Leaders and senior officials of Arab League states on Sunday condemned Israel’s “unilateral” actions in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
Speaking at the organisation's headquarters in Cairo, they said Israeli expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank and demolition of Palestinian homes could have consequences that affect the entire region.
The meeting was convened following a rise in Israeli-Palestinian violence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem over the past year, with at least 45 Palestinians 10 Israelis killed this year.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attended the meeting along with foreign ministers and senior officials from other member states.
They renewed their support for Jordan’s traditional role as custodian of Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third-holiest site that is built on a hilltop in Jerusalem’s Old City that is also the most sacred site for Jews, and for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel captured East Jerusalem and the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war. It claims all of Jerusalem as its undivided capital, while the Palestinians seek East Jerusalem as the capital of their future state comprising the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Mr Abbas said his West Bank-based administration would resort to the United Nations and its agencies and demand a resolution to protect the two-state solution to the conflict with Israel.
“The State of Palestine will continue going to international courts and organisations to protect our people’s legitimate rights,” he said.
On Jerusalem, King Abdullah said that “any attempt to interfere with its historical and legal status will have negative consequences for the region’s security and stability”.
“The region cannot live in peace, stability, and prosperity without any progress made on the Palestinian cause,” he said.
Mr El Sisi’s remarks echoed the king’s sentiments.
The Egyptian leader, whose country became the first Arab nation to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, warned Israel against “any attempt to impose a de facto situation [in Jerusalem] that will negatively impact on the final settlement negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli sides”.
He called on the international community to “reinforce the two-state solution and create conducive conditions for the resumption of the peace process”.
Addressing Israel directly, he said: “It’s time to enshrine the culture of peace and co-existence. In fact, it’s time for the integration of the region’s peoples.”
Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Israeli attempts to erase the Arab and Islamic identity in East Jerusalem “would fuel endless unrest and violence”.
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. UAE players with central contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Adnan Mufti, Mohammed Usman, Ghulam Shabbir, Ahmed Raza, Qadeer Ahmed, Amir Hayat, Mohammed Naveed and Imran Haider.
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
