A Palestinian boy walks past a pile of rubble after Israeli authorities demolished a building in the village of Sebastia, near Nablus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on August 9, 2016. Jaafar Ashtiyeh / AFP
A Palestinian boy walks past a pile of rubble after Israeli authorities demolished a building in the village of Sebastia, near Nablus, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on August 9, 2016. Jaafar AshtiShow more

Israel demolishing more Palestinian buildings, says UN



RAMALLAH // Israel has razed more Palestinian homes and other structures so far this year than in all of 2015, the United Nations said on Friday.

Israeli authorities in the occupied West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem have demolished 726 structures this year, displacing 1,020 Palestinians, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) said.

In the whole of last year there were 533 demolitions and 688 people displaced, Ocha said.

The structures included houses, shelters for livestock and installations such as solar panels.

Many were funded by foreign donors such as the European Union and its individual member states, which say they are working to meet urgent humanitarian needs of people under military occupation.

Israel says it forbids unlicensed construction, invoking treaties with the Palestinians that give it full control over 60 per cent of the West Bank designated as “Area C” and asserting sovereignty over all of Jerusalem.

Between August 2 and 8, Ocha said, “in 14 separate incidents in Area C and east Jerusalem, the Israeli authorities destroyed, forced owners to destroy, or confiscated 42 structures for lack of building permits, displacing 30 people”.

The Israeli NGO B’Tselem said that since the start of the year Israel razed at least 188 homes in the West Bank alone, “the highest number since B’Tselem began documenting home demolitions on grounds of ‘lack of building permits’ in 2006”.

France on Thursday condemned Israel’s destruction last week of structures it funded in the West Bank village of Nabi Samuel.

It was the third time this year that Israel has torn down French-financed structures, including the dismantling of a school in February, the foreign ministry said.

“France is deeply concerned by the accelerated pace of demolitions and confiscations of humanitarian structures that should benefit the Palestinian population living in Area C,” it added.

“We call on the Israeli authorities to put an end to these practices which are contrary to international law.”

In Washington, the US state department said it was worried about Israeli plans to raze the tiny Palestinian village of Susiya, in the southern West Bank.

“If the Israeli government proceeds with demolitions in Susiya, it would be very troubling and would have a very damaging impact on the lives of the Palestinians living there who have already been displaced on other occasions,” a spokeswoman said.

The village has been torn down before and its homes are mainly tents, caves and makeshift structures, along with a children’s playground.

Israel says Susiya does not have a permit.

Meanwhile, a settlement watchdog accused Israeli authorities of working to transplant an illegal settler homes scheduled for demolition to Palestinian land nearby, effectively legalising a rogue outpost.

“They have started the process of taking land,” said Hagit Ofran of Peace Now.

An advertisement bearing the crest of Israel's civil administration in the West Bank appeared in Palestinian daily Al Quds on Thursday listing several plots of land near the Amona settlement, north of Ramallah.

It said that they were considered to be the property of absentee Palestinian owners and therefore liable to seizure. Anyone claiming ownership was asked to lodge objections within 30 days.

“The civil administration has opened a process where it is announcing that it intends to make use of these properties which are near Amona,” Mr Ofran said.

Peace Now said it could be assumed that the land takeover was for the relocation of the settlement, which is home to about 40 families.

Israel’s supreme court, acting on a petition filed by Palestinians who own the land on which Amona stands, ordered that it be demolished by December 25.

* Agence France-Presse

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Name: ARDH Collective
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

Score

Third Test, Day 2

New Zealand 274
Pakistan 139-3 (61 ov)

Pakistan trail by 135 runs with 7 wickets remaining in the innings

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

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Power: 154bhp

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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE

When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.

DUBAI WORLD CUP CARNIVAL CARD

6.30pm Handicap US$135,000 (Turf) 2,410m

7.05pm UAE 1000 Guineas Listed $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m

7.40pm Dubai Dash Listed $175,000 (T) 1,000m

8.15pm Al Bastakiya Trial Conditions $100,000 (D) 1.900m

8.50pm Al Fahidi Fort Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,400m

9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (D) 2,000m

 

The National selections

6.30pm: Gifts Of Gold

7.05pm Final Song

7.40pm Equilateral

8.15pm Dark Of Night

8.50pm Mythical Magic

9.25pm Franz Kafka

When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi

  

 

 

 

Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.

 
ESSENTIALS

The flights 
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
 

The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.

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Disclaimer

Director: Alfonso Cuaron 

Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville 

Rating: 4/5

Company profile

Company: Verity

Date started: May 2021

Founders: Kamal Al-Samarrai, Dina Shoman and Omar Al Sharif

Based: Dubai

Sector: FinTech

Size: four team members

Stage: Intially bootstrapped but recently closed its first pre-seed round of $800,000

Investors: Wamda, VentureSouq, Beyond Capital and regional angel investors

ZIMBABWE V UAE, ODI SERIES

All matches at the Harare Sports Club:

1st ODI, Wednesday - Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets

2nd ODI, Friday, April 12

3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14

4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed

BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES

Friday (all kick-offs UAE time)

Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (10.30pm)

Saturday

Freiburg v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)

Paderborn v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)

Wolfsburg v Borussia Dortmund (5.30pm)

Borussia Monchengladbach v Bayer Leverkusen (5.30pm)

Bayern Munich v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)

Sunday

Schalke v Augsburg (3.30pm)

Mainz v RB Leipzig (5.30pm)

Cologne v Fortuna Dusseldorf (8pm)

 

 

Key developments

All times UTC 4

Scoreline

Germany 2

Werner 9', Sane 19'

Netherlands 2

Promes 85', Van Dijk 90'

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre V6

Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm

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Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km

Price: Dh179,999-plus

On sale: now 

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From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases

A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.

One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait,  Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.

In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.

The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.

And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.

 

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