Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
Britain’s Defence Secretary Grant Shapps will hold talks in the Middle East on Wednesday as the UK tries to prevent an escalation of the Israel-Gaza conflict and seize an opportunity to push for peace in the region.
Mr Shapps will discuss the crisis with regional leaders on a visit to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, keeping up a flurry of British diplomacy after Middle East trips by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary James Cleverly.
Reporting back to his cabinet, Mr Sunak told ministers he was “struck by the desire for the UK to continue playing a leading role in seeking de-escalation” of the conflict, Downing Street said.
Britain has declined to call for a ceasefire or ask Israel to delay an expected ground offensive in Gaza, amid doubts whether any such pause would be respected by Hamas.
The UK has told Israel’s armed forces to show “professionalism and restraint” in what Mr Cleverly said would be an “important part of preventing this becoming a regional conflict”.
Mr Cleverly said he had received assurances from Israel’s President Isaac Herzog that its military would respect international law, but that Hamas had given no such undertaking.
He accused Hamas of consciously putting civilians in harm’s way to generate fatalities “which they then use as part of their media operations”. Britain has seen evidence of Palestinians being prevented from leaving conflict zones, he said.
Royal Navy vessels will remain in the region to “help avoid the possibility of regional escalation”, Mr Sunak said. It was separately confirmed on Tuesday that at least 12 British nationals have died in the violence, with five missing.
Mr Cleverly said it was “incredibly difficult” to secure the release of hostages because the UK has no direct lines of communication with Hamas, which it considers a terrorist group. Qatar has been playing the role of mediator.
The conflict triggered by Hamas’s surprise October 7 attack on Israel has reinvigorated calls for a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, with the crisis seen in Britain as an opportunity to revive the peace process.
“Despite the terrible circumstances we are currently experiencing, there is a renewed desire to have a meaningful resolution that means those circumstances that we saw, the terrible images we saw on 7 October, can and will never be repeated,” said Mr Cleverly.
Asked about a possible expansion of the Abraham Accords in which Israel normalised ties with the UAE and Bahrain, Mr Cleverly described them as a “force for good” that “we need to protect, and ideally enhance”.
“Anything which sees greater co-operation between Israel and the Arab world has got to be a step in the right direction when it comes to the creation of that sustainable two-state solution,” he said.
However, he said there was a “realistic belief” that part of Hamas’s goal in attacking Israel was to “derail future normalisation and negotiations”. He said Britain “must not let them win in that endeavour”.
The latest from the Israel-Gaza war – in pictures
Britain has sought to isolate Hamas by emphasising it does not speak for the Palestinian cause and saying there is “no scenario” in which it could maintain its hold on power in a peace agreement.
Downing Street said Mr Sunak and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas jointly “stressed that Hamas do not represent the Palestinian people” when they met in Egypt last week.
Mr Sunak also held talks with the leaders of Israel, Egypt and Saudi Arabia during his trip to the region. Mr Cleverly and Middle East Minister Lord Tariq Ahmad attended a peace summit in Cairo at the weekend.
Mr Shapps previously visited the UAE and Saudi Arabia in January, when he led the now-defunct Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. He took on the defence brief in August.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm from 1,500-3,500rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
On sale: now
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
How has net migration to UK changed?
The figure was broadly flat immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic, standing at 216,000 in the year to June 2018 and 224,000 in the year to June 2019.
It then dropped to an estimated 111,000 in the year to June 2020 when restrictions introduced during the pandemic limited travel and movement.
The total rose to 254,000 in the year to June 2021, followed by steep jumps to 634,000 in the year to June 2022 and 906,000 in the year to June 2023.
The latest available figure of 728,000 for the 12 months to June 2024 suggests levels are starting to decrease.
Our legal advisor
Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation.
Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.
((Disclaimer))
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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 specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Sunday's games
Liverpool v West Ham United, 4.30pm (UAE)
Southampton v Burnley, 4.30pm
Arsenal v Manchester City, 7pm
more from Janine di Giovanni
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Company Profile
Company name: Fine Diner
Started: March, 2020
Co-founders: Sami Elayan, Saed Elayan and Zaid Azzouka
Based: Dubai
Industry: Technology and food delivery
Initial investment: Dh75,000
Investor: Dtec Startupbootcamp
Future plan: Looking to raise $400,000
Total sales: Over 1,000 deliveries in three months
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
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The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
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Essentials
The flights: You can fly from the UAE to Iceland with one stop in Europe with a variety of airlines. Return flights with Emirates from Dubai to Stockholm, then Icelandair to Reykjavik, cost from Dh4,153 return. The whole trip takes 11 hours. British Airways flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Reykjavik, via London, with return flights taking 12 hours and costing from Dh2,490 return, including taxes.
The activities: A half-day Silfra snorkelling trip costs 14,990 Icelandic kronur (Dh544) with Dive.is. Inside the Volcano also takes half a day and costs 42,000 kronur (Dh1,524). The Jokulsarlon small-boat cruise lasts about an hour and costs 9,800 kronur (Dh356). Into the Glacier costs 19,500 kronur (Dh708). It lasts three to four hours.
The tours: It’s often better to book a tailor-made trip through a specialist operator. UK-based Discover the World offers seven nights, self-driving, across the island from £892 (Dh4,505) per person. This includes three nights’ accommodation at Hotel Husafell near Into the Glacier, two nights at Hotel Ranga and two nights at the Icelandair Hotel Klaustur. It includes car rental, plus an iPad with itinerary and tourist information pre-loaded onto it, while activities can be booked as optional extras. More information inspiredbyiceland.com
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