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US President Joe Biden has said it is “time to end” the Gaza war and that he had told Israel not to occupy the Palestinian enclave after the conflict concludes.
Speaking at a highly anticipated press conference late on Thursday aimed at reassuring the Democratic Party about his mental acuity and physical health, Mr Biden said his ceasefire framework had been agreed on by both Israel and Hamas but there were still gaps to close.
He added that he has “sent my team to the region to hammer out the details”.
“These are difficult, complex issues. There are still gaps to close. We're making progress. The trend is positive, and I'm determined to get this deal done and bring an end to this war, which should end now.”
Mr Biden in late May detailed a three-phase proposal aimed at achieving a ceasefire, the release of hostages in Gaza and Palestinian detainees held by Israel, Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, and the rebuilding of the coastal enclave.
The President's support for Israel since October 7 has infuriated millions of voters who skew Democrat, including Arab Americans and progressives.
The Biden administration has also faced international criticism for its continued support of Israel in the face of growing civilian casualties in Gaza.
Underscoring the stakes of a ceasefire, sources told The National on Thursday that Yemen's Houthi rebels and Iraqi militias have informed their ally Hamas they will cease attacks on Israeli targets if a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.
Mr Biden said it is “time to end this war” but stressed that did not mean Israel needed to “walk away from going after” Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and the militant group.
The President also said he had told Israel to learn from America’s protracted time in Afghanistan that occupying Gaza would not work.
“Once we got [Osama] bin Laden, we should have moved on,” he said.
Mr Biden expressed disappointment that his plan to funnel food aid into Gaza via a temporary pier had not been more successful, after the Pentagon said the facility would cease operations soon.
He partly blamed Israel for not being more helpful.
“I met with most of the Arab leaders to try to get a consensus going as to what had to be done to deal with getting more aid and food and medicine into the Gaza Strip. And we pushed it really hard, and Israel occasionally was less than co-operative,” Mr Biden said.
“There's a lot of things, in retrospect, I wish I'd had been able to convince Israelis to do.”
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
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Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
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NYBL PROFILE
Company name: Nybl
Date started: November 2018
Founder: Noor Alnahhas, Michael LeTan, Hafsa Yazdni, Sufyaan Abdul Haseeb, Waleed Rifaat, Mohammed Shono
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Software Technology / Artificial Intelligence
Initial investment: $500,000
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Partners/Incubators: Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 4, Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 6, AI Venture Labs Cohort 1, Microsoft Scale-up
