Tunaiji of Greater Tunb battle laid to rest
ras al khaimah — An eye-witness of the Iranian invasion of the Greater Tunb Island of Ras Al Khaimah on November 29,1971, Mohammed Abdullah Al Khumairi Al Tunaiji passed away in Ras Al Khaimah on Wednesday.
The brave UAE soldier, honoured by the prudent leadership, had received a serious injury on one of his legs during the Greater Tunb battle in which the 20-yearold Emirati serviceman Salem Suhail bin Khamis was killed.
Tunaiji, based in Al Rams area, to the north of the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, spent 22 years in military service during which he set an example for dedication and loyalty to the country and leadership.
The 75-year-old man, who was a senior corporal with the RAK police at that time, was buried late on Wednesday at the Rams Cemetery, 12km to the north of the RAK city.
Crowds of people, gathered to bid farewell to the departed hero whose dream it was to get back the part of his country which is under the Iranian occupation.
“Al Tunaiji, a close friend to the first UAE martyr Salem Suhail bin Khamis, was next to him when the Iranians invaded the Greater Tunb Island, and was shot in his leg.”
He was then taken prisoner for defending the UAE Island, but was released later, and travelled back with his other four fellow mates to Ras Al Khaimah.
Jassim Mohammed, the eldest son of the late serviceman, said his father’s dream, which he kept repeating to his 14 children,
Our father was the one who told Suhail (Salem Suhail bin Khamis, the UAE’s first Martyr) to head to the RAK flag and defend it with his body when the Iranians tried to lower it. Jassim Mohammed, son of Mohammed Al Tunaiji
grandchildren and siblings until his last days was to get back the Greater Tunb Island.
“He used to advise us to think of the island and get it back even if it requires our soul and blood.”
The epic of defending the island was the most favoured story he used to narrate to his children, he added. “He told us in an interesting way how Salem Suhail, the first UAE martyr, bravely defended the island until his death.”
Tunaiji was 30 years old when the Island was occupied by the Iranian forces, and Suhail was only 20 year old, he said. “Therefore, father used to love him, and deal with him as his younger brother.”
Talking about the Greater Tunb Battle, the late serviceman used to tell his children that he was on the second floor of the building where the UAE military force was guarding the Island.
“He used to sit next to the radio to send the wires to his seniors at the Ras Al Khaimah police when he received a bullet in his right leg which could have been amputated because the Iranians did not provide him with any medical assistance.”
“Our father was honoured by the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in 2014 as part of the UAE’s 43rd National Day celebrations,” he said, noting that the late hero suffered the loss of one of his sons while performing national duty. “Another son was injured while returning from a military mission.” ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com