Saudi Arabia and the US have welcomed a deal by the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces to extend by a five days the ceasefire agreement they signed on May 20, the US Bureau of African Affairs said on Monday.
"The extension will provide time for further humanitarian assistance, restoration of essential services and discussion of a potential longer-term extension," the bureau said.
More than a million people could have fled Sudan by October to escape fighting, the UN warned on Monday as heavy clashes and explosions rocked southern Khartoum, while army jet fighters bombed paramilitary positions on a key Nile bridge north of the Sudanese capital, residents said.
At least 350,000 people have already fled the country and a million have been internally displaced.
UNHCR foresees about 800,000 Sudanese and 200,000 people of other nationalities leaving Sudan over six months, the refugee agency's head Filippo Grandi said in Cairo after a visit to the border with Sudan.
"This projection, that in the next few months, we'll reach these high figures, may even be conservative," Mr Grandi said. "At the beginning, I didn't believe it would be, but now I'm beginning to be worried."
The latest fighting came just hours before the expiry of a week-long ceasefire mediated by the US and Saudi Arabia that brought relative calm to Khartoum, where fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has continued since April 15.
Monday’s fighting in southern Khartoum was mostly in the districts of Jabrah and Azhary, according to residents.
About 12km north of Khartoum in Bahri, one of Khartoum’s two adjoining sister cities, army aircraft bombed RSF positions on Halfaya bridge.
While the week-long ceasefire brought some respite from the heavy fighting of the past six weeks, it failed to allow humanitarian relief to reach millions trapped in Khartoum, amid dwindling food supplies, power and water cuts, and the near complete absence of health care.
On Monday, two UN agencies – the World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organisation – said Sudan was now among the UN's highest alert areas for food insecurity and needed “urgent” action from the international community.
The fighting in Sudan has been mainly focused in Khartoum but has also spread to the restive Darfur region in the west of the vast nation.
The RSF's forerunner, a Darfur-based militia known as Janjaweed, fought on the government’s side during the civil war that erupted there in the 2000s.
It was accused of committing widespread abuses against civilians.
In an ominous sign, the army on Friday called up reservists and able-bodied retired soldiers to join the war against the RSF.
The Defence Ministry said men who wished to defend themselves, their families and property should head to the nearest army base to get weapons.
The Governor of Darfur, Minni Minawai, who has declared his support for the army, has also called on residents to arm themselves to fend off attackers and looters.
The Sudan war has so far forced an estimated 1.4 million people to flee their homes, of whom nearly 350,000 have sought refuge in neighbouring countries.
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Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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PROFILE BOX:
Company/date started: 2015
Founder/CEO: Rami Salman, Rishav Jalan, Ayush Chordia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Technology, Sales, Voice, Artificial Intelligence
Size: (employees/revenue) 10/ 100,000 downloads
Stage: 1 ($800,000)
Investors: Eight first-round investors including, Beco Capital, 500 Startups, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Hala Fadel, Odin Financial Services, Dubai Angel Investors, Womena, Arzan VC
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
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How will Gen Alpha invest?
Mark Chahwan, co-founder and chief executive of robo-advisory firm Sarwa, forecasts that Generation Alpha (born between 2010 and 2024) will start investing in their teenage years and therefore benefit from compound interest.
“Technology and education should be the main drivers to make this happen, whether it’s investing in a few clicks or their schools/parents stepping up their personal finance education skills,” he adds.
Mr Chahwan says younger generations have a higher capacity to take on risk, but for some their appetite can be more cautious because they are investing for the first time. “Schools still do not teach personal finance and stock market investing, so a lot of the learning journey can feel daunting and intimidating,” he says.
He advises millennials to not always start with an aggressive portfolio even if they can afford to take risks. “We always advise to work your way up to your risk capacity, that way you experience volatility and get used to it. Given the higher risk capacity for the younger generations, stocks are a favourite,” says Mr Chahwan.
Highlighting the role technology has played in encouraging millennials and Gen Z to invest, he says: “They were often excluded, but with lower account minimums ... a customer with $1,000 [Dh3,672] in their account has their money working for them just as hard as the portfolio of a high get-worth individual.”
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
Company%C2%A0profile
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
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Golden Shoe top five (as of March 1):
Harry Kane, Tottenham, Premier League, 24 goals, 48 points
Edinson Cavani, PSG, Ligue 1, 24 goals, 48 points
Ciro Immobile, Lazio, Serie A, 23 goals, 46 points
Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, Premier League, 23 goals, 46 points
Lionel Messi, Barcelona, La Liga, 22 goals, 44 points
'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse Of Madness'
Director: Sam Raimi
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg and Rachel McAdams
Rating: 3/5
More from Armen Sarkissian
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
