The last speech of the Hamas political leader, Khaled Meshaal, carried a significantly more flexible tone regarding the inter-Palestinian dialogue with Fatah, which justifies new, if tentative, hope for the success of the sixth round of talks currently held in Cairo, wrote Hani al Masri in the Palestinian daily Al Ayyam.
This dialogue, which can otherwise be criticised for excluding other parties and independent national personalities of high calibre, has adamantly focused on the formation of a new "committee of factions" that would simply worsen and give a legitimate framework to internal divisions, the columnist said.
"The factions' committee is not at all a necessary evil, rather a danger that can be shunned."
True, the differences that led to the failure of a national reconciliation government point to serious structural rifts between the major factions, but these rifts remain bridgeable. There is always a possibility to form a government premised on the intersection of national, Arab and international legitimacy, committed to international law and UN resolutions, and willing to abide by agreements signed with Israel, despite the latter's elusiveness.
Pitched as an alternative to a national government, "the factions' committee actually annihilates all hopes for unity and impedes presidential and parliamentary elections".
"The recent statements by the US Vice President Joe Biden on Iran bear severe implications, and signal a probable change in the US policy on Iran's nuclear programme, especially that he gave Israel the green light to do whatever it deems fit to counter Iran's threats," thus opened the leader of the Emirati daily Al Khaleej.
That the US will not stand in the way of Israel if the latter is ever to take muscular action against Iran means one of two things: either the Obama administration has withdrawn its "stretched hand policy", coming closer to Tehran and start a new phase of dialogue; or, Washington is capitalising on the recent riots protesting the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to weaken Tehran's position prior to US-Iran talks.
"Whatever the case, Biden's words call to mind the rhetoric maintained by the neo-conservatives and correspond to their principle of generalising war and chaos and cashing in on the internal affairs of states to stoke ethnic and sectarian divides, with the ultimate aim to expand Israel's regional influence."
All US moves will have to be watched carefully in the near future, as the numerous fronts Washington has to contend with - Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan - render its foreign agenda rather fickle.
When the economy was thriving in Kuwait, in the recent past, significant numbers of Kuwaiti workers were hired in the private sector, particularly in finance, investment and banking, but now there is growing concern about the waves of nationals who, due to the global downturn, have been laid off from the private sector and are now looking for a niche in the public sphere, wrote Shamlan Youssef al Issi in the Kuwaiti daily Al Watan.
Reinserting dismissed nationals in government positions or granting them a temporary compensation will not solve the issue, it will only exacerbate it and push the country into some odd form of socialist regime.
To be effective and long lasting, the solution must seek to strengthen the very structures of the private sector to allow it to accommodate massive national labour and, in turn, profit from local expertise.
"It is of critical importance to match the quality and product of schools and training institutions with the needs of the job market," al Issi wrote.
It is also imperative that the government launch fresh campaigns enticing foreign companies to re-invest in the country by ensuring financial backing and room for free experimentation.
Considering the challenges of the next phase, Kuwait can no longer be allowed to keep relying on oil, al Issi wrote.
Emirati diplomatic efforts have come to fruition as the country won the bid to house the coveted International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) in Abu Dhabi, thus inaugurating a new era for the Arab presence in international relations, but the news was strangely understated in the Arab media, commented Khalid bin Qaqah in the Iraqi daily Azzaman.
In the 1960s, the major concern for Arab diplomacy was to regain self-confidence after the defeat against Israel. Then the 1978 Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt came to undermine Arab unity. And now, here is a colossal achievement by an Arab state, but it goes almost unnoticed on Arab television, without the least justification.
What the Arab media have failed to underline is that the Irena feat reveals a number of important facts, the writer said. "UAE diplomacy is ushering the Third World into a new phase on a number of levels: restructured relations with the West, a modified public image, involvement in global culture and providing prospects for development."
The UAE's strong relations with various nations around the world have definitively altered the general perception that developing countries have only secondary roles to play in such vital matters as alternative and renewable energies.
* Digest compiled by Achraf A El Bahi
aelBahi@thenational.ae
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
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
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
MATCH INFO
Newcastle 2-2 Manchester City
Burnley 0-2 Crystal Palace
Chelsea 0-1 West Ham
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton
Tottenham 3-2 Bournemouth
Southampton v Watford (late)
Young women have more “financial grit”, but fall behind on investing
In an October survey of young adults aged 16 to 25, Charles Schwab found young women are more driven to reach financial independence than young men (67 per cent versus. 58 per cent). They are more likely to take on extra work to make ends meet and see more value than men in creating a plan to achieve their financial goals. Yet, despite all these good ‘first’ measures, they are investing and saving less than young men – falling early into the financial gender gap.
While the women surveyed report spending 36 per cent less than men, they have far less savings than men ($1,267 versus $2,000) – a nearly 60 per cent difference.
In addition, twice as many young men as women say they would invest spare cash, and almost twice as many young men as women report having investment accounts (though most young adults do not invest at all).
“Despite their good intentions, young women start to fall behind their male counterparts in savings and investing early on in life,” said Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, senior vice president, Charles Schwab. “They start off showing a strong financial planning mindset, but there is still room for further education when it comes to managing their day-to-day finances.”
Ms Schwab-Pomerantz says parents should be conveying the same messages to boys and girls about money, but should tailor those conversations based on the individual and gender.
"Our study shows that while boys are spending more than girls, they also are saving more. Have open and honest conversations with your daughters about the wage and savings gap," she said. "Teach kids about the importance of investing – especially girls, who as we see in this study, aren’t investing as much. Part of being financially prepared is learning to make the most of your money, and that means investing early and consistently."
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Indian construction workers stranded in Ajman with unpaid dues
MATCH INFO
Barcelona 4 (Suarez 27', Vidal 32', Dembele 35', Messi 78')
Sevilla 0
Red cards: Ronald Araujo, Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona)
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 0
Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20Z%20FLIP5
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The major Hashd factions linked to Iran:
Badr Organisation: Seen as the most militarily capable faction in the Hashd. Iraqi Shiite exiles opposed to Saddam Hussein set up the group in Tehran in the early 1980s as the Badr Corps under the supervision of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The militia exalts Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but intermittently cooperated with the US military.
Saraya Al Salam (Peace Brigade): Comprised of former members of the officially defunct Mahdi Army, a militia that was commanded by Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and fought US and Iraqi government and other forces between 2004 and 2008. As part of a political overhaul aimed as casting Mr Al Sadr as a more nationalist and less sectarian figure, the cleric formed Saraya Al Salam in 2014. The group’s relations with Iran has been volatile.
Kataeb Hezbollah: The group, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, traces its origins to attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2004 and adopts a tough stance against Washington, calling the United States “the enemy of humanity”.
Asaeb Ahl Al Haq: An offshoot of the Mahdi Army active in Syria. Asaeb Ahl Al Haq’s leader Qais al Khazali was a student of Mr Al Moqtada’s late father Mohammed Sadeq Al Sadr, a prominent Shiite cleric who was killed during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba: Formed in 2013 to fight alongside Mr Al Assad’s loyalists in Syria before joining the Hashd. The group is seen as among the most ideological and sectarian-driven Hashd militias in Syria and is the major recruiter of foreign fighters to Syria.
Saraya Al Khorasani: The ICRG formed Saraya Al Khorasani in the mid-1990s and the group is seen as the most ideologically attached to Iran among Tehran’s satellites in Iraq.
(Source: The Wilson Centre, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation)
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5