Actor Benedict Cumberbatch read out a poem by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish on a London stage last week. In reciting On This Land There are Reasons to Live, the actor gave an airing to the timeless claim for Palestinian statehood.
“On this land, there are reasons to live,” he read. “This land, the lady of lands, the motherland of beginnings, the motherland of all ends. She was known as Palestine; she, forevermore, will be known as Palestine. My land, my lady, you’re a reason to live.”
Days later, France and the UK became the first western permanent members of the UN Security Council and the G7 to take the Palestinian demand as equal to that of Israel. Other nations have followed, including Canada and Australia.
Whatever outcome emerges from Israel's war in Gaza, the tension between the generational claim and present dangers will not go away.
For decades, the British government and its counterparts among rich nations had a policy that set Palestinian statehood as the reward for a peace deal. That old formula which underpinned western policy was a losing battle. The new calculus is equally daunting but it changes the game.
Until now, all the building blocks had to be in place for recognition of the state of Palestine to represent the keystone in the arch. That formula relied on the belief that all the other steps could be taken and these would hold. The arch would stay in place and eventually be capped as a solid edifice.
Now, all that assumption-building has been swept away and these countries are left with a different construct. A new calculation must be tested if the gambit they have just launched can withstand deterioration of the conditions on the ground.
History is at a turning point on the Palestine-Israel peace process.
David Lammy lasted just over a year as UK foreign secretary before he was promoted to deputy prime minister. As he heads to the conference on the two-state solution in New York, he has already made his mark. And it takes diplomacy back to a test that is well-known around the world. The rebel Irishman Robert Emmet declared at his execution that no one should write his epigraph until the boundaries of his nation were drawn.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made clear that his government will now try to destabilise the new position of the western partners as rapidly as possible.
The British Foreign Office statement on Sunday detailed the target he would have in his sights: “A two-state solution, with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state led by a reformed Palestinian Authority, is the only path to a lasting peace for the Israeli and Palestinian people – free from the horrendous violence and suffering of the last two years.”
The concerns over the conflict in Gaza are clear and grave. The threat posed by Israel’s plans for illegal settlements and a path to annexation through its E1 plan will deepen in the weeks ahead.
The UK is hoping it has a framework for peace that is solid. It has called for reform of the Palestinian Authority, and for those restructuring efforts it has appointed the veteran fixer Sir Michael Barber as UK Envoy for Palestinian Authority Governance.
In its version, France has aligned with Saudi Arabia to offer a new working blueprint to fulfil the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002.
Mr Netanyahu is certainly preparing the Israeli public for a worse showdown to come. In the past few weeks, he has talked darkly of an isolation economy that would rely on Israel’s resilience. This is a far cry from his claims of tech superpower brilliance that he used to see as the legacy of his long leadership of Israel.
For western policy makers who have signed on to this shift and even for others such as Japan and Germany, the difficulty will be how to keep engaged with Israel.
It is hard now because the Israeli officials in charge are not interested in a relationship that takes on board the concerns of their counterparts. Indeed, the actions of the government are aggravated attempts to go in the other direction.
In future, the western governments will act to preserve the ideal that the British and French and other states are signing up to. In this, there is a parallel to the instructive moments both countries engaged in with the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and the Palestine Mandate after the First World War.
Countries backing the two-state solution have moved the process on to a new plane of international politics by taking the position of promoters of the Palestine state.
As the experts at the UK think tank Chatham House noted after the Palestinian recognition announcement on Sunday, the new direction provides a leadership boost for Mr Starmer. It reassures the Labour Party base and progressives as a whole that his government is on the side of principled action against the damage of Mr Netanyahu's forever wars.
That in itself is an achievement that makes the recognition decision a landmark of international leadership.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
LAST 16
SEEDS
Liverpool, Manchester City, Barcelona, Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Valencia, Juventus
PLUS
Real Madrid, Tottenham, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid, Napoli, Borussia Dortmund, Lyon, Chelsea
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
TOURNAMENT INFO
Opening fixtures:
Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
Tickets can be bought online at https://www.q-tickets.com/apl/eventlist and at the ticket office at the stadium.
TV info
The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
RESULTS
6pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 – Group 1 (PA) $55,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Rajeh, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Musabah Al Muhairi (trainer)
6.35pm: Oud Metha Stakes – Rated Conditions (TB) $60,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Get Back Goldie, William Buick, Doug O’Neill
7.10pm: Jumeirah Classic – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner: Sovereign Prince, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby
7.45pm: Firebreak Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Hypothetical, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.20pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 – Group 2 (TB) $350,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner: Hot Rod Charlie, William Buick, Doug O’Neill
8.55pm: Al Bastakiya Trial – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner: Withering, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass
9.30pm: Balanchine – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner: Creative Flair, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
A Cat, A Man, and Two Women
Junichiro Tamizaki
Translated by Paul McCarthy
Daunt Books
Living in...
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.
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Points to remember
- Debate the issue, don't attack the person
- Build the relationship and dialogue by seeking to find common ground
- Express passion for the issue but be aware of when you're losing control or when there's anger. If there is, pause and take some time out.
- Listen actively without interrupting
- Avoid assumptions, seek understanding, ask questions
The five pillars of Islam
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SPECS
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England v South Africa Test series:
First Test: at Lord's, England won by 211 runs
Second Test: at Trent Bridge, South Africa won by 340 runs
Third Test: at The Oval, July 27-31
Fourth Test: at Old Trafford, August 4-8
Tips for avoiding trouble online
- Do not post incorrect information and beware of fake news
- Do not publish or repost racist or hate speech, yours or anyone else’s
- Do not incite violence and be careful how to phrase what you want to say
- Do not defame anyone. Have a difference of opinion with someone? Don’t attack them on social media
- Do not forget your children and monitor their online activities
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MATCH INFO
Europa League final
Who: Marseille v Atletico Madrid
Where: Parc OL, Lyon, France
When: Wednesday, 10.45pm kick off (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Elvis
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