Regardless of who is behind the conflict in Sudan, the whole country is now under threat of sliding into a whirl of endless crises, wrote Tariq Alhomayed in a comment article for the London-based newspaper Al Sharq al Awsat.
"It is pointless to delve into the details of the opposition's demands either in the South or in the North, but what is noticeable is the unified action against the Sudanese government nationally and internationally. It is a matter that heralds hard times ahead and proves that the regime has failed in managing the crisis on its own."
This is said not to support the latest demonstrations and the protesters' demands - legitimate yet hard to achieve as they were - but to pinpoint the fact that they can constitute a new contract between the Sudanese leadership and the public.
"Unfortunately, the present tumult is a struggle for maintaining power. This is happening at a time the South has made headway in the process of separation. The crisis in the South has been exacerbated by the problems in Darfur province with their implications for the Sudanese regime internally and internationally.
Sudan is more important than the ruling regime; its security and stability should outweigh those who crave for power. It is sad to see this country sunk into such a crumbling situation.
It is not a matter of coincidence that the latest bloody bombings in Baghdad occurred just after the election bill was passed, setting next March as the time for holding elections, noted the London-based newspaper Al Quds al Arabi in its editorial.
The intention of the bombers was to tell the Iraqi political leadership that the law did not satisfy all Iraqi political forces.
The government of Nouri al Maliki rushed to point a finger at fundamentalists and former Baathists living in Syria, a charge that revealed his confusion and called into question the validity of such an accusation, especially since no investigations have been carried out yet.
The new bombings reveals three facts. First, targeting such critical zones showed cracks in security cracks and a possible conspiracy. Second, the blasts resembled those of last August, which means there are forces inside the ruling alliance that would like to uncover the weaknesses of the government in the run-up to elections. Lastly, al Qa'eda, the main party accused for the successive blasts, may not have been involved because it has never attacked such tightly-secured facilities as ministries.
"We can say that the terrorist acts reflected a conflict over power among parties and sects, and they may be a prelude to many more in order to influence the election outcome, or even to bring the whole political process to ruin."
"Prince Khalid Al Faisal, the chairman of the investigation committee into the Jeddah tragedy, has a far wider responsibility than merely to find facts about the disastrous flood. He will have a larger role that encompasses the whole Kingdom," observed the Saudi newspaper Al Watan in its editorial.
The task of the committee today is to address the situation and correct irregularities, because what happened in Jeddah affected both the state and the individual and equally had harmed the kingdom's national project of development.
The committee held its first meetings this week amid great hopes by the public that it would emerge with tangible results. It should be noted that the committee's work will take time, and this is normal.
"It is a great responsibility that is being undertaken by the committee, and everyone strongly believes that Prince Al Faisal is capable of achieving its goals. At the same time, in terms of procedure, accountability and introducing reforms are not tasks that can be undertaken overnight. The real test for its success should lie in its ability to announce the results of its inquiries publicly and with utter transparency. The first step towards addressing the crisis will come by acknowledging its existence, which requires the outcome to be as explicit as King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz in his royal decree."
In its editorial, the Qatari newspaper Al Watan called the new position of the European Union on Jerusalem "insufficient". The EU thought of the Holy City as a "future capital of the two states" within the framework of a settlement to be negotiated later. Earlier proposals explicitly described East Jerusalem as a capital for the Palestinian state, while supporting the two-state solution and rejecting any changes to the 1967 borders, except those agreed upon by the two sides.
"Yet, even though the European statement fell short of fully recognising Palestinian rights, it was a good step forward. It will isolate the US position that is biased toward the Israeli agenda, and it will renew the general hope that the international community is endorsing justice in accordance with principles of international law. The Europeans' latest move will likely to give them a key role in the settlement of the Israeli-Arab conflict, hence breaking the long-standing American monopoly over the issue."
It is interesting to see, however, how the Israelis managed to block the initial European peace plan that reflected a truth that East Jerusalem is a a Palestinian city that has been occupied since 1967. This prompted the Israeli government to express its satisfaction about the EU's position.
* Digest compiled by Mostapha Elmouloudi
melmouloudi@thenational.ae
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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