A long-standing mediator, Egypt is manoeuvring between Israel and the Palestinians to negotiate a durable truce to violence that has flared in the Gaza Strip in recent months – but with utmost discretion.
Deadly clashes since protests began along the Gaza border with Israel on March 30 have at times generated fears of a new war between Israel and the strip's Islamist rulers Hamas.
But on November 2, the frontier between the blockaded enclave and Israel had one of its calmest Fridays since the protest movement started.
At least 218 Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers over the last seven months or so, according to a tally kept by AFP. One Israeli soldier has been shot dead in the violence.
The ongoing diplomatic efforts focus first and foremost on brokering an agreement that would see Hamas snuff out border protests in exchange for Israel softening its crippling decade-long blockade.
Egypt has been central to these moves, and the UN is also involved.
"We are working to ensure that there will never be any kind of armed conflict in the Strip and West Bank," Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said on Sunday.
The indirect negotiations have been unfolding in great secrecy, and scant information has filtered out.
Egyptian media, including outlets close to the regime, has referred only to Palestinian sources or reports from Israel in its coverage of the talks.
"Egypt is continuing its efforts to achieve a durable calm," a Hamas source said, asking not to be named.
"There have been several meetings with the Hamas leadership and [other Palestinian] factions for this purpose."
An Egyptian diplomatic source said Gaza was high on the state's priority list.
"All Egyptian agencies are mobilised for the issue," he said, asking not to be named.
"The Egyptian authorities don't release information because the negotiations are ongoing," he added.
Hamas-Fatah rift
Egypt's intelligence service – rather than foreign ministry – is managing the Palestinian file.
"There are obviously diplomatic and political factors but to their minds [the Egyptians] the situation is a security one," said Zack Gold, a Middle East analyst at the US-based CNA research centre.
Since Egypt's military toppled Islamist president Mohamed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood movement in 2013, the north of the Sinai peninsula – which borders Gaza – has been hit by an ISIS insurgency.
In February, Egypt's military launched an offensive to neutralise the militants in Sinai, but Cairo has for years considered the entire area a security priority.
It has therefore been at the forefront of Gaza diplomacy since 2014, when the latest of three wars between Hamas and Israel took place in the Palestinian enclave.
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Read more:
Calmer protests along Gaza border after Hamas ceasefire gesture
Hamas agrees to end protests along Israel-Gaza border
Israeli army opens probe into killing of Gaza medic
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Egyptian mediation yielded a ceasefire between Hamas and the Jewish state four years ago, but the fragility of that status quo has been tested regularly since then.
Despite Egypt's long-standing mistrust of Hamas – based on the Palestinian group's links to the Muslim Brotherhood – Cairo has regularly sent delegations to the Gaza Strip.
But beyond a ceasefire with Israel, reconciliation between Hamas and rival Palestinian faction Fatah is also essential to the success of Egypt's intervention, according to the Egyptian diplomatic source.
The Fatah-run Palestinian Authority headed by President Mahmud Abbas has semi-autonomy in parts of the occupied West Bank, but lost control of Gaza to Hamas in a near-civil war between the two in 2007.
On Saturday, President Abbas went to Egypt to discuss "the dangers posed to the Palestinian cause" with President El Sisi, according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency.
Just as with attempts to bridge the gap between Hamas and Israel, mediation between the two Palestinian factions has not yet yielded convincing results, said Mr Gold.
But Egypt's efforts have prevented the situation from deteriorating, he added.
In October 2017, in a rare show for the media, Egypt's intelligence service celebrated the signing of a reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Fatah.
But that deal failed to yield concrete results on the ground.
So "there is not really reason for Egypt to highlight its involvement until ... [it] has produced a successful outcome", said Mr Gold.
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
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPowertrain%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle%20electric%20motor%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E201hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E310Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESingle-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E53kWh%20lithium-ion%20battery%20pack%20(GS%20base%20model)%3B%2070kWh%20battery%20pack%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETouring%20range%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E350km%20(GS)%3B%20480km%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C900%20(GS)%3B%20Dh149%2C000%20(GF)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE BIO
Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13
Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier
Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife
What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents.
Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
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
RESULTS: 2018 WORLD CUP QUALIFYING - EUROPE
Albania 0 Italy 1
Finland 2 Turkey 2
Macedonia 4 Liechtenstein
Iceland 2 Kosovo 0
Israel 0 Spain 1
Moldova 0 Austria 1
Serbia 1 Georgia 0
Ukraine 0 Croatia 2
Wales 0 Ireland 1
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Five personal finance podcasts from The National
To help you get started, tune into these Pocketful of Dirham episodes
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Should you buy or rent a home in the UAE?
The bio
Favourite book: Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer
Favourite quote: “The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist
Favourite Authors: Arab poet Abu At-Tayyib Al-Mutanabbi
Favourite Emirati food: Luqaimat, a deep-fried dough soaked in date syrup
Hobbies: Reading and drawing
HAEMOGLOBIN DISORDERS EXPLAINED
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Zayed Sustainability Prize
