US soldiers practise firing FIM-92 Stinger missiles. Photo: US Army
A Mexican soldier with a Russian-made SA-18 anti-aircraft missile launcher in 2011. AFP
A Ukrainian soldier takes part in an exercise using NLAW anti-aircraft missiles close to the city of Lviv. The UK has delivered 2,000 NLAWs to Ukraine. AP
Undated handout photo issued by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) of a Starstreak HVM (High Velocity Missile) surface-to-air missile system on display.
Soldiers in Ukraine launch US Javelin missiles during a military exercise. AP
German troops hold Panzerfaust 3 anti-tank weapons in a demonstration in Munster. Getty Images
A US Marine fires a M72 light anti-armour weapon during an exercise in Camp Fuji, Japan. Alamy
A Hezbollah militant aiming a Kornet anti-tank guided missile in southern Lebanon. AFP
Ukrainian soldiers with Stugna-P anti-tank weapons during a military exhibition in 2018. Getty Images
US President Joe Biden's administration asked Congress at the weekend for $10 billion in military, economic and humanitarian aid to Ukraine — an amount that would dwarf the $1bn in assistance Washington has already provided to Kyiv over the past year.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a letter on Sunday that the House of Representatives would consider the Ukraine emergency aid request in the government funding bill that Congress will vote on later this week.
The Biden administration had initially wavered on sending Ukraine lethal military assistance, but the US calculus changed in December after Russia began amassing troops on the Ukrainian border in a precursor to the invasion.
The Biden administration first gave Ukraine a $60 million security assistance package in August, which included Javelin anti-armour systems.
A Ukrainian serviceman stands near captured Russian tanks, one painted in the colours of the Ukrainian national flag and the other marked with the letter 'Z' in the north of the Kharkiv region, Ukraine. Reuters
Russian military vehicles with the letter 'Z' painted on them. Reuters
French Air Force jets patrol airspace over Poland. Nicolas Tucat / AFP
The patrol is part of Nato's surveillance system. Photo by Nicolas Tucat / AFP
The German-flagged 'Seacod' oil tanker moored at Birkenhead Docks near the Stanlow Oil Refinery in the UK.
A woman holds the hand of a child as they flee Ukraine. AP Photo / Markus Schreiber
A young woman clutches a doll as she crosses the border in Medyka, Poland. AP Photo / Markus Schreiber
A woman weeps after finding a friend at the border crossing in Medyka. AP Photo / Markus Schreiber
People walk with their belongings as they flee Ukraine. AP Photo / Markus Schreiber
Ukrainian refugees arrive at Berlin central station, Germany, from Poland on March 4. EPA / Filip Singer
Russian troops entered Ukraine on February 24, prompting the country's president to declare martial law and triggering a series of announcements by western countries to impose severe economic sanctions on Russia. EPA / Filip Singer
Military vessels docked at the military harbour of Constanta, Romania, on March 4. Daniel Mihailescu / AFP
A child plays with a pigeon during a protest in San Jose, Costa Rica, against the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Ezequiel Becerra / AFP
Ukrainian citizens in San Jose, Costa Rica, protest against the Russian invasion in Ukraine on March 4. Ezequiel Becerra / AFP
People fleeing Ukraine wait to board a bus in Palanca Village, Moldova. EPA / Dumitru Doru
Ukrainians living in Britain join a protest at Trafalgar Square, London. EPA / Andy Rain
Ludmila Shkarupa, 73, from Ukraine, sits on a chair wrapping herself with a sleeping bag to avoid the cold at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland. AP
A view shows a thermal power plant destroyed by shelling amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine in the town of Okhtyrka in the Sumy region. Reuters
People fleeing Russia's invasion of Ukraine use mobile devices in a temporary refugee centre located at a local track-and-field athletics stadium in Chisinau, Moldova. Reuters
A local resident walks past the remains of a house of culture following a night air raid in the village of Byshiv, 40 kilometres west of Kyiv, Ukraine. AP
A member of the Ukrainian military guards an evacuation train of women and children who fled fighting in Bucha and Irpin. Getty Images
A member of the Ukrainian military gives instructions to women and children that fled fighting in Bucha and Irpin before boarding an evacuation train to Kyiv after heavy fighting overnight forced many to leave their homes. Getty Images
A person demonstrates outside the Russian embassy in London following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Reuters
The Danish rescue group Falck A/S has donated 30 ambulances to Ukraine and neighbouring countries, where they will be used by local emergency services. AFP
An aerial view of the remains of the local house of culture following a night air raid in the village of Byshiv, 40 kilometres west of Kyiv, Ukraine. AP
People fleeing Russia's invasion of Ukraine rest in a temporary refugee centre located at a local track-and-field athletics stadium in Chisinau, Moldova. Reuters
