The killing of 10 Palestinians by Israeli forces and thousands of injuries have scarred villagers in Beita in the occupied West Bank, where residents are counting the toll of a year of protests.
“I attended the first day of the school year, I went to their classroom and there was one empty seat. They had put a photo on it,” said Said Hamayel, 49, whose son Muhammad was shot dead in June.
“All his friends were present and were really affected," he said. "They started to cry over their loss."
Muhammad Hamayel, 16, was one of 10 Palestinians who paramedics have recorded being shot dead by Israeli soldiers in the past year.
Beita lies south of Nablus, beside a major road that cuts through the West Bank and below hills dotted with olive trees.
On one of those hilltops last spring, Israelis arrived and started building. Within weeks there were breezeblock homes, tarmac over the earth and a playground.
While the international community deems all Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal, Israel’s government distinguishes between those it approves and ones its citizens build without permission.
Although the settlement outpost was deemed illegal under Israeli law, soldiers were stationed at the site while Palestinians from Beita demonstrated on the slopes opposite.
Protesting against what they saw as the theft of their community’s land, much of the village youth took to the hillside.
“Muhammad was very ambitious and had big hopes … [he] wanted to study international law,” said his father, sitting in the local municipality.
The teenager was shot in the heart, physicians from the Palestinian Red Crescent Society told The National.
Medics have treated more than 170 gunshot wounds in Beita over the past year, in addition to nearly 1,000 injuries from rubber bullets.
The Israeli military said the demonstrations represented a threat to civilians and troops.
Over the past year, “hundreds of Palestinian rioters set fires, burnt tyres and hurled rocks and explosive devices”, the military said.
“The IDF [Israeli Defence Forces] responded with riot-dispersal means and live fire in accordance with standard operational procedures.”
Many Palestinians have lost eyes, while other protesters are expected to suffer from lifelong medical problems after being shot in the knee.
Palestinian medics have recorded about 4,500 injuries from various types of tear gas over the year of violence.
“Some of the gas hurts your skin,” said Dr Abdel Jaleel Hunjul, who heads a field hospital established at the start of the protests.
“If you, for example, try to put some water [on your skin], it will be like hell. It will burn.”
The military used drones to drop vast quantities of tear gas on the demonstrators, while the canisters also hit ambulances, Dr Hunjul said.
Rallies continued despite the Israeli settlers evacuating the site last summer, under an agreement that the buildings would remain while authorities decide whether they can return.
Sitting in the Red Crescent centre in Beita, Dr Hunjul flicks through photos and videos of the wounds he has seen in recent months.
One of the most severely wounded treated at the field hospital was a man in his 20s who was shot in the mouth.
“When he got to the hospital, [there was] blood everywhere. We started CPR, and he came back [to life],” Dr Hunjul said.
Among those they could not save was 15-year-old Ahmad Bani Shamsah, who had been shot in the head.
His grieving mother May Bani Shamsah, 37, said: "When I read the medical report about my son, it made my body shudder. His whole brain had exploded."
When the protests turned deadly, she had tried to prevent her son from joining in the demonstrations.
“We shut him in the house, we didn’t let him go out," she said. "There were serious clashes every day."
The number of people wounded in Beita protests has fallen in recent weeks, but there are fears of further violence if the Israeli government allows the settlers to return.
“When the settlers enter the hill, what will happen?" said Ms Bani Shamsah. "Of course, everyone will go to the hill.”
A track leading to the outpost was being guarded by soldiers, while a huge Israeli flag flew from the hilltop.
Sitting in her living room, Ms Bani Shamsah considered what her community has gone through over the past year.
“The village has changed a lot,” she said, beside pictures of her late son. “Today you feel that most of the village is sorrowful.”
The biog
Favourite Emirati dish: Fish machboos
Favourite spice: Cumin
Family: mother, three sisters, three brothers and a two-year-old daughter
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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ARSENAL IN 1977
Feb 05 Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland
Feb 12 Manchester City 1-0 Arsenal
Feb 15 Middlesbrough 3-0 Arsenal
Feb 19 Arsenal 2-3 West Ham
Feb 26 Middlesbrough 4-1 Arsenal (FA Cup)
Mar 01 Everton 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 05 Arsenal 1-4 ipswich
March 08 Arsenal 1-2 West Brom
Mar 12 QPR 2-1 Arsenal
Mar 23 Stoke 1-1 Arsenal
Apr 02 Arsenal 3-0 Leicester
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch automatic
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Price: Dh54,500
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Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
THE SPECS
GMC Sierra Denali 1500
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Torque: 623Nm
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
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Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
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Joker: Folie a Deux
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Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
