Top Arab diplomats call for irreversible steps to create Palestinian state

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Top Arab diplomats and officials held talks on the war in Gaza and reiterated calls for "irreversible" steps towards the creation and recognition of a Palestinian state.

The meeting, led by Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, was held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, late on Thursday.

It was attended by the foreign ministers of the UAE, Egypt, Qatar and Jordan, as well as a senior Palestinian official, according to the kingdom's state media.

The meeting, which followed the conclusion of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's fifth crisis tour of the Middle East since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war in October, was aimed at promoting a unified Arab position on the war, two diplomats told AFP.

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"In their meeting, the ministers emphasised the need to end the war in the Gaza Strip, reach an immediate and complete ceasefire, ensure the protection of civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law, and lift all restrictions that impede the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave," the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The top ministers also voiced support for UNRWA, the UN Palestinian aid agency that is under fire over Israeli accusations that 12 of its staff members were involved in Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel, which triggered the war.

"They also stressed the importance of taking irreversible steps to implement the two-state solution and recognise the state of Palestine on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital," SPA said.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly stated its affirmation that there must be a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital as a solution to the decades-long Arab-Israeli conflict.

Israel vowed to eliminate Hamas in response to the October 7 attacks, launching air strikes and a ground offensive that have killed at least 27,840 people, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry.

US President Joe Biden on Thursday levelled some of his most direct criticism at Israel since it invaded the Gaza Strip in October, saying the actions of its military have been “over the top”.

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THREE

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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

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.