Palestinians are preparing for an Israeli ban on UNRWA that will start on Thursday, ending the provision of education, health care and many other services in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank and significantly complicating the aid operation in Gaza.
Officials of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees say they have received no information from Israeli authorities about how to continue their services. Visas of UNRWA's international staff expired on Wednesday, and tomorrow the organisation must vacate all its property in East Jerusalem and cease activities, an order that UNRWA said “is in contradiction to international law obligations of UN member states including the State of Israel”.
The concern is that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians will be left in the lurch in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, the latter of which has been under particular strain due to an economic crisis and rising Israeli military and settler violence since the start of Israel's war on Gaza.
The Knesset passed laws on October 28 last year to halt the organisation’s activities within Israeli-controlled territory and ban the country’s officials and institutions from interacting with it, despite heavy international criticism. The foreign ministers of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and the UK had released a statement expressing “grave concern” at the legislation.
“In two days, our operations in the occupied Palestinian territory will be crippled, as legislation passed by the Israeli Knesset takes effect,” Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA, said on Tuesday. “At stake is the fate of millions of Palestinians, the ceasefire, and the prospects for a political solution that brings lasting peace and security.”
The drive to get critically needed humanitarian aid into Gaza after a recent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is also at risk. Although many UN agencies and aid organisations operate in the strip, UNRWA has unparalleled presence and infrastructure there along with 13,000 staff and 300 premises that make it a key distributor and organiser of humanitarian work.
Despite the fears and the apparent lack of any contingency planning, there is no sign that Israel is reconsidering its move.
UNRWA has long been unpopular in Israel, where it is accused of tolerating anti-Semitic content in school curriculums, being closely linked to Hamas and of perpetuating the refugee status of Palestinians, which many Israelis say makes ending the Israel-Palestine conflict more difficult.
There has been even more hostility since October 7, 2023 with Israel accusing staff members of UNRWA taking part in the Hamas-led attacks and the Israeli army saying it has uncovered Hamas weapons and tunnel entrances at UNRWA centres, including schools.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon told the Security Council on Tuesday that “Israel remains committed to its commitments under international law”, despite accusations the ban is illegal.
Deputy Jerusalem Mayor Arieh King has announced on X a “celebration ceremony” outside UNRWA’s compound on Thursday.
“You are invited to the celebration ceremony of the initiators of the law against the enemy organisation, the Nazi organisation whose employees were involved in the massacre in the South and the war against [the Israeli military].”
At a leafy UNRWA clinic near Herod’s Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City, medical staff buzzed around the small compound next to the Indian Hospice, an 800-year-old institution that remains a rare outpost of calm in the contested city.
They were experiencing a particularly busy day. News of the impending ban prompted locals to book appointments, fearing it might be the last day they could ever use the centre, staff said.
Dr Hamza Jabrin said no one knew what was happening tomorrow. “We treat 150 patients on average every day. So far, at midday, we’ve already had 180,” he said.
Senior staff nurse Manal Khayyat said staff have been told to come to work as usual on the day of the ban.
“The officials told us to come as usual and if they feel safe to do so. We should just all wear our vests,” she explained, pointing to faded purple vests that mark the clinicians as employees of UNRWA.
“If they come and tell us to go home with an official document then we are to go home. I do believe that today is the last day for UNRWA in Jerusalem,” she added.
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
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
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
WOMAN AND CHILD
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Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
CREW
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Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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The biog
Alwyn Stephen says much of his success is a result of taking an educated chance on business decisions.
His advice to anyone starting out in business is to have no fear as life is about taking on challenges.
“If you have the ambition and dream of something, follow that dream, be positive, determined and set goals.
"Nothing and no-one can stop you from succeeding with the right work application, and a little bit of luck along the way.”
Mr Stephen sells his luxury fragrances at selected perfumeries around the UAE, including the House of Niche Boutique in Al Seef.
He relaxes by spending time with his family at home, and enjoying his wife’s India cooking.
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FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Saint-Etienne v Montpellier (10.45pm)
Saturday
Monaco v Caen (7pm)
Amiens v Bordeaux (10pm)
Angers v Toulouse (10pm)
Metz v Dijon (10pm)
Nantes v Guingamp (10pm)
Rennes v Lille (10pm)
Sunday
Nice v Strasbourg (5pm)
Troyes v Lyon (7pm)
Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (11pm)
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How to get exposure to gold
Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.
A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.
Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.
Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.
London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long
However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
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Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
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