Last landmine cleared from biblical Jordan Valley site


Nicky Harley
  • English
  • Arabic

After more than 50 years frozen in time, one of the world's holiest of places, where the baptism of Jesus Christ is believed to have taken place, has finally been cleared of all landmines.

For thousands of years it had attracted pilgrims and worshippers from across the globe but following the 1967 Arab-Israeli War it was left abandoned and littered in landmines.

A campaign launched by charity the Halo Trust in 2014 has seen thousands of mines cleared from the site which sits on the River Jordan in Qaser al-Yahud.

The last mine has finally been removed from the site allowing access to the eight derelict  churches located there for the first time in five decades.

The Halo Trust told The National restoration work can finally begin on the buildings to enable them to be reopened to pilgrims and visitors in the near future.

"It is really nice that after 53 years we have now managed to finish the last landmine," James Cowan, CEO of the HALO Trust told the BBC Today programme.

"We have blown up 500 of them in a daisy chain explosion."

The charity has worked with different faith groups to make the project possible.

Last month the charity detonated the recovered mines and now wants to focus on rehabilitation of the area.

It tweeted an image of the explosion, adding: "Baptism of Fire: What 562 anti-tank mines look like when made safe."

Following the Arab-Israeli War, which had seen the border between the West Bank and Jordan heavily mined, the churches were abandoned to decay as entry was too dangerous.

When entry was gained, Mr Cowan described it as stepping back in time as everything in the churches was exactly how it had been left when the people fled.

"It was like a time capsule," he said.

"The table was still laid for dinner. It was wonderful to return there and know we can now begin the process of restoring the churches."

The minefield covered around 250 acres and contained an estimated 2,600 landmines.

The Halo Trust had secured the approval of the Israelis, Palestinians and all the churches to clear the landmines in 2016.

The site consists of the Roman Catholic Church and seven Eastern churches - Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Greek, Romanian, Syrian and Russian.

The clearing initiative, which started in 2018, was financed through a global fundraising campaign, with donations from church leaders, philanthropists, congregations and the Israeli President’s office.

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
The biog

Family: Parents and four sisters

Education: Bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing at American University of Sharjah

A self-confessed foodie, she enjoys trying out new cuisines, her current favourite is the poke superfood bowls

Likes reading: autobiographies and fiction

Favourite holiday destination: Italy

Posts information about challenges, events, runs in other emirates on the group's Instagram account @Anagowrunning

Has created a database of Emirati and GCC sportspeople on Instagram @abeermk, highlight: Athletes

Apart from training, also talks to women about nutrition, healthy lifestyle, diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure

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Hydrogen: Market potential

Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.

"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.

Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.

The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Oppenheimer
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Company profile

Date started: 2015

Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki

Based: Dubai

Sector: Online grocery delivery

Staff: 200

Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends

WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Bio

Born in Dubai in 1994
Her father is a retired Emirati police officer and her mother is originally from Kuwait
She Graduated from the American University of Sharjah in 2015 and is currently working on her Masters in Communication from the University of Sharjah.
Her favourite film is Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro

List of officials:

Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.

Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees

Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme

Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks

Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets

The biog

Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives. 

The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast. 

As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau

He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker. 

If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah

 

Bio:

Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour

Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people 

Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite food: Fish and vegetables

Favourite place to visit: London

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs

Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: nine-speed

Power: 542bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh848,000

On sale: now

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Company%20Profile
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