On the first Monday of July, the world recorded the hottest day, at 17.01°C.
The previous record of 16.92°C was recorded in 2016. As alarming as that July 3 milestone was, the very next day it was even hotter, at 17.18°C, and global temperatures remained at that historic record high for a third consecutive day, on that Wednesday.
The rising heat is one of several aspects of extraordinary and extreme weather events around the world – heatwaves in Southern Europe, wildfires or floods – that have begun to occur with a frequency that no longer qualifies as unusual. It is this very recurrence that needs to be planned for and mitigated by countries globally.
The destruction that such weather events wreak on people, on their livelihoods, to the land and to entire economies is difficult to come back from. Pakistan, for example, knows this all too well, having suffered catastrophic losses in the floods last year that claimed 1,700 lives and stretched the public system.
Rebuilding cities, towns, healthcare systems, schools and the reconstruction of homes can take years, straining government budgets and ultimately slowing national growth and progress.
In recent weeks, there has been enormous flood-related destruction in disparate regions of South Asia. Parts of northern India have been deluged, with thousands of people evacuated from low-lying areas and 90 people reportedly dead.
The rising waters of the Yamuna River, which passes through the Indian capital, breached its highest flood level mark, sombrely altering the landscape. Evidence of extensive damage is plentiful, and the sight of submerged vehicles have become common in more than one part of the continent. In South Korea, for example, eight people have been trapped in a tunnel and the death toll due to days of torrential downpours has reached 35.
It would have been higher in many of the worst-affected areas if not for the swift and co-ordinated efforts from the natural disaster response and recovery teams. Commendable as they have been, however, they are inadequate to cope with increasingly severe and frequent meteorological events that scientists have been warning about.
Investment and planning are necessary not just for countries to cope with the immediate aftermath of extreme weather disasters, but towards rebuilding cities and infrastructure to make them climate resilient, thereby minimising damage and securing as many lives and livelihoods over the longer term.
More countries can perhaps take a leaf out of the Netherlands’s playbook. Despite the precariousness of its topography – 50 per cent of the country is below sea level – it took preventive measures after the flood of 1953, which was the worst natural disaster to befall it. This approach has held its people and Dutch infrastructure in good stead. The Netherlands has kept flood management and mitigation strategies central to its sustainable urban planning – a lesson that other geographically vulnerable countries can study and apply in their own specific circumstances.
Even as it is not the only factor, the occurrence of extreme weather remains linked to climate change. Other man-made factors such as real estate and infrastructure development projects in areas prone to landslides are also to blame in the cases of houses being washed away in floods. But often, and increasingly so, the overlap between climate change and extreme weather is strong.
With just a few months left before the UAE hosts the climate summit Cop28, these extreme weather events are important reminders that countries must do everything in their capacity to achieve their climate targets, as the Cop28 President-designate Dr Sultan Al Jaber has called for.
It has been well documented that there is no viable alternative but to limit carbon emissions, invest in nature and climate solutions and prevent the average global temperature rising more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Failing to do so would be disastrous. That much is evident from the events we're seeing occur with frightening regularity around the world, leaving no hemisphere unaffected.
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
More on animal trafficking
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
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
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'The Predator'
Dir: Shane Black
Starring: Olivia Munn, Boyd Holbrook, Keegan-Michael Key
Two and a half stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
STAY%2C%20DAUGHTER
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYasmin%20Azad%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESwift%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Aayan%E2%80%99s%20records
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PROFILE OF CURE.FIT
Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
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
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
