Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
US President Donald Trump appeared to be softening the tone of his proposal to relocate Gaza's 2.3 million Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan before turning the enclave into a US-controlled glitzy resort.
Mr Trump on Wednesday said that “nobody is expelling any Palestinians” from Gaza in response to a question during a White House meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin.
His remarks take on added significance after talks between US officials and Hamas leaders. They also came as his Middle East envoy met Arab foreign ministers in Qatar on Wednesday night.
Sources briefed on the meeting said the discussions between Steve Witkoff and the Arab ministers focused primarily on a Gaza reconstruction plan drafted by Egypt and endorsed by Arab states on March 4. The plan was conceived as a counterproposal to Mr Trump's plan, which drew global opposition, with rights groups saying it amounted to ethnic cleansing.
"The talks with Witkoff have moved beyond persuading the Americans to accept the plan. They were about securing the funds to implement it," one of the sources said. "But the Americans remain adamant that Hamas stays out of the reconstruction drive, the distribution of humanitarian assistance and political governance."
Egypt, which borders Israel and Gaza, said on Thursday it appreciated the apparent change of heart by Mr Trump.
“This position reflects an understanding of the importance of not worsening the humanitarian conditions in the [Gaza] strip and the need to find a just and sustainable resolution of the Palestinian issue,” the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said.
Hamas said it welcomed Mr Trump's statements on Wednesday if they represented "a retreat from any idea of displacing the people of the Gaza Strip”.
“We call for this position to be reinforced by obligating the Israeli occupation to implement all the terms of the ceasefire agreements,” Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said.
Egypt's proposal for Gaza is a five-year undertaking that will cost $53 billion. Its first stage provides for defusing unexploded ordnance, as well as removing the rubble of destroyed buildings. it also includes the supply of 200,000 tents and caravans to house Palestinians whose homes were destroyed in the fighting and aims to restore an estimated 60,000 damaged homes.
A joint technical committee comprising experts from Egypt, the UN and the Palestinian Authority are due to meet next week in Cairo to finalise details of the first phase. Egypt will also host an international donors conference next month to raise funds for reconstruction.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said ministers from Cairo, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Qatar briefed Mr Witkoff on the plan during their meeting in Doha. They also "agreed with the American envoy to continue consultations and co-ordination on the plan as the basis for the reconstruction of Gaza", it added.
Hussein Al Sheikh, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, attended the talks.
“The Arab ministers emphasised their commitment to maintaining dialogue to reinforce the ceasefire and to work jointly to establish security, stability and peace in the region,” added the Egyptian statement.
Hamas and the US have both confirmed holding unprecedented, direct talks in Doha in recent weeks, focusing on the release of an American-Israeli dual national being held by the group in Gaza. The discussions with Mr Trump's hostage envoy Adam Boehler broke a decades-old Washington policy against negotiating with groups the US labels as terrorist organisations.
Mr Boehler described Hamas as “nice guys”, while the direct talks reportedly infuriated Israeli officials.
His comments raised fears in Israel that the US, the country's chief benefactor and most important ally, which has played a major role in hostage negotiations and supporting the country throughout the Gaza war, could become a more unpredictable partner under Mr Trump.
The war in Gaza was triggered by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel in October 2023 that killed about 1,200 people. The assailants also took about 250 others hostages, of whom 59 remain in captivity – 24 presumed alive and 35 confirmed dead, according to Israel's military.
The attack drew a relentless bombing campaign by Israel that has killed more than 48,500, mostly women and children, the Health Ministry in Gaza says. The vast majority of Gaza's residents has also been displaced, with large parts of the enclave's built-up areas, including hospitals, universities, schools and homes, laid to waste.
The intensifying talks on the reconstruction of Gaza, and Israel's halt of the electricity supply and deliveries of humanitarian aid to the enclave, add significance to ceasefire negotiations in Doha involving Israel, Hamas and mediators from the US, Qatar and Egypt.
The talks are focused on deciding the fate of an Israel-Hamas truce deal after the six-week first phase ended on March 1 without agreement on subsequent stages. Israel said it wanted to extend the first phase, but Hamas insists on negotiations over an end to the war and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Both sides have so far refrained from resuming all-out hostilities, although Israel has conducted strikes on Gaza in recent days.
The sources said Mr Witkoff, who also took part in the ceasefire negotiations, advocated an extension of the truce, with Israel releasing more Palestinian detainees than it previously agreed to in return for Hamas freeing half of its living hostages. He has also promised a gradual Israeli withdrawal from the enclave.
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE results
Lost to Oman by eight runs
Beat Namibia by three wickets
Lost to Oman by 12 runs
Beat Namibia by 43 runs
UAE fixtures
Free admission. All fixtures broadcast live on icc.tv
Tuesday March 15, v PNG at Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Friday March 18, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium
Saturday March 19, v PNG at Dubai International Stadium
Monday March 21, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium
Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
South Africa World Cup squad
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (w), JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dale Steyn, Rassie van der Dussen.
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.”
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
Who is Allegra Stratton?
- Previously worked at The Guardian, BBC’s Newsnight programme and ITV News
- Took up a public relations role for Chancellor Rishi Sunak in April 2020
- In October 2020 she was hired to lead No 10’s planned daily televised press briefings
- The idea was later scrapped and she was appointed spokeswoman for Cop26
- Ms Stratton, 41, is married to James Forsyth, the political editor of The Spectator
- She has strong connections to the Conservative establishment
- Mr Sunak served as best man at her 2011 wedding to Mr Forsyth
OIL PLEDGE
At the start of Russia's invasion, IEA member countries held 1.5 billion barrels in public reserves and about 575 million barrels under obligations with industry, according to the agency's website. The two collective actions of the IEA this year of 62.7 million barrels, which was agreed on March 1, and this week's 120 million barrels amount to 9 per cent of total emergency reserves, it added.
