When Pope Francis this weekend condemned Israeli air strikes on Gaza as “cruelty, not war”, he was articulating the feelings of many across the Middle East and further afield who are appalled not only by the intensity of suffering in the Palestinian enclave but by the different forms it takes.
The direct deaths caused by Israeli bombardments and gunfire run parallel with the fatalities caused by manmade hunger and disease. Injuries – psychological as well as physical – also highlight the incalculable human cost of this war.
In a special report published by The National at the weekend, Gaza resident Hussam Jundia, a 38-year-old father of six, described how he lost his right eye, left leg at the knee and use of his right hand in an Israeli strike that killed his uncles, cousin and injured his four-year-old son. He joins hundreds of other amputees in the enclave, which the UN says has the largest population of child amputees in modern history.
Just as horrific is how Israel’s attacks have wrecked maternity care in the enclave, with some mothers going through C-sections and other major surgery with only general painkillers such as paracetamol. In August, the trauma endured by Gazan children was exemplified by eight-year-old Sama Tabil, , a displaced Palestinian girl whose hair fell out from psychological shock. Amid these outrages, the fate of the remaining Israeli hostages abducted by Hamas and other militants during the October 7 attack is unknown.
There may be a fine line between false hope and optimism, but all those aghast at such prolonged human suffering are hoping recent suggestions that a ceasefire is closer now than it has been for months brings this war to an end. Hamas and US officials have reportedly raised hopes that negotiations in Doha and Cairo could bear fruit.
In a statement, Hamas said "an agreement for a ceasefire and prisoner exchange is possible if [Israel] stops setting new conditions". Sources briefed on the negotiations told The National that a team from Israel’s Mossad and its domestic security counterpart Shin Bet were in Doha recently to iron out technical details of a possible deal.
Talks have been close before and several rounds of previous ceasefire talks have led to naught. So, are there grounds for hope this time? Some developments in the run-up to these latest ceasefire reports suggest that there may be some real momentum behind a deal. Earlier this month, Hamas appeared to soften its position, agreeing in principle to an Egyptian proposal for a 30-day truce and the release of some of the Israeli hostages. In addition, Qatar has resumed its mediation role and reports of a joint Fatah-Hamas plan to administer Gaza suggest that some serious thought is being given to its post-war future.
Diplomatically, the issue of Palestine remains high on the international agenda with the UN General Assembly last Tuesday adopting a resolution affirming the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination by an overwhelming majority.
If the horrors being endured by the people of Gaza are to be brought to an end, then any faint momentum behind a ceasefire must be maintained
Nevertheless, such potential must be accompanied by caution. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said that his country must retain security control of Gaza, revealing the same thinking that helped create the very conditions the fuelled militancy in the enclave for years. There are also several risks potentially undermining any ceasefire, such as the Palestinian Authority’s waning support among people in the occupied West Bank and the continuing violent conflict between Israel, western forces and Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Such caution is justified but if the horrors being endured by the people of Gaza are to be brought to an end, then any faint momentum behind a ceasefire must be maintained.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE SQUAD FOR ASIAN JIU-JITSU CHAMPIONSHIP
Men’s squad: Faisal Al Ketbi, Omar Al Fadhli, Zayed Al Kathiri, Thiab Al Nuaimi, Khaled Al Shehhi, Mohamed Ali Al Suwaidi, Farraj Khaled Al Awlaqi, Muhammad Al Ameri, Mahdi Al Awlaqi, Saeed Al Qubaisi, Abdullah Al Qubaisi and Hazaa Farhan
Women's squad: Hamda Al Shekheili, Shouq Al Dhanhani, Balqis Abdullah, Sharifa Al Namani, Asma Al Hosani, Maitha Sultan, Bashayer Al Matrooshi, Maha Al Hanaei, Shamma Al Kalbani, Haya Al Jahuri, Mahra Mahfouz, Marwa Al Hosani, Tasneem Al Jahoori and Maryam Al Amri
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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.
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
'Worse than a prison sentence'
Marie Byrne, a counsellor who volunteers at the UAE government's mental health crisis helpline, said the ordeal the crew had been through would take time to overcome.
“It was worse than a prison sentence, where at least someone can deal with a set amount of time incarcerated," she said.
“They were living in perpetual mystery as to how their futures would pan out, and what that would be.
“Because of coronavirus, the world is very different now to the one they left, that will also have an impact.
“It will not fully register until they are on dry land. Some have not seen their young children grow up while others will have to rebuild relationships.
“It will be a challenge mentally, and to find other work to support their families as they have been out of circulation for so long. Hopefully they will get the care they need when they get home.”
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