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Ahmad Shamma, an official at Al Ain refugee camp, spoke wearily about the difficulties his 10,000 residents are facing in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, after the Gaza war caused an economic crisis and unleashed unprecedented Israeli settler and military violence.
Only a few hours ago, the Israeli army barrelled through the wide streets of the city, bursting into the narrow alleys of Al Ain to launch an operation that locked down the camp. Troops searched house to house in a manner Mr Shamma said terrified residents, particularly children and the elderly.
“The army came to the camp with a special engineering unit. We could see forcers holding maps in their hands,” he said.
“The raid lasted about four hours. They were taking photos with cameras and comparing, and looking at maps and taking pictures. Some people started rumours that the army will come and destroy homes. We don’t know really what they’re aiming for, we only saw what they were doing.”
Sitting behind his manager’s desk, Mr Shamma was flanked by large pictures of Yasser Arafat and Mahmoud Abbas, the former and current chairmen of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), considered internationally as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. The two pictures are a common sight in official Palestinian buildings in the West Bank.
For six decades, the PLO has been the umbrella group for the Palestinian Authority, which has governed parts of the West Bank for three decades, a number of Palestinian political parties and diplomatic missions at the UN, and in the world’s most important capitals. Many in the international community view it as having a key role in the reconstruction of postwar Gaza.
People in Nablus share no such hope in its capabilities. The overwhelming sense across the West Bank is that the PA is barely clinging on to power in the areas it is supposed to control. Nablus is one of a dwindling few, crumpled by a crisis of legitimacy and confidence, and accusations of enabling Israel’s occupation.
Fanfare at meetings of the Palestinian Central Council last week in the capital Ramallah appears to not have helped. Most residents The National spoke to in Nablus this week either refused to comment on the proceedings, which should be one of the most important events in the Palestinian political calendar, or dismissed them entirely.
When asked what he thought of the event, Mr Shamma smiled wryly and said: “If we didn’t have hope, we would not be here. We remain convinced that one day we will get our rights.”
Speaking in a far grander office down the road, Nablus governor Ghassan Daghlas, appointed by Mr Abbas last year, offered clearer support for the PA leaders, saying they are making decisions vital to keeping Nablus stable in terms of security. While the city is in far worse shape than before the war, the situation is better than in neighbouring Palestinian cities.
Nearby Jenin, for example, is now in its 100th day of an unprecedented raid in which the city’s refugee camp has been systematically destroyed. Israel says the overall operation – in which tens of thousands have been displaced, entire streets destroyed and affected camps left inaccessible – aims to defeat militants in the area, a process it said was accelerated after unpopular PA security forces lost control of the city.
Mr Daghlas said preventing similar devastation in Nablus is a key priority and that authorities in Ramallah are taking unpleasant but necessary measures to achieve that, even if it means working with Israel’s military to suppress militants, who many Palestinians view as powerful symbols of their resistance.
“We tell our people that this current [Israeli] government has only destruction as its ideology,” he said. “That’s why I keep telling them that in order to prevent destruction we have to keep the governorate peaceful and stable. No militant should be able to drag our governorate into war."
Mr Daghlas welcomed the biggest outcome from the meeting, the creation of the position of vice president of the PLO, which was given to long-time Abbas confidant Hussein Al Sheikh.
“The creation of the vice president position was a Palestinian decision, in a Palestinian institution that is led by Palestinians,” Mr Daghlas said.
“Hussein Al Sheikh is a strong figure and understands the situation. He has his expertise. He will help Abbas and he will help Palestinian institutions."
Few Palestinians share this positive view of Mr Al Sheikh, who is widely perceived as a symbol of the worst excesses of PA complicity with the occupier, in particular through co-ordination between Palestinian security forces and Israel, which happens a great deal in Nablus.
Mr Al Sheikh is widely believed to be the Palestinian official with the highest level of contact with Israel’s security world and its US backers.
Commentator and former Israeli military international spokesman Jonathan Conricus told The National that, while Mr Al Sheikh is “perhaps the best-known senior who has the most face time with Israeli and American officials", his vast unpopularity among Palestinians is a major challenge for the PA.
“I think his personal brand is on the extreme in terms of how much he is loathed and despised by Palestinians for being corrupt or an Israeli collaborator. That probably isn’t going to be very useful for the PA,” he added.
“Hussein Al Sheikh is another nail in the casket of that corruption and poor governance.”
Back in Al Ain, as young boys scrambled through a graveyard below the office that Israeli troops stormed in an earlier raid, Mr Shamma, still cautious, eventually gave his most direct words on the matter. “The leadership always changes, but in the end what is really needed are only the rights of the people.”
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Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The years Ramadan fell in May
TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
Veil (Object Lessons)
Rafia Zakaria
Bloomsbury Academic
About RuPay
A homegrown card payment scheme launched by the National Payments Corporation of India and backed by the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s central bank
RuPay process payments between banks and merchants for purchases made with credit or debit cards
It has grown rapidly in India and competes with global payment network firms like MasterCard and Visa.
In India, it can be used at ATMs, for online payments and variations of the card can be used to pay for bus, metro charges, road toll payments
The name blends two words rupee and payment
Some advantages of the network include lower processing fees and transaction costs
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Abaya trends
The utilitarian robe held dear by Arab women is undergoing a change that reveals it as an elegant and graceful garment available in a range of colours and fabrics, while retaining its traditional appeal.
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VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Jewel of the Expo 2020
252 projectors installed on Al Wasl dome
13.6km of steel used in the structure that makes it equal in length to 16 Burj Khalifas
550 tonnes of moulded steel were raised last year to cap the dome
724,000 cubic metres is the space it encloses
Stands taller than the leaning tower of Pisa
Steel trellis dome is one of the largest single structures on site
The size of 16 tennis courts and weighs as much as 500 elephants
Al Wasl means connection in Arabic
World’s largest 360-degree projection surface
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
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.
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The alternatives
• 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.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 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.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ENGLAND SQUAD
For first two Test in India Joe Root (captain), Jofra Archer, Moeen Ali, James Anderson , Dom Bess, Stuart Broad , Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes. Reserves James Bracey, Mason Crane, Saqib Mahmood, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Robinson, Amar Virdi.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
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