Ukrainian Oleg, who decided to remain in Irpin, comforts his son, Maksim, and his wife, Yana, before the arrival of an evacuation train to the city of Kyiv. EPA
Yevghen Zbormyrsky, 49, runs in front of his burning house after being shelled in the city of Irpin, outside Kyiv. AFP
People remove personal belongings from a burning house after being shelled in Irpin. AFP
Medical workers tend to a Ukrainian serviceman wounded during the fighting with Russian troops near the Ukrainian capital, in a hospital in Kyiv. AFP
A mother of a wounded Ukrainian serviceman waits outside his ward in a hospital in Kyiv. AFP
Refugees from Ukraine arrive at an assistance point organised in the sports hall of a primary school in Lubycza Krolewska in Poland. EPA
A member of Ukraine's Territorial Defence Forces at a checkpoint in Kyiv. Reuters
People carry their belongings past the debris of last week's combat in Kyiv. AFP
Shelves in a supermarket stand empty in Bila Tserkva, Ukraine. Reuters
War refugees from Ukraine at the assistance point organised at the Torwar sports hall in Warsaw, Poland. EPA
Ukrainian servicemen, wounded during the fighting with Russian troops near the Ukrainian capital, rest outside a hospital in Kyiv. AFP
A 3-year-old boy watches cartoons on a tablet while his mother sews military vests for the Ukrainian army in the western city of Lviv. AFP
A woman's shock as she stands in front of a house burning after being shelled in Irpin, outside Kyiv. AFP
People fleeing from Ukraine queue to board on a bus at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland. AP
Ukrainian refugees are tested for Covid-19 in a reception centre in Vienna, Austria. AFP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg pose with foreign ministers after a meeting at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Reuters
People who fled Ukraine wait for a bus to take them to the train station in Przemysl, at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland. AP Photo
The extraordinary meeting of Nato ministers of foreign affairs about Russian aggression in Ukraine at Nato headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. EPA
Messages in support of Ukraine on a board in the Ukrainian pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. AFP
Firefighters at a warehouse that caught fire after shelling in the village of Chaiky in the Kyiv region. Reuters
The wreckage of a missile at a bus terminal in Kyiv. Reuters
A crater in front of a house damaged by shelling in the village of Hatne. Reuters
The damaged administrative building of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Enerhodar, a city in the Zaporizhzhia region. Reuters
A bright object lands on the grounds of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Enerhodar, Ukraine, during heavy shelling by Russian forces. AP
Zlata, 3, with her face painted in the colours of the Ukrainian flag, stands on the Romanian side of the border with Ukraine after fleeing the country. AP
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends an interview with foreign media in Kyiv. Reuters
Ukrainian artillerymen maintain their position in the Luhansk region. AFP
Women and children try to board a train bound for Lviv, at a station in Kyiv. AP
US soldiers on patrol near a military camp in Arlamow, Poland, near the border with Ukraine. AFP
A woman and child look out the window of a train at a station in Kyiv. AP
A descendant of Ukrainian immigrants attends Mass at a Ukrainian Orthodox church in Canoas, Brazil. Reuters
Boxes of donations destined for Ukraine at the St Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Montreal, Canada. AP
Firefighters battle a blaze at a damaged building in the Ukrainian city of Chernihiv after a Russian air raid. AP
A woman in Frankfurt, Germany, attends a protest against Russia's military offensive in Ukraine. AFP
The non-lethal aid also included vehicles, radars, electronic equipment such as radio systems and medical supplies.
That hardware was not fully delivered to Ukraine until the following November.
That same month, Russia began massing troops on the border and the Biden administration subsequently authorised another $200m in security aid.
At least 90 tonnes of US equipment from that package, which included lethal aid, arrived in Ukraine in January.
The Washington Post reported last week that the US had begun in December to equip Ukrainian troops with equipment for urban combat, which reportedly includes shotguns, shoulder-launched rocket launchers, grenade launchers and specialised suits for handling unexploded bombs.
When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began in earnest in February, the Biden administration used its existing authorities to provide another $350m in military aid.
With the invasion well underway, the US has sought to expedite delivery of its latest military aid package and much of that equipment began arriving in recent weeks.
The US managed to deliver 70 per cent of that package — including Stinger surface-to-air missiles from US stockpiles located in Germany — within five days by successfully making use of supply lines to the Ukrainian military through Poland and Romania.
