Adam Abu al-Rob, a six-year-old Palestinian eye cancer patient, gives a thumbs-up gesture as he sits on a bed at home in the village of Jalbun, east of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, on May 24, 2023. The Palestinian Authority pays for the treatments of Palestinian patients from the West Bank like Abu al-Rob, but does not cover transportation to and from hospitals, the cost of which can be prohibitive for many families. Israeli group Road to Recovery, which was established in 2010 and boasts some 1,000 active members, takes dozens of Palestinians daily -- mostly children -- from West Bank and Gaza crossing points to Israeli hospitals for treatment unavailable in the Palestinian territories. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
Adam Abu al-Rob, a six-year-old Palestinian eye cancer patient, gives a thumbs-up gesture as he sits on a bed at home in the village of Jalbun, east of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, on May 24, 2023. The Palestinian Authority pays for the treatments of Palestinian patients from the West Bank like Abu al-Rob, but does not cover transportation to and from hospitals, the cost of which can be prohibitive for many families. Israeli group Road to Recovery, which was established in 2010 and boasts some 1,000 active members, takes dozens of Palestinians daily -- mostly children -- from West Bank and Gaza crossing points to Israeli hospitals for treatment unavailable in the Palestinian territories. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
Adam Abu al-Rob, a six-year-old Palestinian eye cancer patient, gives a thumbs-up gesture as he sits on a bed at home in the village of Jalbun, east of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, on May 24, 2023. The Palestinian Authority pays for the treatments of Palestinian patients from the West Bank like Abu al-Rob, but does not cover transportation to and from hospitals, the cost of which can be prohibitive for many families. Israeli group Road to Recovery, which was established in 2010 and boasts some 1,000 active members, takes dozens of Palestinians daily -- mostly children -- from West Bank and Gaza crossing points to Israeli hospitals for treatment unavailable in the Palestinian territories. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
Adam Abu al-Rob, a six-year-old Palestinian eye cancer patient, gives a thumbs-up gesture as he sits on a bed at home in the village of Jalbun, east of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, on May 24, 2023

The Israeli volunteers providing a lifeline for Palestinians needing hospital treatment


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  • Arabic

As dawn broke over the occupied West Bank, Mamoun Abu Al Rob and his son Adam crossed into Israel, where a volunteer was waiting to take them to hospital.

Past the Rehan crossing in the northern West Bank, where Palestinian workers were passing through a dimly lit corridor, Mr Abu Al Rob walked towards Yael Noy's car as his six-year-old son dozed in his arms.

Their destination was a hospital near Tel Aviv, where Adam was to receive follow-up treatment after suffering from eye cancer.

He is one of tens of thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip crossing annually into Israel for medical treatment unavailable in the impoverished Palestinian territories.

For Palestinians from the West Bank, like Mr Abu Al Rob, the Palestinian Authority pays for these treatments, but does not cover the cost of transport to and from hospitals, which can be prohibitive for many families.

Road to Recovery, an Israeli group established in 2010 that Ms Noy now heads, takes Palestinians – mostly children – from West Bank and Gaza crossing points to hospitals in Israel and back.

Today the group boasts around 1,000 active members and helps 2,700 patients annually.

"There's no one like Yael," said Mr Abu Al Rob, 40, in Hebrew, which he picked up working on Israeli construction sites. "She's always happy, it fills my heart".

Adam, who lost an eye due to cancer, fell asleep snuggled up to his father in the back of Ms Noy's car.

Adam Abu Al Rob is helped by his mother Sabah at their home in Jalbun in the occupied West Bank. AFP
Adam Abu Al Rob is helped by his mother Sabah at their home in Jalbun in the occupied West Bank. AFP

The volunteer smiled at her passengers through the rearview mirror and exchanged a few words with Mr Abu Al Rob.

"Adam's mother, Sabah, usually accompanies him. She doesn't speak Hebrew, and I don't speak Arabic. So we speak the language of the heart," she said.

"This is an opportunity for all the volunteers to meet Palestinians," said Ms Noy.

"We do not know them, we never meet them. We have an entire population that lives next to us, they are our neighbours."

Israel has occupied the West Bank — now home to three million Palestinians — since the 1967 Six-Day War, when it also seized the Gaza Strip, the densely populated coastal enclave it has since withdrawn from.

Last year, Israel issued entry permits for more than 110,000 medical visits to West Bank residents, according to COGAT, the Israeli Defence Ministry body overseeing civilian affairs in the Palestinian territories.

More than 17,000 such papers were issued during the same period to Palestinians from Gaza, where 2.3 million people live under an Israeli-led blockade since Islamist movement Hamas rose to power in 2007, which has also obstructed medical supplies.

Israeli volunteer Yael Noy with Adam and his father Mamoun at the Rehan checkpoint between Israel and the occupied West Bank. AFP
Israeli volunteer Yael Noy with Adam and his father Mamoun at the Rehan checkpoint between Israel and the occupied West Bank. AFP

Many Palestinians remain unable to access treatment in Israel, because of permit denials by Israel or Palestinian authorities refusing to pay for treatment.

Ms Noy's car sped towards the hospital, down a highway that runs alongside a barrier Israel had built to separate the country from the West Bank.

"I couldn't live here without doing something," she said. "We live in such a complex and difficult reality. This is a tiny gesture I do in order to face this reality."

Not all volunteers share Ms Noy's objection to the Israeli occupation. She said they include "settlers, religious people and right-wingers".

One of them, 72-year-old retired army officer Noam Ben Zvi, said "the war with the Arabs will continue".

This has not prevented him from transporting a girl from a checkpoint to a Jerusalem hospital for years, waiting for hours as she is treated before driving her back nearly 150 kilometres to the northern West Bank crossing point.

"I love Marie and her father. I don't want them to wait for hours at the hospital," Mr Ben Zvi said.

The patient transfers are coordinated on the Palestinian side by Naem Abu Yussef, 57. He lives in a village near Qalqilya in the northern West Bank, an area of frequent clashes with Israeli forces.

"When I heard what (Road to Recovery) was doing, I couldn't believe that (Israeli) Jews could do things like that," he said.

'Small peace'

Recalling the months-long detention without charges of two of his sons, Mr Abu Yussef said: "People here often only know Israel by the soldiers raiding homes at night, the occupation, fear, hatred and revenge."

Road to Recovery was born after Palestinians, belonging to an inter-communal group of families bereaved by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, asked for help.

For founder Yuval Roth, "the end of the conflict can only come from a political agreement".

"But in the current reality, every trip like this is a small peace for an hour," he said.

Scoreline

Swansea 2

Grimes 20' (pen), Celina, 29'

Man City 3

Silva 69', Nordfeldt 78' (og), Aguero 88'

Bert van Marwijk factfile

Born: May 19 1952
Place of birth: Deventer, Netherlands
Playing position: Midfielder

Teams managed:
1998-2000 Fortuna Sittard
2000-2004 Feyenoord
2004-2006 Borussia Dortmund
2007-2008 Feyenoord
2008-2012 Netherlands
2013-2014 Hamburg
2015-2017 Saudi Arabia
2018 Australia

Major honours (manager):
2001/02 Uefa Cup, Feyenoord
2007/08 KNVB Cup, Feyenoord
World Cup runner-up, Netherlands

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreators%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAri%20Katcher%2C%20Ryan%20Welch%2C%20Ramy%20Youssef%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERamy%20Youssef%2C%20Amr%20Waked%2C%20Mohammed%20Amer%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMascotte%20Health%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2023%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMiami%2C%20US%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Bora%20Hamamcioglu%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EOnline%20veterinary%20service%20provider%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%241.2%20million%20raised%20in%20seed%20funding%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
War and the virus
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ENGLAND WORLD CUP SQUAD

Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

Tour de France

When: July 7-29

UAE Team Emirates:
Dan Martin, Alexander Kristoff, Darwin Atapuma, Marco Marcato, Kristijan Durasek, Oliviero Troia, Roberto Ferrari and Rory Sutherland

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Essentials

The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Seattle from Dh6,755 return in economy and Dh24,775 in business class.
The cruise
UnCruise Adventures offers a variety of small-ship cruises in Alaska and around the world. A 14-day Alaska’s Inside Passage and San Juans Cruise from Seattle to Juneau or reverse costs from $4,695 (Dh17,246), including accommodation, food and most activities. Trips in 2019 start in April and run until September. 
 

Pharaoh's curse

British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)

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Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine

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Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID

Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight

In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter

Price: From Dh2,099

Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20HyveGeo%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abdulaziz%20bin%20Redha%2C%20Dr%20Samsurin%20Welch%2C%20Eva%20Morales%20and%20Dr%20Harjit%20Singh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECambridge%20and%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESustainability%20%26amp%3B%20Environment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24200%2C000%20plus%20undisclosed%20grant%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVenture%20capital%20and%20government%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sun jukebox

Rufus Thomas, Bear Cat (The Answer to Hound Dog) (1953)

This rip-off of Leiber/Stoller’s early rock stomper brought a lawsuit against Phillips and necessitated Presley’s premature sale to RCA.

Elvis Presley, Mystery Train (1955)

The B-side of Presley’s final single for Sun bops with a drummer-less groove.

Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, Folsom Prison Blues (1955)

Originally recorded for Sun, Cash’s signature tune was performed for inmates of the titular prison 13 years later.

Carl Perkins, Blue Suede Shoes (1956)

Within a month of Sun’s February release Elvis had his version out on RCA.

Roy Orbison, Ooby Dooby (1956)

An essential piece of irreverent juvenilia from Orbison.

Jerry Lee Lewis, Great Balls of Fire (1957)

Lee’s trademark anthem is one of the era’s best-remembered – and best-selling – songs.

Our legal consultant

Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20profile
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WHY%20AAYAN%20IS%20'PERFECT%20EXAMPLE'
%3Cp%3EDavid%20White%20might%20be%20new%20to%20the%20country%2C%20but%20he%20has%20clearly%20already%20built%20up%20an%20affinity%20with%20the%20place.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EAfter%20the%20UAE%20shocked%20Pakistan%20in%20the%20semi-final%20of%20the%20Under%2019%20Asia%20Cup%20last%20month%2C%20White%20was%20hugged%20on%20the%20field%20by%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20the%20team%E2%80%99s%20captain.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EWhite%20suggests%20that%20was%20more%20a%20sign%20of%20Aayan%E2%80%99s%20amiability%20than%20anything%20else.%20But%20he%20believes%20the%20young%20all-rounder%2C%20who%20was%20part%20of%20the%20winning%20Gulf%20Giants%20team%20last%20year%2C%20is%20just%20the%20sort%20of%20player%20the%20country%20should%20be%20seeking%20to%20produce%20via%20the%20ILT20.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%E2%80%9CHe%20is%20a%20delightful%20young%20man%2C%E2%80%9D%20White%20said.%20%E2%80%9CHe%20played%20in%20the%20competition%20last%20year%20at%2017%2C%20and%20look%20at%20his%20development%20from%20there%20till%20now%2C%20and%20where%20he%20is%20representing%20the%20UAE.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%E2%80%9CHe%20was%20influential%20in%20the%20U19%20team%20which%20beat%20Pakistan.%20He%20is%20the%20perfect%20example%20of%20what%20we%20are%20all%20trying%20to%20achieve%20here.%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%E2%80%9CIt%20is%20about%20the%20development%20of%20players%20who%20are%20going%20to%20represent%20the%20UAE%20and%20go%20on%20to%20help%20make%20UAE%20a%20force%20in%20world%20cricket.%E2%80%9D%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin

2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

While you're here
Updated: June 27, 2023, 10:20 AM`