Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Hope, fear and tears. This is what could be seen on Mariam Abu Jalal's face as she waited in Abu Dhabi Airport's VIP terminal for a plane to Al Arish military airport in Egypt, from where she would head to Rafah, Gaza, to be reunited with her family.
The 33-year-old mother of two arrived in Abu Dhabi in December to receive treatment for breast cancer as part of the UAE's mission to bring over 2,000 sick and injured Gazans for medical assistance.
Ms Abu Jalal had been receiving cancer treatment in Gaza since 2020 but that stopped when Israel launched its war in the Palestinian territory in October, she said.
"I was getting some of the best care there is. Then all of a sudden, nothing."
Israeli air strikes targeted the hospital where Ms Abu Jalal was receiving treatment in late October, destroying it completely.
"Cancer patients weren't even able to get in touch with their doctors," she said.
She said the Israeli attacks on Gaza exacerbated her symptoms, even though growing up in Gaza had made her "used to" wars.
"I was relatively stable before the war began. But since it happened, I became afraid – not just for myself but for my two kids."
Now she wants to go back, against the advice of her husband, to return to her homeland and to be reunited with her children.
"We're used to the fighting since we were young and we've gotten used to being brave and steadfast in defending our land no matter how afraid we got," Ms Abu Jalal said.
Hearing her children ask her to come home, especially during Ramadan, was very difficult, she said, recounting the phone conversations she had with them as tears welled up in her eyes.
"They used to say, 'Mama, Mama, when are you coming back, when are you coming back?' I told them after Ramadan. Then on the first day of Eid, they asked again, 'Mama, are you coming back today?' I told them I can't."
Ms Abu Jalal said that just as she had faith that God would feed and keep her children safe while she was away, she was also certain that returning to Gaza was the right thing for her to do.
She vowed never to leave her children again.
"I left them crying. It was very, very difficult leaving my children in a state of war – where they could become hungry at any time, run out of water or even get killed or injured by an Israeli strike on or near them."
Rafah, her home city, is the only urban area of Gaza that has remained relatively untouched by Israel's devastating military offensive. Now under threat of an imminent attack by the Israeli army, the city's population has more than tripled to about 1.5 million people as people from other areas sought refuge there.
More than 34,000 people have been killed and more than 77,000 injured in Gaza since the start of the war. More than two thirds of the territory's homes have been destroyed or damaged, as have most of its hospitals. An acute hunger crisis is only just starting to ease after an international outcry prompted Israel to ease its strict controls on delivery of aid.
However, Ms Abu Jalal said she was overwhelmed with a sense of "positivity" while in the UAE.
"People in the UAE celebrated us [Gazans]. They welcomed us. They kept assuring us that everyone back home will remain safe. They had very strong and impassioned feelings towards us. It made us feel less worried and stressed out."
Despite the danger of returning home, Ms Abu Jalal said there was nothing like being in your own country.
"I went to Jerusalem and visited Al Aqsa mosque. Yes, it was amazing. But returning to Gaza felt different, even though it's the same country. There's no life away from my country."
What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
More on animal trafficking
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
More from Neighbourhood Watch
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Veere di Wedding
Dir: Shashanka Ghosh
Starring: Kareena Kapoo-Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania
Verdict: 4 Stars
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Results
%3Cp%3EStage%204%3A%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Juan%20Sebastian%20Molano%20(COL)%20Team%20UAE%20Emirates%20%E2%80%93%203hrs%2050min%2001sec%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Olav%20Kooij%20(NED)%20Jumbo-Visma%20%E2%80%93%20ST%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Sam%20Welsford%20(AUS)%20Team%20DSM)%20%E2%80%93%20ST%0D%3Cbr%3EGeneral%20Classification%3A%0D%3Cbr%3E1.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%20Quick-Step%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Lucas%20Plapp%20(AUS)%20Ineos%20Grenaders%20%E2%80%93%207%E2%80%B3%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Pello%20Bilbao%20(ESP)%20Bahrain%20Victorious%20%E2%80%93%2011%E2%80%B3%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20specs%3A%202024%20Mercedes%20E200
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%20four-cyl%20turbo%20%2B%20mild%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E204hp%20at%205%2C800rpm%20%2B23hp%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E320Nm%20at%201%2C800rpm%20%2B205Nm%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E9-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7.3L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2FDecember%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh205%2C000%20(estimate)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
