Simply Abu Dhabi Magazine XIX

4 9 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I Sheikh Zayed was a staunch advocate for brotherhood, and stood firmly against any intolerance. In an interview in 2002, he said, “The true Muslim is friendly to all human beings and a brother to other Muslims and non-Muslims alike. This is because Islam is a religion of mercy and tolerance.” The Sheikh lived this credo through his deeds, as well as his words, warmly welcoming and bringing together people of many nationalities and creeds who joined forces to create the UAE as we now know it. Sheikh Zayed applied his ideals of tolerance broadly. Within the Arabian Gulf region, and in the broader Arab world, the UAE has always sought under his guidance to enhance cooperation and to resolve disagreement through a calm pursuit of dialogue and consensus. One man who knew him very well was Zaki Nusseibeh, who spent many years by the Sheikh’s side as his translator and interpreter. With his service to Sheikh Zayed beginning three years before the federation of the UAE and continuing until the ruler’s death in 2004, Mr Nusseibeh had a unique insight and unprecedented access to the Sheikh’s motivations and reflections on all aspects of life in the new nation. As Mr Nusseibeh recalls in an interview granted to Bidoun Magazine, “He wanted the entire Arab world to come together and work together in closer cooperation. But in the Emirates, he felt that all the people belonged to the same community, shared the same history, the same traditions, the same heritage. When Sheikh Zayed starting building the state, he brought in anyone he thought could help. This is why he welcomed people from all countries, Arab or non-Arab.” In the 1990s, the Sheikh realised that the UAE might play a more active role in international peacekeeping operations. Thus, the UAE Armed Forces participated in the Arab Deterrent Force that sought to bring to an end the civil strife in Lebanon, and in UNISOMTWO, the United Nations peacekeeping and reconstruction force in Somalia. In early 1999, Sheikh Zayed was among the first world leaders to express support for the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan among fellow worshippers in a mosque