United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has placed Israel "on notice" for possible inclusion in the UN's "blacklist" of countries and groups suspected of committing sexual violence in armed conflict, a letter posted by Israel's ambassador to the body showed.
In his letter to Ambassador Danny Danon, Mr Guterres said he was "gravely concerned" about reports of violations against Palestinians by the Israeli military and security forces in several prisons, a detention centre and a military base.
The UN chief said Israel could be listed as abusers in his next report on sexual violence in conflict "due to significant concerns of patterns of certain forms of sexual violence that have been consistently documented by the United Nations".
“Cases documented by the United Nations indicate patterns of sexual violence such as genital violence, prolonged forced nudity and repeated strip searches conducted in an abusive and degrading manner,” Mr Guterres said.
Israel has denied access to UN monitors and Mr Guterres said this made it difficult to make a "definitive determination" about the patterns, trends and use of sexual violence by Israeli forces. He called on the Israeli government to take the necessary measures to end all acts of sexual violence and allow investigations.
In March, UN-backed human rights groups accused Israel of sexual and gender-based violence. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory documented violations and accused Israeli forces of rape and sexual violence against Palestinian detainees.
Last year, the Israeli army said it had detained nine soldiers over the alleged sexual abuse of a Palestinian detainee at the notorious Sde Teiman prison. At the time, Israeli media published a video appearing to show soldiers sexually assaulting a male prisoner, with the US State Department describing it as "horrific".
Mr Danon dismissed the concerns as baseless accusations.
"The UN must focus on the shocking war crimes and sexual violence of Hamas and the release of all hostages. Israel will not shy away from protecting its citizens and will continue to act in accordance with international law," Mr Danon said.
Freed Gazan prisoner recalls traumatic time in Israeli detention centre
Hamas was also listed in the report as a group "credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of rape or other forms of sexual violence" in armed conflict.
“We categorically reject all these allegations," senior Hamas official Basem Naim told Reuters. The inclusion of the group comes after recently published reports documenting alleged sexual violence during the October 7, 2023 attack and against hostages in captivity.
Reuters reported that Mr Guterres had also issued a similar warning to Russia. The UN chief wrote that he was "gravely concerned about credible information of violations by Russian armed and security forces and affiliated armed groups" primarily against Ukrainian prisoners of war, in 50 official and 22 unofficial detention facilities in Ukraine and Russia.
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Stamp duty timeline
December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%
April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.
July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.
March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.
April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.
FORSPOKEN
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The%20Legend%20of%20Zelda%3A%20Tears%20of%20The%20Kingdom
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Marvel's%20Spider-Man%202
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Assassin's%20Creed%20Mirage
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Ubisoft%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Ubisoft%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20PC%2C%20PS5%2C%20XSX%2C%20Amazon%20Luna%0D%3Cbr%3ERelease%20date%3A%202023%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Starfield
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Bethesda%20Game%20Studios%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Bethesda%20Softworks%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20PC%2C%20Xbox%0D%3Cbr%3ERelease%20date%3A%202023%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
The story of Edge
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, established Edge in 2019.
It brought together 25 state-owned and independent companies specialising in weapons systems, cyber protection and electronic warfare.
Edge has an annual revenue of $5 billion and employs more than 12,000 people.
Some of the companies include Nimr, a maker of armoured vehicles, Caracal, which manufactures guns and ammunitions company, Lahab
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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Profile of Udrive
Date started: March 2016
Founder: Hasib Khan
Based: Dubai
Employees: 40
Amount raised (to date): $3.25m – $750,000 seed funding in 2017 and a Seed round of $2.5m last year. Raised $1.3m from Eureeca investors in January 2021 as part of a Series A round with a $5m target.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UFC Fight Night 2
1am – Early prelims
2am – Prelims
4am-7am – Main card
7:30am-9am – press cons
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations
Edited by Sarah Cleave, Comma Press
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
More coverage from the Future Forum
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Race card
5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,400m
6.05pm: Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,400m
6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m
7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m
8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m
9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m
9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m
Jurassic%20Park
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
1971: The Year The Music Changed Everything
Director: Asif Kapadia
4/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind