Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
The Israeli military said on Tuesday that it had attacked Houthi targets in Yemen, including the airport in Sanaa and several power stations in the area, in response to a missile attack on the main airport near Tel Aviv on Sunday.
The Israeli military said: “A short while ago, fighter jets struck and dismantled Houthi terrorist infrastructure at the main airport in Sanaa, fully disabling the airport.
“The strike was carried out in response to the attack launched by the Houthi terrorist regime against Ben Gurion Airport. Flight runways, aircraft, and infrastructure at the airport were struck.”
The Houthi-run Health Ministry said that three people were killed and 38 injured in the strikes.
The Houthi political bureau said that the Israeli “aggression will not pass without a response, and Yemen will not be discouraged from its stance in support of Gaza”.
Israel earlier warned residents near Sanaa airport area to leave.
“Urgent warning to all those present in the Sanaa International Airport area … We call on you to evacuate the airport area immediately and warn everyone present around you of the need to evacuate this area immediately,” the military's Arabic-language spokesman Lt Col Avichay Adraee said on X. “Failure to leave and stay away from the area puts you at risk.”
Israeli television showed thick black plumes of smoke rising above the skyline of Sanaa. Social media video purported to show several strikes, with more smoke rising as the thumps of the blasts echoed against the surrounding mountains.
Israeli air strikes in Yemen - in pictures
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said following the strikes, “I have said many times that whoever attacks the State of Israel – let his blood be on his head.”
“Yesterday, I said that the attack by the Houthi will be answered not with 'a blow and we are done' – but with 'blows'. So, yesterday, we dealt a blow, a heavy blow to the port of Hodeidah. Today, our planes attacked the airport in Sanaa, the airport that enables the terrorist army and the air entry into the terrorist state, which enables the firing of missiles against us,” he said in a statement.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that Iran would “bear the full consequences” for any attack by its Houthi allies.
“This is … a warning to the head of the Iranian octopus: You are directly responsible for any attack by the Houthi arm of the octopus against the State of Israel – and you will bear the full consequences,” Mr Katz said.
Ben Gurion attack
The Houthis on Sunday launched a missile that struck an access road near Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport, briefly halting flights and commuter traffic. At least eight people were injured.
It was the first time a missile struck the grounds of Israel’s main airport since the October 2023 start of the war in Gaza. While most missiles launched by the Houthis have been intercepted, some have penetrated Israel’s missile defence systems, causing damage.
In response to Sunday's attack, Israel attacked Yemen's port of Hodeidah on Monday.
The Houthi rebel group on Tuesday said four people were killed and 39 wounded in Monday's strikes on Hodeidah.
The Israeli army said in a statement that it had attacked Houthi “terrorist targets” in Hodeidah and its vicinity.
The Houthis shut down the area around the port and cement factory following the strikes, three sources said.
They said the extent of the damage at the port was unknown, but the intensity of the strikes and fire caused severe damage to the container berth.
The port is the second-largest in the Red Sea after Aden and is the entry point for about 80 per cent of Yemen's food imports.
Israel has repeatedly launched strikes against the rebels in Yemen. It struck Hodeidah and its oil infrastructure in July after a Houthi drone attack killed one person and wounded 10 in Tel Aviv.
In September, Israel struck Hodeidah again, killing at least four people after a missile targeted Ben Gurion Airport as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was returning to the country. In December, Israeli strikes killed at least nine people in Hodeidah.
The Yemeni group resumed its attacks on Israel and shipping lanes following a brief suspension after the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel in Gaza ended.
The Houthis, who control Yemen, have been firing at Israel and shipping in the Red Sea since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in what they say is solidarity with the Palestinians.
A Houthi source told The National that support for Gaza, Lebanon and Syria will continue, and the group will continue to impose a ban on Israeli air space.
“The solution lies with the Americans to force Israel to cease fire,” the source said, adding that “the strikes will not deter the Yemenis from their support for Gaza”.
