UAE pilot Mariam Al Mansouri's disowned by family

'We ask our countrymen not to burden us with the consequences of the actions of the so-called Mariam Al Mansouri.'

The female air force pilot whose flew missions against Isis reportedly been disowned by her family and labelled an 'ingrate'.Mariam Al Mansouri's participation in F-16 bombing raids for the UAE was celebrated in the West, but an anonymous statement claiming to be from her family 'disowned' her for 'taking part in the brutal international aggression' against Syria.

The statement also expressed support for the Syrian revolution, according to the Palestinian Wattan news agency.

Anonymous Statement:
'We the Mansouri family in the United Arab Emirates hereby publicly declare that we disown the so-called Mariam Al Mansouri as well as anyone taking part in the brutal international aggression against the brotherly Syrian people, starting with our ingrate daughter Mariam Al Mansouri.
'We ask our countrymen not to burden us with the consequences of the actions of the so-called Mariam Al Mansouri.'

'We call upon all factions... on the Syrian battleground to unite and join efforts and forces towards the single objective of overthrowing the monstrous Assad regime.'Our family is proud of all free men who defend their cause and of all those who take up arms to defend the honour of their nation [the Islamic Nation]. We are proud of the Sunni heroes in Iraq and the Levant and all those who take up the banner of righteousness wherever they may be.It's not clear whether the views expressed in the statement represent those of the entire family or indeed if it is genuine.'

The Mansouri tribe has some influential members, including the country's economics minister, but it's also very large – the second biggest in Abu Dhabi, the capital of UAE, so it certainly can't be assumed that the views expressed in the statement are representative of the whole group.
The statement could well have been made anonymously out of fear of punishment, as voicing dissent against the UAE government can result in imprisonment.If true, the statement won't represent the first time the Mansouri family has been linked to extremism. In January this year high-profile lawyer Mohammed al-Mansoori was jailed for allegedly trying to set up an 'international' branch of the controversial Muslim Brotherhood in the UAE, according to the BBC.