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The Israeli government's failure to plan for the “day after” the Gaza war ends is a “huge strategic mistake”, a leading opposition politician has told The National.
Knesset member Shelly Tal Meron also said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government's conduct of the conflict had led to it “losing the faith of the public and Israel”.
She argued that while it would take time for Israeli society to heal from the Hamas-led October 7 attacks, the country would ultimately need to “re-establish the relationships” with Palestinians to stop the generational conflict.
Day after scenarios
Ms Tal Meron said Israel must address what it plans to do with Gaza, where more than 35,700 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli fire if it achieves its war objective of eliminating Hamas in the enclave.
“Israel must discuss the ‘day after’ right now, if not yesterday,” Ms Tal Meron insisted. “Not discussing the ‘day after’ is a huge strategic mistake for the state of Israel.”
She said she did not want her two daughters, aged 17 and 14, to be caught in the “endless cycles” of violence in “10 years, 20 years and 30 years”.
Gaza, where more than two million Palestinians live, would have to be demilitarised because “we need to have our borders safe again”, she said, suggesting that some of the civil governance could be done by the estimated 25,000 people who worked for the Palestinian Authority in the enclave.
Mr Netanyahu has rejected any role for the Palestinian Authority in governing Gaza.
Arab countries have called for a UN-led peacekeeping force to be deployed, but nothing has been decided at the international level yet.
The October 7 attacks, in which Hamas killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel, had made Israelis more hardline, said Ms Tal Meron, who is seen as a rising figure in the centre-left Yesh Atid, the main opposition party led by former prime minister Yair Lapid.
“In war, the public goes to the right wing because they're afraid for their lives and have lost trust in humanity,” she said.
Trust also needed to be rebuilt with Palestinians after the traumas suffered by both sides in the war.
“We need to re-establish the relationships as we have lost faith,” she said. “So, it will take time for Israeli society to heal but we have to start the process.”
'What is the strategy?'
Ms Tal Meron, speaking to The National at her Knesset office, made trenchant condemnation of Mr Netanyahu’s coalition, in which he relies on the support of far-right parties.
“If he wants to stay in power, the Prime Minister has to listen to the extremists within this government, and that's a problem because they are extreme and they do not represent the majority of the state of Israel.”
The “failing” government should be immediately replaced with elections if necessary or by another coalition formed within the Knesset, led by Yesh Atid, the second biggest party, she said.
“It's been seven months and where is this war going? What is the strategy? Where are you taking the state of Israel? I think that we can run this war in a better way and a new government can do that,” Ms Tal Meron said.
She said the release of the remaining 128 hostages seized by Hamas on October 7 should also be the top priority, but suggested that politics was “involved in the decision-making process” for a deal, “and that concerns me a lot”.
Violence against women
Ms Tal Meron was speaking shortly after chairing a multinational conference on sexual violence as a weapon of war in which crimes against women in the current conflict were highlighted.
“The main goal is to bring awareness around the world because people are not talking about this enough,” she said.
“This is not an Israeli problem, this is a problem for the entire world. This could be at the doorstep of every country in the world.”
Company%20profile
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The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi
Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Power: 190bhp
Torque: 300Nm
Price: Dh169,900
On sale: now
UAE squad
Rohan Mustafa (captain), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Dubai World Cup nominations
UAE: Thunder Snow/Saeed bin Suroor (trainer), North America/Satish Seemar, Drafted/Doug Watson, New Trails/Ahmad bin Harmash, Capezzano, Gronkowski, Axelrod, all trained by Salem bin Ghadayer
USA: Seeking The Soul/Dallas Stewart, Imperial Hunt/Luis Carvajal Jr, Audible/Todd Pletcher, Roy H/Peter Miller, Yoshida/William Mott, Promises Fulfilled/Dale Romans, Gunnevera/Antonio Sano, XY Jet/Jorge Navarro, Pavel/Doug O’Neill, Switzerland/Steve Asmussen.
Japan: Matera Sky/Hideyuki Mori, KT Brace/Haruki Sugiyama. Bahrain: Nine Below Zero/Fawzi Nass. Ireland: Tato Key/David Marnane. Hong Kong: Fight Hero/Me Tsui. South Korea: Dolkong/Simon Foster.
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Tries: Rieko Ioane, Nehe Milner-Skudder (2), Scott Barrett, Brodie Retallick, Ofa Tu'ungfasi, Lima Sopoaga, Codie Taylor. Conversions: Beauden Barrett (7). Penalty: Beauden Barrett
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
The%20US%20Congress%2C%20explained
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The%20specs
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'Ghostbusters: From Beyond'
Director: Jason Reitman
Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace
Rating: 2/5
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
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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
ACL Elite (West) - fixtures
Monday, Sept 30
Al Sadd v Esteghlal (8pm)
Persepolis v Pakhtakor (8pm)
Al Wasl v Al Ahli (8pm)
Al Nassr v Al Rayyan (10pm)
Tuesday, Oct 1
Al Hilal v Al Shorta (10pm)
Al Gharafa v Al Ain (10pm)
