Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks at the UN General Assembly in New York. Bloomberg
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks at the UN General Assembly in New York. Bloomberg
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks at the UN General Assembly in New York. Bloomberg
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks at the UN General Assembly in New York. Bloomberg

Saudi delegation to visit West Bank this week to meet Palestinian President Abbas


Thomas Helm
  • English
  • Arabic

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to meet a Saudi delegation in the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian official has said.

Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Jordan, Naif Al Sudairi, who was appointed as non-resident ambassador to the Palestinians, will lead the delegation on the two-day visit, which begins on Tuesday.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said the visit was an "important historic milestone for enhancing and developing bilateral ties".

The trip comes after officials in Saudi Arabia and Israel confirmed efforts were being made to reach an agreement to establish relations between the two countries.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in an interview with Fox News, said the two sides were getting “closer” to establishing relations.

On Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country was on "the cusp" of establishing ties with Riyadh, a move that would “enhance the prospects of peace with the Palestinians”.

But US officials have said that any deal, expected to include a defence agreement with Washington and a civilian nuclear programme for Saudi Arabia, was some distance away.

Among the issues to be resolved is the Palestinian question, with calls for a revival of a peace process leading to a two-state solution with an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Matthew Miller, a US State Department spokesman, told CNN last week that the US has had “productive conversations” with the Saudi and Israeli governments on establishing ties.

On Saturday, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs told the UN General Assembly that finding "a just, comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue" was key to Middle East security.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan speaks during the UN General Assembly. Bloomberg
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan speaks during the UN General Assembly. Bloomberg

"The solution must be based on resolutions in the international arena and must bring about a peace that allows [Palestinians] to have an independent state based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital," Prince Faisal bin Farhan said, without explicitly mentioning Israel.

His comments are the latest in a string of public statements from Saudi Arabia on the importance of a Palestinian state.

Despite Mr Netanyahu regarding ties with the kingdom as a priority, far-right members of his coalition have warned they will topple the government if Palestinians are given concessions.

On Friday, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir released a statement saying that, while his Jewish National Front party supports establishing relations with Saudi Arabia, "we will not accept any concessions to the Palestinians".

"I told the prime minister not to put us in a corner,” he said.

Israel's current government is the most conservative in the country's history and includes pro-settler blocs.

Settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are viewed as one of the largest impediments to the creation of a Palestinian state. The Israeli communities, illegal under international law, are now home to more than 700,000, the UN has said.

A protesters faces off with an Israeli soldiers during a demonstration against settlements in the occupied West Bank village of Qaryout. AP
A protesters faces off with an Israeli soldiers during a demonstration against settlements in the occupied West Bank village of Qaryout. AP

Prince Faisal appeared to reference the issue in his comments on Saturday when he said the kingdom "rejects and condemns all the unilateral steps that constitute a flagrant violation of international law and which contribute to the collapse of regional and international peace efforts and are hindering the path of diplomatic solutions".

Members of Israel's government have also endorsed the visits of Jews to Al Aqsa Mosque compound in breach of a "status quo" agreement that bars non-Muslims from praying at the site.

On Monday, Saudi Arabia and Egypt condemned the most recent incursion to the compound.

Saudi Arabia criticised "the continuous provocative practices carried out by a group of extremists at Al Aqsa Mosque under the protection of Israeli occupation forces”.

US-brokered peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel broke down in 2014 and relations between the two sides have plummeted amid a rise in violence.

Last week, Mr Abbas said at the UN General Assembly that no Middle East peace agreement would be achievable until Palestinians were granted full rights.

The First Monday in May
Director:
Andrew Rossi
Starring: Anna Wintour, Karl Lagerfeld, John Paul Gaultier, Rihanna
Three stars

Company profile

Name: Tratok Portal

Founded: 2017

Based: UAE

Sector: Travel & tourism

Size: 36 employees

Funding: Privately funded

SPECS
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

if you go

The flights

Etihad flies direct from Abu Dhabi to San Francisco from Dh5,760 return including taxes. 

The car

Etihad Guest members get a 10 per cent worldwide discount when booking with Hertz, as well as earning miles on their rentals (more at www.hertz.com/etihad). A week's car hire costs from Dh1,500 including taxes.

The hotels

Along the route, Motel 6 (www.motel6.com) offers good value and comfort, with rooms from $55 (Dh202) per night including taxes. In Portland, the Jupiter Hotel (https://jupiterhotel.com/) has rooms from $165 (Dh606) per night including taxes. The Society Hotel https://thesocietyhotel.com/ has rooms from $130 (Dh478) per night including taxes. 

More info

To keep up with constant developments in Portland, visit www.travelportland.com

 

Pakistan Super League

Previous winners

2016 Islamabad United

2017 Peshawar Zalmi

2018 Islamabad United

2019 Quetta Gladiators

 

Most runs Kamran Akmal – 1,286

Most wickets Wahab Riaz –65

Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

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Volvo ES90 Specs

Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)

Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp

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On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region

Price: Exact regional pricing TBA

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

MATCH INFO

Confederations Cup Group B

Germany v Chile

Kick-off: Thursday, 10pm (UAE)

Where: Kazan Arena, Kazan

Watch live: Abu Dhabi Sports HD

The Programme

Saturday, October 26: ‘The Time That Remains’ (2009) by Elia Suleiman
Saturday, November 2: ‘Beginners’ (2010) by Mike Mills
Saturday, November 16: ‘Finding Vivian Maier’ (2013) by John Maloof and Charlie Siskel
Tuesday, November 26: ‘All the President’s Men’ (1976) by Alan J Pakula
Saturday, December 7: ‘Timbuktu’ (2014) by Abderrahmane Sissako
Saturday, December 21: ‘Rams’ (2015) by Grimur Hakonarson

Ticket prices
  • Golden circle - Dh995
  • Floor Standing - Dh495
  • Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
  • Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
  • Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
  • Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
  • Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
  • Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history

4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon

- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.

50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater

1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.  

1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.

1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.

-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.

Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

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How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed

Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.

Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.

The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.

One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.

That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.

Company%20Profile
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The BIO:

He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal

He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side

By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam

Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border

He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push

His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

ENGLAND%20SQUAD
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The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

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F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
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Updated: September 25, 2023, 12:08 PM`