The EU must weigh in on Israeli belligerence

Palestinian men in Bethlehem throw stones at the Israeli military in protest against the arrest of the Fatah leader Abbas Zaki. A reader urges the EU to become more involved in the crisis in the West Bank.Show less

In reference to the article An Arab opportunity missed (March 30), it has been reported that nearly 300 members of the US House of Representatives have signed a letter to Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, stating that current tensions with Israel should be eased as they are not in America's interests. Given Israel's intransigence and its clear intention to treat both the US and international law with contempt, such a letter is evidence of the disproportionate influence of the powerful Israeli lobby over the American lower House.

It is to be hoped that the 27 member states of the European Union, including Britain, France and Germany, will refuse to be intimidated by a political lobby that campaigns on behalf of Israel to the apparent detriment of any proposals for peace in the Middle East, and in opposition to the US president Barack Obama's substantive moves for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and an end to the occupation. The world is being drawn ever nearer into an escalating conflict that will inevitably spill over into Europe unless the EU takes a firm stand against Israeli belligerence that seeks to maintain the status quo. JRD Kidd, Qatar

I refer to the article More diabetics in UAE needing amputations (March 10). I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes late in 2006 and went through an intensive therapy that taught me to manage my diabetes independently. The cornerstones of the therapy are a thorough understanding of food together with knowledge about insulin and its effect on the body and the blood glucose level. To improve your blood glucose level and diminish long term complications, you have to understand the importance of regular and continuous blood glucose monitoring.

At the end of September 2009, I left my home country and moved to Dubai. You can imagine how disappointed I was when I was informed by the doctor that none of the insurers in the region cover the costs for the strips to measure the blood glucose level. If diabetic patients have to pay on their own to measure their blood glucose level, you can imagine how seriously that will be handled. Therefore I'm not surprised about the results in the news article.

I cannot emphasise it enough: diabetics have to learn to take responsibility for their disease and control their blood glucose level regularly and independently. I suggest that the Ministry of Health recommends to insurance companies that they cover the costs for supplies for all diabetics. A further study could be performed to show the positive results between controlled and uncontrolled blood glucose levels. This would justify the costs for the measure and prevent a long-term disaster for medical providers and the UAE. SL, Dubai

With reference to Gems chief: raise fees or I will shut schools (March 30): there are more problems here than meets the eye. I think what all of this nonsense boils down to is greed. The landlords who are raising rents, and those who are leaving commercial and residential properties empty rather than lower their rents contribute greatly to this problem of increased costs. It creates a vicious cycle of upwardly spiralling land and labour costs.

If people cannot educate their children here, they will go where they can. Then what? This is why privatised education cannot work here as it does elsewhere. If the government is really concerned about this problem then they should purchase the land and/or buildings necessary to build the schools to educate the people who build this country. We don't pay taxes to support education but the amount of money paid into the education system should be more than enough. Donald Glass, Abu Dhabi

In reference to the article Secretary loses her life savings to the husband who never was (March 28), this is a sad story of how a person fell for an internet cheat. People obviously believe that all the information on the internet is true. It is sad how people don't approach elders for advice and believe in unknown persons who chat sweetly and obviously cook up some stories to win their confidence. There is a good old rule: If it is too good to be true - then it is. Ravikumar Kowtha, Abu Dhabi

With reference to How Oman's mums are missing out (March 29): the solution is to have Omani nannies. They should be trained to work as nannies and become better nannies than expatriates. They can replace the nannies coming from different cultures and religious beliefs. We would benefit by paying them a little more. Bilquis Alkhabori, Oman