Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
After an emotional day when four female soldier hostages were returned from captivity in Gaza on Saturday, Israel braced itself for the tense run-up to a third round of hostage releases next week as part of a Gaza ceasefire deal with Hamas.
Shortly after jubilation for the return of the soldiers taken from the Gaza border during the October 7 attacks, thousands of Israelis took to the streets to demand that the government continues with the agreement, which would involve the release of all hostages and end one of the most traumatic episodes in the nation’s history.
Two-hundred Palestinian detainees were released in return for the hostages, either to areas in the occupied Palestinian Territories or, for those charged with the most serious crimes, deportation. Thousands rallied to see the prisoners released in Palestinian capital Ramallah in the occupied West Bank and there was celebration in Gaza, where a smaller number of detainees were transferred.
Despite widespread support for getting the hostages home in Israel, the future of the deal is fragile, with both sides accusing the other of breaking its terms. There is also significant pressure on Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu from the far-right of his coalition who want to scrap the deal, saying it puts national security at risk by releasing hundreds of Palestinian detainees, robs Israel of victory in Gaza and stops the far-right from resettling the strip.
Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the Religious Zionism party, a settler and one of the most high-profile politicians known to be against the deal, at first welcomed the return of hostages saying on X that “the entire Jewish people are excited about your arrival” and that “we hug you and love you”.
A later post, however, criticised a “slander” against him and others who “thinks that this deal is bad and its consequences dangerous for the future of Israel”.
Settlements and National Minister Orit Strock, who belongs to Mr Smotrich’s party, called for Israelis “to come to our senses” over the deal which she said will allow Hamas to “return to re-establish its terror empire in [Gaza].”
“If the State of Israel desires life, it is obligated to wipe Hamas off the face of the earth and not stop until the mission is completed.”
Criticism from the far-right came amid renewed accusations by the office of Mr Netanyahu on Sunday that Hamas was breaking the deal, particularly over the fate of Arbel Yehud who was supposed to be freed in Saturday’s exchange, Israel said. Her whereabouts have been the subject of speculation in recent days, with reports suggesting her release has been complicated as she is held by militant group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, not Hamas.
On Saturday, Israel said it would not allow Gazans to cross into the north of the strip until her fate was secured, despite the initial timetable allowing displaced civilians to return on Sunday using designated routes. Thousands have gathered close to the Netzarim Corridor, a strip of land controlled by the Israeli military that divides Gaza from east to west.
“It was expected that Hamas would incite difficulties and continue psychological warfare manoeuvres on the way to implementing the agreement,” Sunday’s statement said.
Hamas reportedly informed international mediators involved in the deal that Ms Yehud is alive and will be released in another swap next Saturday. The group said Israel was delaying implementation of the ceasefire by preventing displaced Gazans from returning north, warning it would have “repercussions” for subsequent stages of the deal.
On Sunday, Hamas said it also held “the occupation responsible for obstructing the implementation of the agreement” after Israeli forces killed a Palestinian and wounded seven who were trying to get into the north of the strip, according to the local health authorities.
The militant group said Israel is “stalling under the pretext of the kidnapped Arbel Yehud, despite the fact that we informed the mediators that she is alive and provided all the necessary guarantees for her release”.
The US called for the deal to be implemented in full, saying it is “critical that the ceasefire implementation continues and that all of the hostages are freed from Hamas captivity and safely returned to their families”.
US President Donald Trump has been widely praised in Israel for getting the deal, which had been on the table for months, passed in the run-up to his inauguration. Mr Trump threatened there would be “all hell to pay” if the hostages had not returned to Israel by the time he came into office.
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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.”
