Senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi on Sunday tested positive for coronavirus, making her the second high-ranking official to become infected in recent days.
Ms Ashrawi, 74, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organisation’s executive committee, has cancelled all public engagement while she recovers.
There were no details of her condition, but the PLO department of diplomacy and policy shared the news, wished her a swift recovery and urged Palestinians to follow health precautions to halt the spread of the virus.
There are more than 54,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Palestinian authorities have ordered lockdowns and closed offices. However, such efforts were hampered by the dire economic situation caused in part by Israel refusing to hand over tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority, as well as the occupation.
Covid-19 in the Middle East
In May, President Mahmood Abbas severed security and other co-operation with Israel because of its threat to annex Palestinian lands, meaning that co-ordination on the care of patients, border supervision and other measures between Israel and Palestine stopped.
Israeli authorities confiscated tents intended for field hospitals, and the Wafa news agency reported in July that a Palestinian coronavirus testing centre at the entrance to Hebron was dismantled by Israel.
Ms Ashrawi is not the only senior Palestinian official to contract coronavirus.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said on Friday that he was suffering difficult symptoms after contracting coronavirus, but that things were under control.
Mr Erekat, 65, an MP from Jericho in the occupied West Bank, said on Twitter that he was in isolation and receiving medical treatment at home one day after he confirmed that he had caught the virus. He also cancelled all meetings and appointments. There is heightened concern about his condition because he had a lung transplant in the United States in 2017.
The Jerusalem Post reported that Mr Erekat attended a meeting of senior Palestinian officials four days before his announcement, and that Ms Ashrawi and Mr Abbas were also in attendance. There was no indication whether Mr Erekat was infectious at the time of the meeting, or if Ms Ashrawi was infected at the event.
In tweets on Friday, Mr Erekat said he was experiencing "difficult symptoms resulting from my lack of immunity as a result of lung transplantation". But he thanked well-wishers and said: "Things are under control, thank God".
Mr Erekat is secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation and is one of the youngest members of its executive committee.
A member of Fatah, the most powerful faction within the PLO, he has been one of the most high-profile faces of the Palestinian leadership for decades, especially to international audiences.
A veteran negotiator and spokesman, he is one of the most senior advisers to Mr Abbas, and also served in senior positions under Mr Abbas' predecessor, Yasser Arafat. His negotiating days date to the earliest public talks with Israel in 1991 at the Madrid Conference during the US presidency of George HW Bush, when Mr Erekat was part of the PLO team that included Ms Ashrawi.
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
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GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
FA Cup fifth round
Chelsea v Manchester United, Monday, 11.30pm (UAE), BeIN Sports
