Yearbook 2009
Oman. According to countryaah, a German cargo ship, the convenience flag in Antigua and Barbuda, was hijacked in June 60 nautical miles south of the city of Sur on the Omani coast, the NATO military alliance reported. The suspicions fell on Somali pirates, and this was the first time they had operated so far from the African coast.
In the Gulf Football Championship, which was played in Muscat in January, Oman won at home by defeating Saudi Arabia by 6-5 on penalties. The victory was the country’s first in the championship. See ABBREVIATIONFINDER for abbreviation OM which stands for the nation of Oman.
HISTORY
Seat, from the middle of the 8th century, of an Ibadi imamate, since 1741 it has been governed by the current dynasty, Āl Bū Sa‛īd, which has replaced the title of imām with that of sultan. In 1798 the Sultanate of Mascat and Oman (denomination of the country until 1970) signed the first of numerous friendship treaties with England on which a semiprotectorate regime was based which lasted until 1971 when Sa‛īd ibn Taymūr, sultan from 1932, he was dismissed by his son, Qābūs ibn Sa‛īd, who claimed full independence of the country and started its modernization, facilitated by the rich oil revenues. In 1981 the Oman established together with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait And Qatar the Gulf Cooperation Council, and initiated a strengthening of relations with the USA; in 1985 he established diplomatic relations with the USSR and during the Gulf crisis (1990-91) sided in favor of the anti-Iraqi coalition.
The country does not have a written constitution and the sultan has absolute power. A first partial modernization of the political structure, aimed at broadening the basis of consensus for the regime, was launched in 1991. In 2002 it was extended the right vote for the Advisory Council to all citizens who had reached the age of 21 and shortly after the concession was extended to women as well. In 2003, the first elections were held with the enlarged electoral body, which brought women to the office of minister for the first time. In early 2006, a major free trade agreement was signed with the US.
ARCHEOLOGY
The archaeological researches of the last decade of the 20th century. in the southern sector of Persian Gulf provided important evidence of settlements dating from the 5th to 4th millennium BC. The oldest local cultures have been identified in the areas of Mascat, Ras al-Hadd and Ras al-Jinz. Important for the knowledge of funerary practices was the discovery of burials in Jebel al-Buhais 18. During the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods, Omani cultures remained rather isolated from Mesopotamia. The most notable settlements in the interior are Hili 2, Hili 14 and Rumeilah.
GULF OF Oman (Arabic Baḥr al- ‛ Omān) Section of the Arabian Sea, between the coast of the Oman and the southernmost one of Iran. It is separated from the Persian Gulf by the Strait of Hormuz. It stretches for 560 km from NW to SE and measuring / “> measuring a maximum width of 320 km.
November
Oman before income tax
November 1
The Ministry of Finance publishes a long-term economic plan for the years 2020–2024 and reveals that income tax for high-income earners will be introduced in 2022. Oman will be the first Gulf state in the partner organization GCC to introduce income tax. It is not clear at what income level tax is to be levied, but both the royal family and the business elite are likely to be affected. The financial plan also states the goal that central government revenues from sources other than oil will increase from 28 to 35 percent. Oman’s oil revenues have declined as a result of falling oil prices and agreements within Opec on reduced production. In addition, the corona crisis has also reduced other incomes and the country’s economy is expected to shrink in 2020.
October
Oman before VAT
October 12
In April 2021, Oman will impose a 5 percent VAT on goods and services, Sultan Haitham bin Tariq decides by royal decree. The intention is to strengthen the treasury in times of low oil prices and the corona crisis. There will be no tax on rents, basic food, school fees and travel tickets on public transport.
September
The British are expanding their fleet
11 September
Britain announces plans to expand its military base in a port in Oman, near the Indian Ocean and the politically sensitive waters of the Persian Gulf. In the port of al-Duqm, which is located approximately in the middle of the coast of Oman, there is a dry dock with the capacity to accommodate British aircraft carriers. Britain is now to carry out an expansion for 23.8 million pounds, the British Ministry of Defense announces.