Fifteen years ago, Palestinian American human rights lawyer Huwaida Arraf was sailing with a flotilla carrying 10,000 tonnes of aid to Gaza when Israeli forces intercepted the ships, killing 10 activists.
It was not her first attempt to help civilians suffering under Israel's blockade of the Palestinian territory, which it tightened after Hamas seized control in 2007, nor would it be her last.
Since then, Ms Arraf has attempted to make that trip several times, each time with different difficulties. The most recent was aboard the Handala, which was intercepted by Israel on Sunday and all 21 people on board detained.
Israel said it was stopping the ship from “illegally entering the maritime zone of the coast of Gaza”, which is under a blockade by Israeli forces that is illegal under international law.
“To stop a small boat carrying baby formula and teddy bears for kids in Gaza, they sent their elite commando forces,” Ms Arraf said. “We couldn’t see in the dark but could see on the radar eight military warships.”
That is when Ms Arraf sent her now famous radio message statement to the Israeli army, demanding that they stand down as they had no authority to enforce a blockade over Gaza.
Men in Israeli military fatigues carrying weapons and cameras boarded the ship as the volunteers sat on the deck with life jackets on and their hands raised.
“They were filming themselves saying that we're safe, that they had doctors and giving us water. We rejected all of it and told them we're not taking anything from an entity that's deliberately starving children, and that our lives are not more valuable than theirs.”
Ms Arraf, who also has an Israeli passport, was not deported and remains in Israel. Six other US nationals who were aboard the Handala are being held in an Israeli prison along with two Spanish citizens, a Tunisian and a Norwegian. The rest of those aboard the Handala were either released or deported.
Lawyers for those detained issued a statement saying that their clients were being held in poor conditions in Israel's Givon prison in Ramlah – in unventilated cells infested with bed bugs, and with no time outdoors.
The National contacted the Israeli Prison Services for comment.
Ms Arraf's latest attempt to break the blockade on Gaza comes as the territory's population experiences famine after months of Israeli restrictions on the entry of food as part of its war against Hamas since October 2023.
Israeli tactics
Ms Arraf was part of the very first flotilla to attempt to break the Israeli blockade in 2008, under a coalition of rights and pro-Palestinian groups called the Free Gaza Movement.
A total of 44 people from 17 countries set sail for Gaza from Cyprus in two small fishing boats.
“We were not a threat. We had parliamentarians, journalists and all kinds of people. They would have to attack us to stop us – so people can see that Israel's policy has nothing to do with security but punishing the Palestinian people as a form of collective punishment, which is a war crime,” she said.
Although Israel threatened to stop the ships, and jammed their communications at sea, they did not intercept them.
But everything changed after the first Israel-Gaza war broke out in December that year, as Israel launch an aerial and ground assault it called Operation Cast Lead.
By the summer of 2009, activists had made three attempts to reach Gaza by sea and came under Israeli attack every time.
“At that point, we had a choice – either say that this isn't working any more and we stop or, we had to escalate. But we didn't want to give in to the notion that Israel is stronger than the rights we were seeking,” Ms Arraf said.
But things only became worse. In May 2010, a flotilla carrying 10,000 tonnes of aid and 700 people from 36 countries were subjected to lethal force by Israeli forces. Nine activists on the Turkish ship MV Mavi Marmara were killed when boarders opened fire, with a tenth dying after four years in a coma.
Ms Arraf laments how little has changed in terms of global silence and complicity with Israel's actions in Gaza.
“In what legal moral order do you allow a state under trial for genocide to control what aid is getting to the people it's exterminating?”
But she says she is determined to keep going.
“They want us to accept a world in which there are no human rights protections or respect of international law and where might is right. But this is a world no one should accept.”
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,200m. Winner: Majd Al Megirat, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Ahmed Al Shehhi (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m. Winner: Dassan Da, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
6pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Heba Al Wathba, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Hameem, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Richard Mullen, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Harbour Spirit, Adrie de Vries, Jaber Ramadhan.
The bio
His favourite book - 1984 by George Orwell
His favourite quote - 'If you think education is expensive, try ignorance' by Derek Bok, Former President of Harvard
Favourite place to travel to - Peloponnese, Southern Greece
Favourite movie - The Last Emperor
Favourite personality from history - Alexander the Great
Role Model - My father, Yiannis Davos
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.”
