A reshuffle in Yemen's separatist Southern Transitional Council to include two additional members of the ruling Presidential Leadership Council has made it the strongest body in the country's south, analysts say.
STC head Aidaroos Al Zubeidi — who is also vice president of the PLC — appointed Giants Brigades chief Abdul Rahman Saleh Zain Al Mahrami to the body and made former governor of Hadramawt Faraj Salmeen Muhammad Al Bahsani the council's vice chairman.
As Mr Al Mahrami and Mr Al Bahsani are both members of the PLC, the STC now includes three of the PLC's eight members.
“The reshuffle itself has been expected as the STC is now in its sixth year since launch, but some of the names included were not,” Jacob Sufyani of the South24 think tank told The National.
“This reshuffle strengthens the STC politically, militarily and security-wise as the Giants Brigades and STC — the two strongest bodies in Yemen's south — are united.”
Created in April 2017, the STC supports independence from Yemen's north, to bring the situation back to what it was in 1990 before the south, then-known as the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, was united with the Yemen Arab Republic.
A source at the STC told The National the reshuffle would improve performance as previous leaders of the council were “not up to par”.
“The council was set up in 2017 during a difficult and sensitive time and there was not enough time to accurately assess and select the most efficient leadership,” the source said.
“The reshuffle also came to allow other southern components, which have recently joined the council, to become active members of it.”
It also came on the heels of the Southern National Consultative Meeting, which concluded in Aden on Sunday. During the meeting, several southern bodies also officially joined the STC.
One of the meeting's most significant outcomes was the signing of the Southern National Pact, which says the “south state is built on the basis of a federal, democratic, civil, Arab and Islamic state”, with the political system based on the separation of powers and “political pluralism”, South24 reported.
The SNP criminalises “the establishment of political parties on religious, sectarian, ethnic or regional basis” and upholds “values of tolerance, moderation, coexistence and acceptance of others”.
It also calls for equal rights between men and women and the reformation of state institutions to be more inclusive towards women and youths.
More announcements are expected within the STC's General Secretariat and the National Assembly, the source said.
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On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE
Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
