Foreign Secretary David Cameron also said Israel should not widen its offensive in Rafah without a 'clear plan' to protect civilians. AFP
Foreign Secretary David Cameron also said Israel should not widen its offensive in Rafah without a 'clear plan' to protect civilians. AFP
Foreign Secretary David Cameron also said Israel should not widen its offensive in Rafah without a 'clear plan' to protect civilians. AFP
Foreign Secretary David Cameron also said Israel should not widen its offensive in Rafah without a 'clear plan' to protect civilians. AFP

UK rules out funding UNRWA until inquiry into Hamas link is complete


Nicky Harley
  • English
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Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron has ruled out renewing funding for the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA until investigations into its alleged ties with Hamas are complete.

Countries including Canada and Australia resumed financial support after the outcome of an initial report into allegations that 12 UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7 Hamas-led attacks on Israel.

In an interview on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Lord Cameron said he was being “more demanding”.

He said he wants to see “real undertakings” from UNRWA “that they are going to investigate these things properly, that it won’t happen again, that [they are] changing their procedures and everything else, because you can’t expect us to pile back in and start funding an organisation when some of its own workers were involved on October 7”.

The UN agency working for Palestinian refugees was investigated after claims some of its staff had links with Hamas.

The UK is waiting for the findings of a second report, he said.

It comes as Israel intensified its military action and instructed residents in the northern cities of the Gaza Strip to relocate to the western part of Gaza city.

On Sunday, Lord Cameron said Israel should not carry out an offensive in the Gazan city of Rafah without a “clear plan” to protect people.

“For there to be a major offensive in Rafah, there would have to be an absolutely clear plan about how you save lives, how you move people out the way, how you make sure they're fed, you make sure that they have medicine and shelter and everything,” he told Sky News.

“We have seen no such plan so we don't support an offensive in that way.”

Israel launched more strikes in Gaza on Sunday after it expanded an evacuation order for eastern Rafah. It said 300,000 people had fled the city in the Palestinian territory since the army urged people to leave at the beginning of last week.

Lord Cameron said Israel needed to “do better” on allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza.

“I've said many times that I'm not content with the action Israel has taken over humanitarian aid,” he said. The Foreign Secretary identified “some signs” of improvement but said these were “not fast enough”.

On Saturday, Hamas released a video saying British-Israeli hostage Nadav Popplewell had died of wounds sustained in an Israeli air strike more than a month ago.

Israeli military vehicles take position near the border with the Gaza Strip. AFP
Israeli military vehicles take position near the border with the Gaza Strip. AFP

Mr Popplewell, 51, was taken hostage along with his mother Channah Peri on October 7 in Israel.

“I can’t give you any new updates this morning," Mr Cameron said during the interview.

“Like everyone else, I watched the video on Twitter, X, last night, put out by Hamas of Nadav answering a question as to who he was. And I watched that video and you just think, what callous people they are to do that, to play with the family’s emotions in that way.

“I met Nadav’s family, his sister, and I know the heartbreak they’ve been going through for over 200 days, and when you see what Hamas are prepared to do, you just realise the terrible, dreadful, inhuman people, frankly, that we are dealing with.”

A UK Foreign Office representative told The National: “We're urgently seeking more information following the release of this video.

“The UK government has been working with partners across the region to secure the release of hostages, including British nationals. We will continue to do all we can to secure the release of hostages.

“Our thoughts are with his family at this extremely distressing time."

The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The%20specs
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Profile of MoneyFellows

Founder: Ahmed Wadi

Launched: 2016

Employees: 76

Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)

Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

Race card for Super Saturday

4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$250,000 (Dh918,125) (Dirt) 1,900m.

4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,200m.

5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Conditions $200,000 (Turf) 1,200m.

5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,600m.

6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $300,000 (T) 1,800m.

6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 Group 1 $400,000 (D) 2,000m.

7.30pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 $250,000 (T) 2,410m.

Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

Company%20Profile
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Score

Third Test, Day 1

New Zealand 229-7 (90 ov)
Pakistan

New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat

How much of your income do you need to save?

The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.

In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)

Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.

 

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

The specs

Price: From Dh529,000

Engine: 5-litre V8

Transmission: Eight-speed auto

Power: 520hp

Torque: 625Nm

Fuel economy, combined: 12.8L/100km

Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten

Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a  month before Reaching the Last Mile.

Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

 

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.

Countries recognising Palestine

France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra

 

Silent Hill f

Publisher: Konami

Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Rating: 4.5/5

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

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 Breadwinner

Director: Nora Twomey

Starring: Saara Chaudry,  Soma Chhaya,  Laara Sadiq 

Three stars

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ads on social media can 'normalise' drugs

A UK report on youth social media habits commissioned by advocacy group Volteface found a quarter of young people were exposed to illegal drug dealers on social media.

The poll of 2,006 people aged 16-24 assessed their exposure to drug dealers online in a nationally representative survey.

Of those admitting to seeing drugs for sale online, 56 per cent saw them advertised on Snapchat, 55 per cent on Instagram and 47 per cent on Facebook.

Cannabis was the drug most pushed by online dealers, with 63 per cent of survey respondents claiming to have seen adverts on social media for the drug, followed by cocaine (26 per cent) and MDMA/ecstasy, with 24 per cent of people.

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

The specs

Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: nine-speed

Power: 542bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh848,000

On sale: now

Quick pearls of wisdom

Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”

Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.” 

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Updated: May 12, 2024, 4:36 PM