US President Donald Trump on Thursday hosted the annual White House iftar dinner and thanked American Muslims for their support in the November 2024 elections.
“The Muslim community was there for us in November – and while I'm president, I'm going to be there for you,” he said during a brief speech ahead of the dinner. “I think you know that.”
In the 2024 US presidential election, Mr Trump saw an increase in support from Muslim and Arab American voters, particularly in key swing states like Michigan and Arizona.
Massad Boulos, the Lebanese American father-in-law of Mr Trump's daughter Tiffany, who is now serving as a senior Middle East adviser to the President, met repeatedly with Arab American and Muslim leaders in the run-up to the election.
Both promised Arab American and Muslim voters that Mr Trump was a candidate for peace who would act swiftly to end the wars in the Middle East and beyond. These aims have not yet been achieved.
The iftar dinner was attended by ambassadors and chiefs of mission from the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Kuwait, Qatar, Pakistan, Malaysia, Bahrain, Iraq and Oman, among others.
Mr Trump said his “administration was engaged in relentless diplomacy to forge a lasting peace in the Middle East, building on the historic Abraham Accords, which everybody said would be impossible”.
“Now we're going to start filling them out, because, as you know, [former President Joe] Biden did nothing to fill them out,” he added.
The Abraham Accords were brokered by the US during Mr Trump's first term in office, establishing relations between Israel and several Arab nations. In 2020, the UAE and Bahrain signed the agreement with Israel, followed by Morocco at the end of that year and Sudan in early 2021.
Mr Trump also expressed his wish for peace in the region. The dinner came as Israel continues to bombard Gaza, after a January ceasefire that the US President had claimed credit for was shattered on March 18.
The President's “Gaza Riviera” proposal – suggesting that the Palestinian enclave be developed into a beach resort, with its population displaced to Egypt and Jordan – has been widely criticised in the region and beyond.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Result
Crystal Palace 0 Manchester City 2
Man City: Jesus (39), David Silva (41)
