Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Saturday to hear from mediators Egypt and Qatar on the latest round of ceasefire negotiations, sources said, as Israeli strikes on Gaza killed at least 37 people and injuring scores more.
Sources told The National the Hamas delegates would hold talks with Egyptian officials on Saturday and engage in indirect negotiations with US and Israeli officials beginning from Sunday.
The arrival of the Hamas delegation signals a formal end of the Palestinian group's boycott of Gaza ceasefire talks following the assassination in Tehran in late July of its leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Hamas spokesman Izzat Al Rishq said the team, led by senior official Khalil Al Hayya, was travelling at the invitation of the mediators in Egypt and Qatar.
He added Hamas was ready to implement the terms agreed upon on July 2, based on a declaration from US President Joe Biden and a UN Security Council resolution.
“As Hamas stresses its readiness to implement what has been agreed on, it demands pressure on Israel to commit to it and stop obstructing reaching an agreement,” Mr Al Rishq said.
The sources said Hamas had emphasised before the arrival of its delegation that it remained committed to longstanding demands for Israel to fully withdraw from Gaza and for a permanent ceasefire.
Separately, the Egyptians are considering the latest proposal from Israel, on the issue of Israeli troop presence on the Palestinian side of the land crossing between Egypt and Gaza – and a strip of land that runs the length of the Egypt-Gaza border.
Both areas were captured by Israel in May, a move that deeply angered Cairo and significantly heightened tensions between the two neighbouring nations.
The latest Israeli proposal, according to the sources, is for the bulk of Israeli forces in the border strip Salah Adin (Philadelphi) corridor to pull back by up to 1,000 metres while maintaining some troops inside the area.
Israeli delegates on Friday handed the Egyptians detailed maps of where the remaining forces would be deployed, their numbers and areas of operation, said the sources.
Those remaining troops, according to the proposal, will later withdraw and be replaced by UN peacekeepers as well as US forces that will put in place and run a monitoring regime after the construction of a wall that runs the entire length of the Egypt-Gaza border and fitted with cameras and sensors.
Israel, however, is insisting that it retains the right for its military to return to the area in the case of a perceived security threat. Israel has long charged that arms and dual-use materials were reaching Hamas through underground tunnels running between Egypt and Gaza. Egypt has rejected the charge, claiming that its military destroyed the tunnels nearly a decade ago.
The Hamas delegation, said the sources, will also be briefed while in Cairo on a proposal for a non-partisan Palestinian administration to run the Egypt-Gaza border crossing at Rafah.
On the ground in Gaza, at least three dozen Palestinians were killed in multiple Israeli strikes on Gaza on Saturday morning.
An air strike on a residential building in the Al Amal district of Khan Younis in southern Gaza killed at least 11 people, including four children and four women, medical sources said. Another 11 people were killed in an attack on the Al Katiba area in the centre of the city, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
Wafa reported, citing local sources, that Israeli warplanes bombed a house in the Maan area, south-east of Khan Younis, killing at least four people and injuring others.
Israeli drones struck the tents of displaced people in the city, killing at least one Palestinian and injuring others, according to the report.
Gaza civil defence teams recovered the bodies of three people in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza. Scores of dead and injured people are still trapped under the rubble and rescuers cannot reach them, local media said.
In central Gaza, warplanes bombed Nuseirat refugee camp, leaving at least three people dead and others injured.
Local sources said planes also targeted a group of people east of Deir Al Balah in central Gaza, leaving several dead, and drones fired at the tents of displaced people in the city, killing one person and injuring five others.
The war began on October 7 when Hamas gunmen stormed into Israeli communities and military bases, killing around 1,200 people and abducting about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's war in Gaza has killed more than 40,300 people since October, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The war has displaced most of Gaza's population, often many times, leaving them deprived of shelter, clean water and other essentials as disease spreads, the UN says.
The Israeli army on Saturday issued new orders for Palestinians in the eastern Deir Al Balah and Al Mghazi area of central Gaza to move to an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone.
Wafa news agency reported that around 100,000 Palestinians have been displaced from eastern Deir Al Balah over the past two days due to ongoing and intense Israeli airstrikes on the city and its surroundings.
US President Joe Biden spoke by phone to the leaders of Qatar and Egypt on Friday, pushing for a Gaza ceasefire-for-hostages deal as negotiators met in Cairo to try to overcome obstacles.
Egypt, Qatar and the US have for months been engaged in talks aimed at securing a deal to end more than 10 months of war between Israel and Hamas.
The White House said Mr Biden spoke to Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim and separately with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to discuss “diplomatic efforts to bring the ceasefire and hostage release deal to a conclusion”'.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Friday denied reports that the negotiations were close to falling apart.
“That is not accurate,” he said on a call with reporters. “There has been progress made. We need now for both sides to come together and work towards implementation.” Mr Kirby added that the talks had been constructive and were “moving forward”.
White House Middle East co-ordinator Brett McGurk and CIA director William Burns were in Cairo as preliminary talks on a deal continued, Mr Kirby said.
“As I said, Director Burns is there, Brett McGurk is there. And so we'll be staying in touch with them, of course, over the next couple of days and seeing how things shake out.”
As the war continues, so do fears of regional escalation between Lebanon's Hezbollah and Israel. Other Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Yemen's Houthi rebels have also taken up arms against American and Israeli interests in the region.
Three fires were blazing on a Greek-flagged oil tanker in the Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Friday, one day after rescuers evacuated its crew following an assault by Yemeni Houthi militants.
The damaged tanker, carrying 150,000 metric tons of crude oil, poses an environmental hazard, the EU's Red Sea naval mission Aspides said.
“A potential spill could lead to disastrous consequences for the region's marine environment,” the Djibouti Ports & Free Zones Authority said in a post on the social media site X on Friday.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
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The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
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Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
More on Quran memorisation:
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Keita 5', Firmino 26'
Porto 0
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Where to Find Me by Alba Arikha
Alma Books
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The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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MATCH INFO
First Test at Barbados
West Indies won by 381 runs
Second Test at Antigua
West Indies won by 10 wickets
Third Test at St Lucia
February 9-13
Paltan
Producer: JP Films, Zee Studios
Director: JP Dutta
Cast: Jackie Shroff, Sonu Sood, Arjun Rampal, Siddhanth Kapoor, Luv Sinha and Harshvardhan Rane
Rating: 2/5
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.
Company Profile
Company name: Yeepeey
Started: Soft launch in November, 2020
Founders: Sagar Chandiramani, Jatin Sharma and Monish Chandiramani
Based: Dubai
Industry: E-grocery
Initial investment: $150,000
Future plan: Raise $1.5m and enter Saudi Arabia next year
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Normcore explained
Something of a fashion anomaly, normcore is essentially a celebration of the unremarkable. The term was first popularised by an article in New York magazine in 2014 and has been dubbed “ugly”, “bland’ and "anti-style" by fashion writers. It’s hallmarks are comfort, a lack of pretentiousness and neutrality – it is a trend for those who would rather not stand out from the crowd. For the most part, the style is unisex, favouring loose silhouettes, thrift-shop threads, baseball caps and boyish trainers. It is important to note that normcore is not synonymous with cheapness or low quality; there are high-fashion brands, including Parisian label Vetements, that specialise in this style. Embraced by fashion-forward street-style stars around the globe, it’s uptake in the UAE has been relatively slow.
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