JERUSALEM // Syria appeared to be trying to ease tensions near its boundary with the Israeli-held Golan Heights yesterday after Israeli troops fired on pro-Palestinian demonstrators on Sunday.
Syrian police were observed yesterday rebuffing renewed efforts by protesters to return to the boundary, something they did not do during clashes on Sunday.
Police erected checkpoints and blocked roughly 20 demonstrators who were waving Palestinian flags and preparing to stage more rallies.
Syrian government-controlled media reported that Israeli soldiers killed 23 demonstrators on Sunday; Israeli military said 10 people had been killed when landmines exploded on the Syrian side of the demarcation line.
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, accused the government of Syrian President Bashar al Assad yesterday of encouraging Sunday’s unrest to divert attention from Syria’s tenacious anti-government rallies.
"This was an attempt to divert international intention from what is happening with Syria,” the Israeli leader told members of his Likud party, saying that “Syrians allowed these people to instigate provocation, to challenge Israel's sovereignty.”
His defence minister, Ehud Barack, suggested the same, telling Israel public radio: “It may be something that the Syrians are encouraging. It may be that they are pleased with it. They may think it distracts attention.”
But he also predicted the Syrian leader’s eventual overthrow by the uprising that has swept the country, saying that “Assad, in my opinion, will fall in the end."
Sunday's rallies were praised by Palestinian leaders in both Gaza and the West Bank, as well as by Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hizbollah.
The demonstrations, marking Israel's capture of territory during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, came less than a month after similar incursions from Lebanon and Israel left 12 people dead in clashes with Israeli soldiers.
Palestinians say they are preparing for more rallies.
Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian politician and former Palestinian Authority presidential candidate, told the Israeli press on Sunday that Palestinians would stage another demonstration on July 9.
That is the anniversary of the UN's International Court of Justice ruling, in 2004, that Israel's separation barrier, which cuts through significant parts of Palestinian land, is illegal.
"We did inspire the Arab people for many years. Now they are inspiring our young people," said Mr Barghouti, referring to the regional uprisings.
Israel plans to lodge a formal complaint with the United Nations about Sunday's demonstrations.
The complaint will accuse Syria, according to Israel's foreign ministry spokesman, Yigal Palmor, of "manipulation of its own citizens to generate violent incidents at the border".
In an indication that the Golan rallies may have received an official Syrian nod, state media were allowed to report live in the otherwise restricted area where demonstrations took place.
Israeli military officials have expressed doubts about the number of casualties that Syrian authorities reported.
Lt Col Avital Leibovitz, an Israeli military spokeswoman, said Syria's report of 23 dead was "exaggerated" and blamed at least 10 of the deaths on the inadvertent triggering of landmines in the area.
"We are aware that around 10 of the casualties that the Syrians reported yesterday were killed by the fact that they used Molotov cocktails in the Quneitra area that hit some Syrian land mines. A big number of them died as a result of their own deeds."
hnaylor@thenational.ae
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
MATCH INFO
Norwich City 0 Southampton 3 (Ings 49', Armstrong 54', Redmond 79')
Despacito's dominance in numbers
Released: 2017
Peak chart position: No.1 in more than 47 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Lebanon
Views: 5.3 billion on YouTube
Sales: With 10 million downloads in the US, Despacito became the first Latin single to receive Diamond sales certification
Streams: 1.3 billion combined audio and video by the end of 2017, making it the biggest digital hit of the year.
Awards: 17, including Record of the Year at last year’s prestigious Latin Grammy Awards, as well as five Billboard Music Awards
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
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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.”
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
