Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Cheers echoed through the streets of Gaza on Wednesday night, even before a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was finally announced. Much-needed respite appears to be in sight after 15 months of almost uninterrupted bombing, death and destruction.
But the jubilant reaction of Gazans stands in stark contrast to the bleak environment that surrounds them – their homes destroyed, their loved ones maimed, killed or missing and their livelihoods crushed. Gaza, as it once was, no longer exists.
Across the border, the families of Israeli hostages are also conflicted. They wait anxiously for their relatives to return, dead or alive, but are frustrated that not all of the captives in Gaza will be released under the terms of the agreement.
The details of the 42-day truce, announced on Wednesday by Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, include the return of a number of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for the release of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons. Israeli forces are expected to withdraw to border areas and humanitarian aid will start to flow into the enclave.
But the agreement does not come into effect until Sunday and, on Thursday morning, the ceasefire was plunged into doubt when Israel accused Hamas of creating a “last-minute crisis”. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that would delay putting the deal to the security cabinet for approval.
Hamas refuted the claim and by Friday the agreement was back on track, after Mr Netanyahu said a hostage release deal was reached.
In this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher speaks to The National’s foreign correspondent Hamza Hendawi and Israeli former hostage negotiator Gershon Baskin. They discuss the fine print of the agreement and what comes after the initial truce.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
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Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
'The Sky is Everywhere'
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Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Ultra processed foods
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- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
