Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
A young girl whose face was badly burnt by Israeli shelling provides a striking example of the terrible injuries being inflicted on Palestinians during the continuing Israel-Gaza war.
Ten-year-old Hanan Akel spent the Eid Al Adha festival last weekend in hospital after she was hit by Israeli shelling in Al Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza.
She suffered second and third-degree burns on her face and limbs and was taken to the Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al Balah, central Gaza.
"I didn't feel the Eid, as if there was no Eid," she said from her hospital bed.
"The Eid will be when I return to our house, when I have recovered. Eid will be when my face heals back," she said.
Hanan's voice trembled and sounded weak as she spoke, with her eyes partly shut. Her face was covered in burns and blood.
She hopes for treatment and her face to heal.
"I want to get treated and for my face to heal and to return pretty like before, and for my body to heal, and I want to get dressed and walk, and play again with my friends and my siblings," she said.
Hanan is one of many children to be killed and injured since Israel launched its war in Gaza more than eight months, in retaliation for the Hamas-led attacks on October 7.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, almost 37,400 Palestinians have been killed in the war. More than 10,000 of those have been identified as children, the ministry says. The real death toll of children is thought to be much higher, with at least 10,000 of the casualties yet to be identified, likely because the bodies are under rubble.
Earlier this month, Gaza's Ministry of Education said more than 15,000 children had been killed in the conflict. Most of the dead were of nursery and primary school age, the ministry said, as it marked the International Day of Innocent Child Victims of Aggression.
More than 85,500 Palestinians have been injured, many with life-changing wounds like Hanan.
Her mother, Walaa Akel, said she was very sad about her daughter's injuries.
"I am very sad about my daughter, whose face has been distorted. She was beautiful, she was like a flower," she said.
Ms Akel said her daughter was walking to the shop when the strike took place.
"After the war, what will she be like? How will she get up?" she asked.
- With reporting from agencies
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Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
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- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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.
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.
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• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
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• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
