Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
A Palestinian diplomat has told the UN's top court that Israel is killing and displacing civilians and attacking aid workers in Gaza in a “man-made catastrophe of unprecedented proportions”.
Ammar Hijazi was speaking on Monday at a hearing at the International Court of Justice into Israel’s legal obligations to enable aid into the occupied territories. Israel responded by accusing the court of being "politicised".
Mr Hijazi said Israel was blocking humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza as a “weapon of war”. “Starvation is here,” the ambassador to The Hague said at the start of a week of hearings. “All UN-supported bakeries in Gaza have been forced to shut their doors. Nine of every 10 Palestinians have no access to safe drinking water.
“Storage facilities of the UN and other international agencies are empty.”
He claimed the case was about Israel "destroying the fundamentals of life in Palestine".
Palestine's UN envoy Riyad Mansour accused Israel of using the blockade on humanitarian supplies to entrench its occupation of Palestinian land.
"From the 18-year blockade over Gaza, to nearly 1,000 military checkpoints and obstacles to access and movement in the West Bank, to attempts to sever East Jerusalem from its Palestinian environment, Israel systematically created our dependency on aid and then deliberately deprived us of this aid," he said.
The UN’s legal counsel accused Israel of breaking international law, saying it had a clear obligation as an occupying force to allow and facilitate humanitarian aid for the people in Gaza.
"In the specific context of the current situation in the occupied Palestinian Territories, these obligations entail allowing all relevant UN entities to carry out activities for the benefit of the local population," Elinor Hammarskjold said.
Pressuring Israel into adhering to international law would allow Palestinians to receive the aid they need, said Mr Mansour. "Which begs the question, why do Palestinians need assistance to begin with? Israel annexes our land, it kills, dispossess and displaces to destroy our people. It steals our resources and revenues. It fragments our territory. It severely restricts our movement and access."
Months before ruling
The ICJ is holding a week of hearings before delivering a non-binding “advisory opinion”. The court will probably take months to rule. Experts say the decision, though not legally binding, could profoundly impact international jurisprudence, international aid to Israel and public opinion. The court believes it carries “great legal weight and moral authority”.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called the hearings part of a “systematic persecution and delegitimisation” of his country. Speaking in Jerusalem as the hearings began in The Hague, Mr Saar said the court was “becoming completely politicised”. He called the proceeding “shameful”.
Dozens of countries and organisations will address the 15-judge panel in a marathon set of hearings.
Judges will consider Israel's legal obligations towards the UN and its agencies, international organisations or third-party states to “ensure and facilitate the unhindered provision of urgently needed supplies essential to the survival of the Palestinian civilian population”.
Israel denies deliberately attacking civilians and aid staff and is not participating in the hearings, but its ally the US will take part on Wednesday.
Israel strictly controls all inflows of international aid vital for the 2.4 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The hearings open as the humanitarian aid system in Gaza is nearing collapse. Israel has blocked the entry of food, fuel, medicine and other humanitarian supplies since March 2. It renewed its bombardment on March 18, breaking a ceasefire, and seized large parts of the territory, saying it aims to push Hamas to release more hostages. Despite the increased Israeli pressure, ceasefire efforts remain deadlocked.
The hearings gave particular focus to the role of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA). An Israeli law banning the agency came into effect this year, hindering its activities despite the soaring needs of Palestinians. Palestine argued the ban was a breach of Israel's obligations under the UN Charter.
"Given UNRWA’s unmatched ability to provide relief schemes and to do so at scale to the Palestinian population, there can be no doubt that Israel is obligated to facilitate and expand the agency’s vital work rather than attack and sabotage it," said Ardi Imseis, an international law expert representing Palestine.
More than 700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homeland during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Many of their descendants in the region are educated and cared for by UNRWA. Hatem Kamaleldin Abdel Kader, Egypt's Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for International Legal Affairs and Treaties, said there was "no substitute to UNRWA" until a sovereign Palestinian state was established.
Egypt echoed Palestinian concerns about forced displacement. "Israel’s total war is a means to achieve a far more insidious end – the removal of Palestinians from their land and their extermination under the fog of war," said Jasmine Moussa, a legal adviser of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.
The World Food Programme said last week its food stocks in Gaza have run out under Israel’s nearly eight-week-old blockade, ending a main source of sustenance for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the enclave. Many families are struggling to feed their children.
The UN estimates 500,000 Palestinians have been displaced since the two-month ceasefire ended in March.
The UN has asked the ICJ to rule “with the utmost urgency” on the case, but it will probably take several months to reach its opinion.
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
ENGLAND SQUAD
Goalkeepers Henderson, Pickford, Pope.
Defenders Alexander-Arnold, Chilwell, Coady, Dier, Gomez, Keane, Maguire, Maitland-Niles, Mings, Saka, Trippier, Walker.
Midfielders Henderson, Mount, Phillips, Rice, Ward-Prowse, Winks.
Forwards Abraham, Barnes, Calvert-Lewin, Grealish, Ings, Kane, Rashford, Sancho, Sterling.
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Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
Managing the separation process
- Choose your nursery carefully in the first place
- Relax – and hopefully your child will follow suit
- Inform the staff in advance of your child’s likes and dislikes.
- If you need some extra time to talk to the teachers, make an appointment a few days in advance, rather than attempting to chat on your child’s first day
- The longer you stay, the more upset your child will become. As difficult as it is, walk away. Say a proper goodbye and reassure your child that you will be back
- Be patient. Your child might love it one day and hate it the next
- Stick at it. Don’t give up after the first day or week. It takes time for children to settle into a new routine.And, finally, don’t feel guilty.
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
