Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Iraq and Iran on Sunday called for immediate ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon, warning any further escalation would lead to a full-fledged war in the region with global implications.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said after meeting his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein in Baghdad: "Our region is facing extremely dangerous challenges."
Mr Araghchi's visit to Iraq comes with the Middle East on high alert for further escalation as Israel battles Iran-backed groups Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, and is threatening to retaliate against Iran's recent missile attack. Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel's response would be "lethal, precise and surprising".
"There is a possibility of escalation and conflicts," Mr Araghchi warned, with a likelihood the wars in Gaza and Lebanon would extend to other countries and lead to a "full-fledged war throughout the entire region".
"We are not afraid of war, we are ready for war, but at the same time we don’t want war, but peace," he said, and called for an end to Israeli aggression on Gaza and Lebanon.
Iraq's Foreign Minister said continuing fighting "will lead to the destabilisation of security and peace in the entire region".
Mr Hussein assured Mr Araghchi Iraq would not allow its airspace to be used in any attack on Iran. "We in Iraq categorically reject using the Iraqi airspace as part of the war zone. We are trying to ward off the spectre of war from the region, especially Iraq," he said.
"War will affect navigation in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, and eventually will lead to a big international crisis in economy and energy."
Mr Araghchi arrived in Baghdad to continue “consultations with Muslim countries on critical situations in our region as the result of the Israeli regime’s genocidal attacks and aggressions in Gaza and Lebanon”, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on X earlier.
He was expected to also meet Iraq's President Abdul Latif Rashid and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani.
Early this month, Iran launched a barrage of between 180 and 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation for the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, head of the Iran-backed Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. Israel said several airbases were hit but the attack appeared to do little damage to infrastructure, with military operations unaffected. Most of the missiles were intercepted by Israel's air defence systems and with the help of the US and other allies. Israel has threatened to retaliate, putting the region on edge.
In a post on X, Mr Araghchi also warned the US against posting military personnel in Israel following reports that Washington might send Israel batteries of its Terminal High Altitude Area Defence systems. The highly complex system would need to be operated by US forces.
“The US has been delivering record amount of arms to Israel,” he said. “It is now also putting lives of its troops at risk by deploying them to operate US missile systems in Israel. While we have made tremendous efforts in recent days to contain an all-out war in our region, I say it clearly that we have no red lines in defending our people and interests.”
The US announced later on Sunday that Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin had authorised the deployment of a THAAD battery in Israel on the orders of President Joe Biden.
Baghdad is Mr Araghchi’s third stop in a tour of regional states after visiting Saudi Arabia and Qatar. He met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Riyadh on Wednesday, after which they called for an end to the wars in Gaza and Lebanon. He headed to Doha the following day and met Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
Sources told The National that Tehran has sought the support of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other nations in the Middle East to de-escalate tension that could exacerbate the conflict in the region.
Diplomatic sources said Mr Araghchi's tour is aimed at “defending” Iran's position regarding the war with Israel. Part of his trip is aimed at seeking "political support" from key Gulf and Arab countries to "reach a ceasefire in Gaza and stop the war in Lebanon and prevent a wider war in the region", they said.
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.6-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 285bhp
Torque: 353Nm
Price: TBA
On sale: Q2, 2020
PROFILE OF STARZPLAY
Date started: 2014
Founders: Maaz Sheikh, Danny Bates
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment/Streaming Video On Demand
Number of employees: 125
Investors/Investment amount: $125 million. Major investors include Starz/Lionsgate, State Street, SEQ and Delta Partners
Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Zodi%20%26%20Tehu%3A%20Princes%20Of%20The%20Desert
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEric%20Barbier%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYoussef%20Hajdi%2C%20Nadia%20Benzakour%2C%20Yasser%20Drief%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
Brief scores:
Manchester City 3
Aguero 1', 44', 61'
Arsenal 1
Koscielny 11'
Man of the match: Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
RESULT
Chelsea 2
Willian 13'
Ross Barkley 64'
Liverpool 0
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
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
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
