How the UAE Built an Empire of Kleptocrats

Key Points:

• Mohamed Bouazizi's 2010 self-immolation sparked the Arab Spring uprisings, which were met with harsh repression by Gulf monarchies, especially the UAE, aiming to suppress political Islam and maintain autocratic regimes in the region.
• The UAE played a key role in crushing uprisings in Bahrain and Egypt, covertly supporting military coups and dictatorships, notably backing Egypt’s Abdel Fattah el-Sisi with billions in investment and propping up Khalifa Haftar’s military dictatorship in Libya through covert air strikes and financial support.
• In Yemen, the UAE seized strategic ports and created proxy militias amid a Saudi-led coalition war, extending its military and economic influence across the Red Sea into Africa through military bases and investments, while fueling conflicts and resource extraction.
• The UAE normalized relations with Israel via the Abraham Accords in 2020, deepening military and intelligence cooperation, and actively supported Israeli actions during the Gaza genocide, while promoting controversial reconstruction plans tied to biometric surveillance and control.
• In Sudan, the UAE backed authoritarian forces and militias implicated in genocide, fueling ongoing conflict and instability through arms, mercenaries, and logistical support, ultimately revealing the limits and destructive consequences of its imperial ambitions in the Middle East and Africa.