An Israeli drone flies over Gaza city on Tuesday. Israel has unleashed its most intense strikes on Gaza since a January ceasefire, with rescuers reporting hundreds killed. AFP
An Israeli drone flies over Gaza city on Tuesday. Israel has unleashed its most intense strikes on Gaza since a January ceasefire, with rescuers reporting hundreds killed. AFP
An Israeli drone flies over Gaza city on Tuesday. Israel has unleashed its most intense strikes on Gaza since a January ceasefire, with rescuers reporting hundreds killed. AFP
An Israeli drone flies over Gaza city on Tuesday. Israel has unleashed its most intense strikes on Gaza since a January ceasefire, with rescuers reporting hundreds killed. AFP


Israel is backsliding into militarism


  • English
  • Arabic

March 19, 2025

With Tuesday night’s deadly bombardment of Gaza, the door has been slammed shut on nearly two months of respite from aerial bombardment for long-suffering Palestinian civilians as well as hopes that more Israeli hostages would be freed by their Hamas captors. It is a disappointing and sobering moment not only for Palestinians and Israelis but for the wider Middle East.

What has been lost by the Israeli leadership’s decision to go on the offensive is considerable. The truce and accompanying talks, although fractious, led to dozens of Israeli hostages being released, in addition to nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees. Gazans who had been displaced by Israeli attacks were tentatively returning home, often to buildings that had been left unsafe by months of bombardments. Families in Israel dared to believe that their loved ones held in Gaza might come home and Palestinians were trying their best to observe Ramadan in the hope that some sliver of normality had returned.

Instead, Israel’s political leaders – caught in the grip of militarism and insistence on “total victory” – are backsliding into the violent policies that have characterised the country’s response to the October 7 attacks. Such tactics failed to deliver peace or security for Israelis in the past, and will not do so this time. Instead, they will deepen Israel’s already significant isolation and entrench support for militancy among Palestinians.

The strikes, which have left hundreds more dead and wounded in Gaza, also call into question the bone fides of the negotiation and ceasefire process. That a talks impasse can lead to a renewed Israeli blockade on aid entering the enclave and a wave of air strikes suggests that hardliners in the Israeli administration are intent on further conflict regardless of what solutions are on the table.

What has been lost by the Israeli leadership’s decision to go on the offensive is considerable. The truce and accompanying talks led to dozens of Israeli hostages being released for nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees

No one can claim there is a shortage of responsible and realistic plans to discuss. Such a proposal was presented by Arab nations on March 4 at a summit in Cairo. The detailed Arab Recovery and Reconstruction Plan, which already has European and international support, contained numerous proposals for reconstruction, governance and security. These stand in stark contrast to opaque visions for a Gaza “riviera” or darker projections from Israel’s ultra-right of a territory emptied of Palestinians. Those in the Arab world and beyond should use their diplomatic influence to persuade the undecided of the reconstruction plan’s value both in ending the current war and in bringing the occupation of Palestine to an end.

No one is arguing that making peace is easy and logjams in negotiations are to be expected in such a difficult and complex conflict. Instead, impasses in talks should galvanise renewed efforts to find solutions, not be used as an excuse to launch bombing campaigns. The world has already seen the alternative: a state of perpetual and generational warfare between Israelis and Palestinians, the continuing military occupation of Palestinian land and a Middle East left on tenterhooks. There is a way out of this morass but abruptly ending a ceasefire is not it.

THE CLOWN OF GAZA

Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah 

Starring: Alaa Meqdad

Rating: 4/5

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ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

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

The specs

  Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now

Specs%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%20train%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%20and%20synchronous%20electric%20motor%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20power%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E800hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20torque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E950Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEight-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E25.7kWh%20lithium-ion%3Cbr%3E0-100km%2Fh%3A%203.4sec%3Cbr%3E0-200km%2Fh%3A%2011.4sec%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E312km%2Fh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20electric-only%20range%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2060km%20(claimed)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Q3%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh1.2m%20(estimate)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:

1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How to help

Donate towards food and a flight by transferring money to this registered charity's account.

Account name: Dar Al Ber Society

Account Number: 11 530 734

IBAN: AE 9805 000 000 000 11 530 734

Bank Name: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

To ensure that your contribution reaches these people, please send the copy of deposit/transfer receipt to: juhi.khan@daralber.ae

The biog

Profession: Senior sports presenter and producer

Marital status: Single

Favourite book: Al Nabi by Jibran Khalil Jibran

Favourite food: Italian and Lebanese food

Favourite football player: Cristiano Ronaldo

Languages: Arabic, French, English, Portuguese and some Spanish

Website: www.liliane-tannoury.com

Updated: March 19, 2025, 4:19 AM`