Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
It is end-of-year exams week for most university students in the US.
But for Yasmine, a Palestinian American second-year student, her only priority is maintaining the Gaza solidarity camp at George Washington University in the US capital.
“There's nothing more important right now, nothing,” Yasmine tells The National.
“There's an urgency to what's happening – everything else has to be pushed to the back burner.”
The student, 18, says her family is from the West Bank town of Jenin, and she feels it is her duty to do all she can to make her voice heard.
Yasmine, who attends Gallaudet University, is part of the Students for Justice in Palestine coalition in the Washington, Maryland and Virginia region.
Students from eight universities joined forces a week ago at George Washington University in solidarity with Gaza.
Like students at dozens of academic institutions across the US, they are demanding their universities divest from companies and colleges with ties to Israel.
They are also calling for the administration of President Joe Biden to secure a ceasefire in the war that has killed more than 34,500 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, since the October 7 Hamas-led attacks.
Those attacks resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people in southern Israeli communities.
“We see right through what Biden says, it's an American [military] campaign as much as an Israeli one. We are not easily fooled,” Yasmine says.
She has been camped in one of more than a dozen tents pitched in the heart of the university's campus.
At the entrance, a statue of George Washington, the first US president, has been wrapped with a large Palestinian flag and a keffiyeh.
In the middle of the camp, metal barriers lay on top of each other with a Palestinian flag in the middle.
The student movement at George Washington has been supported by the community, with residents of the city donating money.
Several tents with food, water and snacks were laid out across the encampment.
The scene was starkly different than in New York City, where nearly 300 students and supporters were arrested on Tuesday night at Columbia University and City College.
Police officers in riot gear raided the two campuses at the request of university administrators.
“There is no angle from which to justify this,” Omar, a Palestinian-American former student of George Washington University, said of the arrests in New York.
“Arresting innocent kids standing up for humanity is just wrong on every level.”
Omar said he decided to join the camp after seeing images of children in Gaza carrying signs thanking the student protesters in the US.
First he cried, then he filled up his car with food and supplies and drove to the camp.
“It's the best thing we can do at this moment,” Omar said.
He grew up in Northern Virginia, and he has family in the West Bank city of Hebron. At least a dozen of his relatives have been killed in Gaza, he said.
Will Youmans, an associate professor at the George Washington's university's school of media and public affairs, says seeing Arab-American students taking part in the protests is a departure from the past.
The last generation was hesitant to take part in political protests, fearing their activism would be met with a heavy-handed police response and be viewed with suspicion and claims of extremism.
But over the past two decades, the Palestinian cause has been gathering the support of a broad range of students from all backgrounds.
“Arab-American students are feeling very empowered by the fact that it's not just Arab Americans, Palestinians at their side – it's a true solidarity,” Mr Youmans told The National.
Still, he says he is one of a few Arab-American professors at George Washington University.
He said an email the university president sent out days after October 7 mentioned only Israeli casualties, despite a growing toll of Palestinians.
“It struck me as extremely alienating, as an Arab American I felt that I wasn't represented at all,” he said.
“It always feels like an uphill battle as an Arab American.”
Police dismantle Los Angeles student encampment – in pictures
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ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
Most wanted allegations
- Benjamin Macann, 32: involvement in cocaine smuggling gang.
- Jack Mayle, 30: sold drugs from a phone line called the Flavour Quest.
- Callum Halpin, 27: over the 2018 murder of a rival drug dealer.
- Asim Naveed, 29: accused of being the leader of a gang that imported cocaine.
- Calvin Parris, 32: accused of buying cocaine from Naveed and selling it on.
- John James Jones, 31: allegedly stabbed two people causing serious injuries.
- Callum Michael Allan, 23: alleged drug dealing and assaulting an emergency worker.
- Dean Garforth, 29: part of a crime gang that sold drugs and guns.
- Joshua Dillon Hendry, 30: accused of trafficking heroin and crack cocain.
- Mark Francis Roberts, 28: grievous bodily harm after a bungled attempt to steal a £60,000 watch.
- James ‘Jamie’ Stevenson, 56: for arson and over the seizure of a tonne of cocaine.
- Nana Oppong, 41: shot a man eight times in a suspected gangland reprisal attack.
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
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
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Etihad (etihad.com) flies from Abu Dhabi to Mykonos, with a flight change to its partner airline Olympic Air in Athens. Return flights cost from Dh4,105 per person, including taxes.
Where to stay
The modern-art-filled Ambassador hotel (myconianambassador.gr) is 15 minutes outside Mykonos Town on a hillside 500 metres from the Platis Gialos Beach, with a bus into town every 30 minutes (a taxi costs €15 [Dh66]). The Nammos and Scorpios beach clubs are a 10- to 20-minute walk (or water-taxi ride) away. All 70 rooms have a large balcony, many with a Jacuzzi, and of the 15 suites, five have a plunge pool. There’s also a private eight-bedroom villa. Double rooms cost from €240 (Dh1,063) including breakfast, out of season, and from €595 (Dh2,636) in July/August.
Company%20profile
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Other IPL batting records
Most sixes: 292 – Chris Gayle
Most fours: 491 – Gautam Gambhir
Highest individual score: 175 not out – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
Highest strike-rate: 177.29 – Andre Russell
Highest strike-rate in an innings: 422.22 – Chris Morris (for Delhi Daredevils against Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017)
Highest average: 52.16 – Vijay Shankar
Most centuries: 6 – Chris Gayle
Most fifties: 36 – Gautam Gambhir
Fastest hundred (balls faced): 30 – Chris Gayle (for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Pune Warriors in 2013)
Fastest fifty (balls faced): 14 – Lokesh Rahul (for Kings XI Punjab against Delhi Daredevils in 2018)
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
'HIJRAH%3A%20IN%20THE%20FOOTSTEPS%20OF%20THE%20PROPHET'
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite Quote: “Real victories are those that protect human life, not those that result from its destruction emerge from its ashes,” by The late king Hussain of Jordan.
Favourite Hobby: Writing and cooking
Favourite Book: The Prophet by Gibran Khalil Gibran
LEADERBOARD
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FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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Tips for avoiding trouble online
- Do not post incorrect information and beware of fake news
- Do not publish or repost racist or hate speech, yours or anyone else’s
- Do not incite violence and be careful how to phrase what you want to say
- Do not defame anyone. Have a difference of opinion with someone? Don’t attack them on social media
- Do not forget your children and monitor their online activities
Five films to watch
Castle in the Sky (1986)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Only Yesterday (1991)
Pom Poki (1994)
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013)
Napoleon
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Company profile
Name: The Concept
Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 7
Sector: Aviation and space industry
Funding: $250,000
Future plans: Looking to raise $1 million investment to boost expansion and develop new products
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
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Arabian Gulf League fixtures:
Friday:
- Emirates v Hatta, 5.15pm
- Al Wahda v Al Dhafra, 5.25pm
- Al Ain v Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, 8.15pm
Saturday:
- Dibba v Ajman, 5.15pm
- Sharjah v Al Wasl, 5.20pm
- Al Jazira v Al Nasr, 8.15pm
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Roll%20of%20Honour%2C%20men%E2%80%99s%20domestic%20rugby%20season
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SPECS
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