over $1 billion allegedly tied to a conspiracy to launder money from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB, overseen by former Malaysian premier Najib Razak.

The funds were used to finance a Hollywood film, buy real estate, and acquire famous artworks.

In May 2020, the scandal surfaced in Kuwait after US defense officials provided information to the late Kuwaiti Defense Minister, Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad, revealing the involvement of several former officials in suspicious financial transactions for Chinese and Malaysian companies.

Investigations in Kuwait showed nearly $1 billion had been transferred into the account of an influential Kuwaiti figure before being rerouted abroad.

The inquiry linked a Malaysian financial expert accused in the case to the son of a former Kuwaiti Prime Minister, and they collaborated to channel the funds through intermediary companies.

On July 10, 2020, Kuwait’s Public Prosecution ordered the arrest of Sheikh Sabah Jaber Al-Mubarak and his associate in connection with the “Malaysian Fund” case.