Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
US President Joe Biden offered strong support for Israel as thousands across the Middle East protested against mounting civilian deaths in Gaza.
Speaking in Tel Aviv a day after about 500 died in a strike on Al Ahli Arab Hospital, Mr Biden said freeing Israeli hostages remained among his top priorities.
He earlier said he had seen evidence that suggested Israel was not behind the blast, which he attributed to “the other team”.
Israel claims Palestinian Islamic Jihad fired a missile that crashed into the hospital, killing 471 people and injuring more than 300, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
If you give up the rule of law then you let the terrorists win
US President Joe Biden
Mr Biden offered limited criticism of Israel's bombing campaign that has left 3,400 Palestinians dead, though he did tell Benjamin Netanyahu's government they must act according to the “rule of law”.
About 1,400 Israelis have been killed since the war began.
Mr Biden urged Israelis not to be consumed by rage and said the vast majority of Palestinians were not affiliated with Hamas.
“If you give up the rule of law then you let the terrorists win,” he said.
A separate post on X, formerly Twitter, said he had “asked tough questions as a friend of Israel”.
Mr Biden used much of his speech to express his horror over the killing of Israelis at a music festival and kibbutz.
Hostage efforts
"Hamas committed atrocities that recall the worst ravages of ISIS, unleashing pure unadulterated evil upon the world," Mr Biden said.
"There is no rationalising it, no excusing it."
“I can't speak publicly about all the details, but let me assure you for me as the American president, there's no higher priority than releasing all these hostages.
"We’re working with partners throughout the region, pursuing every avenue to bring home those who are being held captive by Hamas."
Israel's military has said Hamas is holding 199 hostages in Gaza while the Palestinian group's armed wing, the Ezzedine Al Qassam Brigades, claimed they are holding between 200 and 250.
Mr Biden warned others against thinking of attacking Israel.
"And my message to any state or any other hostile actor thinking about attacking Israel remains the same as it was a week ago: Don’t. Don’t. Don’t," he said.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog's office said he had told Mr Biden: “God bless you for protecting the nation of Israel”.
Mr Netanyahu thanked Mr Biden for his “unequivocal support”.
After his talks with Mr Netanyahu’s war cabinet, Mr Biden held a meeting with Israeli survivors of the October 7 rampage.
He hugged retired grandmother Rachel Edri, who was held hostage at gunpoint in her home for 20 hours by Hamas. She claimed to use food and conversation to stall them until their capture.
$100 million aid for Gaza
“Please keep supporting us in eliminating Hamas once and for all,” a soldier told Mr Biden.
Mr Biden announced $100 million from the US in humanitarian assistance for Gaza and the occupied West Bank and said aid groups must be allowed access to civilians.
“Palestinian people are suffering greatly as well,” he said.
“The entire world was outraged and saddened by the enormous loss of life in the hospital in Gaza.
“Separately, I ask Israel that the global community demand that the International Red Cross be able to visit hostages.
“I'm also announcing $100 million in new US funding for humanitarian assistance in both Gaza and the West Bank.
"This money will support more than 1 million displaced in conflict-affected Palestinians, including emergency needs in Gaza.”
As he returned home on Air Force One from Israel, Mr Biden said Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah El Sisi has agreed to open the Rafah border crossing into Gaza to allow in 20 lorries with humanitarian aid.
Mr El Sisi "agreed to … let up to 20 trucks through to begin with", Mr Biden told reporters.
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It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE
Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