The Nato alliance - in pictures
A solemn welcoming ceremony of US soldiers at Adazi military base, Latvia, on February 25, 2022. More than 300 soldiers of the 173rd Air Force Brigade arrived to demonstrate the US commitment to defend Nato allies and strengthen Latvia's defence capabilities following Russia's military operation in Ukraine. EPA
US paratroopers in Ukraine's western Lviv region during a Nato-sponsored training exercise in 2020. AP
A US military aircraft takes off at the US Air Base Ramstein, in Landstuhl, Germany, on February 25. US President Joe Biden February 24 authorised the deployment of further armed forces to Germany as part of Nato's response to Russia's military aggression on Ukraine. EPA
Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on February 25. EPA
A convoy of British armoured vehicles of the Royal Welsh Battlegroup on the way to Estonia, driving through Liepupe, Latvia, on February 25. British troops and equipment are heading to Estonia as part of the UK's contribution to strengthen Nato's uplift to Eastern Europe. EPA
Protesters outside a Nato leaders virtual summit in Brussels on February 25. AP
A US Air Force F-35 Lightning II aircraft assigned to the 34th Fighter Squadron receives fuel from a KC-10 Extender aircraft over Poland on February 24. US Air Force/Reuters
US military personnel check an Apache attack helicopter AH-64 during a technical stop on the tarmac at Traian Vuia International Airport in Timisoara, Romania, on February 24. EPA
German soldiers of the Nato enhanced Forward Presence (EFP) Battalion Battle Group in Lithuania attend a ceremony during a visit of German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht to Rukla Military Base, Lithuania, on February 22. EPA
A February Congressional Research Service report also notes that the US has reportedly sent Ukraine Mi-17 helicopters that had originally been scheduled to go to Afghanistan before the Taliban takeover last year.
The US and Nato have so far provided Ukraine with more than 17,000 anti-tank weapons, including additional Javelin missiles.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has welcomed the US assistance but has repeatedly stressed that more must be done.
In addition to calling for sanctions on Russia’s energy sector as well as instituting a no-fly zone over Ukraine, he has also asked Nato to provide his embattled country with fighter jets.
“We're talking with our Polish friends right now about what we might be able to do to backfill their needs if in fact they choose to provide these fighter jets to the Ukrainians,” Mr Blinken said in an interview on CBS.
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany - At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people - Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed - Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest - He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally • Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered • Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity • Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
if you go
The flights
Fly to Rome with Etihad (www.etihad.ae) or Emirates (www.emirates.com) from Dh2,480 return including taxes. The flight takes six hours. Fly from Rome to Trapani with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) from Dh420 return including taxes. The flight takes one hour 10 minutes.
The hotels
The author recommends the following hotels for this itinerary. In Trapani, Ai Lumi (www.ailumi.it); in Marsala, Viacolvento (www.viacolventomarsala.it); and in Marsala Del Vallo, the Meliaresort Dimore Storiche (www.meliaresort.it).
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Start-up hopes to end Japan's love affair with cash
Across most of Asia, people pay for taxi rides, restaurant meals and merchandise with smartphone-readable barcodes — except in Japan, where cash still rules. Now, as the country’s biggest web companies race to dominate the payments market, one Tokyo-based startup says it has a fighting chance to win with its QR app.
Origami had a head start when it introduced a QR-code payment service in late 2015 and has since signed up fast-food chain KFC, Tokyo’s largest cab company Nihon Kotsu and convenience store operator Lawson. The company raised $66 million in September to expand nationwide and plans to more than double its staff of about 100 employees, says founder Yoshiki Yasui.
Origami is betting that stores, which until now relied on direct mail and email newsletters, will pay for the ability to reach customers on their smartphones. For example, a hair salon using Origami’s payment app would be able to send a message to past customers with a coupon for their next haircut.
Quick Response codes, the dotted squares that can be read by smartphone cameras, were invented in the 1990s by a unit of Toyota Motor to track automotive parts. But when the Japanese pioneered digital payments almost two decades ago with contactless cards for train fares, they chose the so-called near-field communications technology. The high cost of rolling out NFC payments, convenient ATMs and a culture where lost wallets are often returned have all been cited as reasons why cash remains king in the archipelago. In China, however, QR codes dominate.
Cashless payments, which includes credit cards, accounted for just 20 per cent of total consumer spending in Japan during 2016, compared with 60 per cent in China and 89 per cent in South Korea, according to a report by the Bank of Japan.