“Israel cannot attack Yemen without air support from the American and British aggression forces,” the source said.
How has net migration to UK changed?
The figure was broadly flat immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic, standing at 216,000 in the year to June 2018 and 224,000 in the year to June 2019.
It then dropped to an estimated 111,000 in the year to June 2020 when restrictions introduced during the pandemic limited travel and movement.
The total rose to 254,000 in the year to June 2021, followed by steep jumps to 634,000 in the year to June 2022 and 906,000 in the year to June 2023.
The latest available figure of 728,000 for the 12 months to June 2024 suggests levels are starting to decrease.
Jiu-jitsu calendar of events for 2017-2018:
August 5:
Round-1 of the President’s Cup in Al Ain.
August 11-13:
Asian Championship in Vietnam.
September 8-9:
Ajman International.
September 16-17
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, Ashgabat.
September 22-24:
IJJF Balkan Junior Open, Montenegro.
September 23-24:
Grand Slam Los Angeles.
September 29:
Round-1 Mother of The Nation Cup.
October 13-14:
Al Ain U18 International.
September 20-21:
Al Ain International.
November 3:
Round-2 Mother of The National Cup.
November 4:
Round-2 President’s Cup.
November 10-12:
Grand Slam Rio de Janeiro.
November 24-26:
World Championship, Columbia.
November 30:
World Beach Championship, Columbia.
December 8-9:
Dubai International.
December 23:
Round-3 President’s Cup, Sharjah.
January 12-13:
Grand Slam Abu Dhabi.
January 26-27:
Fujairah International.
February 3:
Round-4 President’s Cup, Al Dhafra.
February 16-17:
Ras Al Khaimah International.
February 23-24:
The Challenge Championship.
March 10-11:
Grand Slam London.
March 16:
Final Round – Mother of The Nation.
March 17:
Final Round – President’s Cup.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
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 lowdown
Badla
Rating: 2.5/5
Produced by: Red Chillies, Azure Entertainment
Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Amrita Singh, Tony Luke
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
more from Janine di Giovanni
The%20Roundup
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What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Brown/Black belt finals
3pm: 49kg female: Mayssa Bastos (BRA) v Thamires Aquino (BRA)
3.07pm: 56kg male: Hiago George (BRA) v Carlos Alberto da Silva (BRA)
3.14pm: 55kg female: Amal Amjahid (BEL) v Bianca Basilio (BRA)
3.21pm: 62kg male: Gabriel de Sousa (BRA) v Joao Miyao (BRA)
3.28pm: 62kg female: Beatriz Mesquita (BRA) v Ffion Davies (GBR)
3.35pm: 69kg male: Isaac Doederlein (BRA) v Paulo Miyao (BRA)
3.42pm: 70kg female: Thamara Silva (BRA) v Alessandra Moss (AUS)
3.49pm: 77kg male: Oliver Lovell (GBR) v Tommy Langarkar (NOR)
3.56pm: 85kg male: Faisal Al Ketbi (UAE) v Rudson Mateus Teles (BRA)
4.03pm: 90kg female: Claire-France Thevenon (FRA) v Gabreili Passanha (BRA)
4.10pm: 94kg male: Adam Wardzinski (POL) v Kaynan Duarte (BRA)
4.17pm: 110kg male: Yahia Mansoor Al Hammadi (UAE) v Joao Rocha (BRA
LOVE%20AGAIN
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COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
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 specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
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Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Tips for SMEs to cope
- Adapt your business model. Make changes that are future-proof to the new normal
- Make sure you have an online presence
- Open communication with suppliers, especially if they are international. Look for local suppliers to avoid delivery delays
- Open communication with customers to see how they are coping and be flexible about extending terms, etc
Courtesy: Craig Moore, founder and CEO of Beehive, which provides term finance and working capital finance to SMEs. Only SMEs that have been trading for two years are eligible for funding from Beehive.
