NABLUS, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES // A Palestinian toddler was burned to death and four family members injured in an arson attack by suspected Jewish settlers on two homes in the occupied West Bank on Friday.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the firebombing in the village of Duma near the northern city of Nablus “an act of terrorism in every respect” and ordered security forces to hunt down the perpetrators.
The attack further stoked tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, two days after Mr Netanyahu controversially approved 300 new settler homes in the West Bank.
The Palestine Liberation Organisation said it held Netanyahu’s government “fully responsible” for the death of 18-month-old Ali Saad Dawabsha, arguing it was “a direct consequence of decades of impunity given by the Israeli government to settler terrorism.”
According to Palestinian security officials, four assailants believed to be Jewish settlers set a house on fire at the entrance to the village and scrawled graffiti on a wall before fleeing to a nearby Jewish settlement.
The Israeli military said two homes had been set ablaze, and a child killed and four family members wounded. It added that the graffiti had been written in Hebrew.
Palestinian sources said those wounded included the toddler’s parents and another child.
Local media reported that the graffiti said “revenge” and “long live the Messiah” and that the attackers threw firebombs inside the two homes, one of which was empty.
Israeli defence minister Moshe Yaalon said such attacks would not be tolerated, adding “we will not allow terrorists to take the lives of Palestinians.”
The Israeli military said it was working to find the perpetrators.
The arson attack follows days of tensions surrounding settlements in the West Bank, with right wing groups opposing the demolition of two buildings under construction that the Israeli High Court said were illegal.
The demolition began on Wednesday, but Mr Netanyahu authorised the immediate construction of 300 settler homes in the same area the same day.
Settlers had clashed with police when they moved in to demolish the buildings. Education minister Naftali Bennett, of the right-wing Jewish Home party, had opposed the demolition and addressed protesters at the site.
Mr Netanyahu holds only a one-seat majority in parliament following March elections and settler groups wield significant influence in his government.
West Bank settlements are viewed as illegal under international law, but not by the Israeli government.
They are also major impediments to peace negotiations with the Palestinians, who see the land as part of a future independent state, and Western nations have called on Israel to halt construction.
Extreme-right Israeli activists have committed acts of vandalism and violence against Palestinians and Arab Israelis for years, attacking Christian and Muslim places of worship and even Israeli soldiers.
The attacks are known as “price tag” violence — a euphemism for nationalist-motivated hate crimes by Jewish extremists.
* Agence France-Presse
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
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.
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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In numbers
Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m
Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’ in Dubai is worth... $600m
China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn
The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn
Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
