Israeli former captive Noa Argamani speaks during a meeting with G7 embassy representatives in Tokyo on August 21. AFP
Israeli former captive Noa Argamani speaks during a meeting with G7 embassy representatives in Tokyo on August 21. AFP

Israeli former hostage says she was hurt by military strike, not Hamas



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Noa Argamani, a former hostage brought back from Gaza in June, has hit out at Israeli media and clarified that she was not beaten by Hamas and instead her injuries were caused by an Israeli strike on the building she was in.

Ms Argamani, an Israeli, issued a statement on Instagram on Friday to correct media reports that had misquoted her testimony at a meeting with G7 diplomats in Tokyo earlier in the week.

Several media outlets, particularly Israeli ones, had reported her as saying that her captors had beaten her all over her body and had cut her hair.

Ms Argamani clarified that she had said she had “cuts” all over her body and that she was “hurting” from injuries she had sustained when the building collapsed on her after it was hit by an Israeli air strike.

“They [Hamas] didn't beat me and didn't cut my hair. I was in a building that was blown up by the [Israeli] Air Force,” she said.

“I emphasise that they didn’t hit me, but I was hurt all over my body from the collapse of the structure on me,” she added.

Hamas kidnapped about 240 hostages during its attack on southern Israel on October 7. About half were released in a week-long ceasefire in November.

According to Israeli broadcaster Kan, about 109 hostages are believed to still be in Gaza, including Ms Argamani's partner Avinatan Or.

“As a victim of October 7, I will not allow myself to be a victim again by the media,” Ms Argamani said of the misinterpretation of her statement by the media.

She became an emblem of the October 7 attack on Israel, with a viral video showing her being taken away by Hamas on the back of a motorcycle.

Recounting her captivity in Gaza, she told the meeting in Tokyo: “Every night I was falling asleep and thinking: this may be the last night of my life.”

She was rescued in June from Nuseirat refugee camp in a deadly Israeli military operation that killed 210 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to the health ministry.

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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

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Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

Predictions

Predicted winners for final round of games before play-offs:

  • Friday: Delhi v Chennai - Chennai
  • Saturday: Rajasthan v Bangalore - Bangalore
  • Saturday: Hyderabad v Kolkata - Hyderabad
  • Sunday: Delhi v Mumbai - Mumbai
  • Sunday - Chennai v Punjab - Chennai

Final top-four (who will make play-offs): Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bangalore

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0-300kmh 11.6 seconds

Power: 1500hp

Torque: 1600Nm

Price: Dh13,400,000

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5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m. Winner: Dassan Da, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi

6pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Heba Al Wathba, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle

6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Hameem, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi

7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Richard Mullen, Ahmed Al Mehairbi

Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Harbour Spirit, Adrie de Vries, Jaber Ramadhan.

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Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site

The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.

One in nine do not have enough to eat

Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.

One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.

The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.

Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.

It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.

On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.

Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.

 

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Director: Goran Hugo Olsson

Rating: 5/5

Updated: August 24, 2024, 10:15 AM