The UN on Thursday warned that mankind’s “war on nature” was wiping out whole species, polluting the atmosphere and pushing temperatures up by a dangerous 3 degrees Celsius this century.
A report, Making Peace with Nature, presents evidence of three dangers – climate change, pollution, and the loss of plant and animal species, or biodiversity – and explains how to mitigate this triple threat.
The 168-page study also features new findings on the emergence of Covid-19 and other so-called zoonotic diseases, which are linked to mankind encroaching ever deeper into forests and other animal habitats.
“For too long, we have been waging a senseless and suicidal war on nature,” UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told reporters.
“The bottom line is that we need to transform how we view and value nature. We must reflect nature’s true value in all our policies, plans and economic systems.”
The report was released amid the latest example of headline-making harsh weather – a winter storm across the southern US that brought deadly freezing winds, snow and ice to areas that seldom see such frigid conditions.
It paints a bleak picture of a planet struggling to support an ever-growing population that extracts coal, oil and other resources, destroys habitats and pumps out heat-trapping gases that raise the odds of storms, forest fires and sea-level rise.
More than 1 million of Earth’s estimated 8 million plant and animal species are close to extinction, while pollution causes the early deaths of some 9 million people each year, said Mr Guterres.
Worse still, the planet is headed for at least 3°C of global warming this century, he added.
This is far above the targets agreed in the 2015 Paris accord, which aimed to keep global warming under 2°C over pre-industrial times and to strive to limit temperature rises to 1.5°C.
Mr Guterres said there was still time to get back on track.
The US will on Friday re-enter the Paris climate deal, after President Joe Biden reversed a decision by his predecessor, Donald Trump, to exit the accord, raising hopes of greater global momentum on emissions cuts.
The UN chief will mark the re-entry at a virtual event with Mr Biden’s climate envoy John Kerry.
Washington is now committed to effectively cutting carbon emissions to zero by 2050.
That means “countries producing two-thirds of global carbon pollution are pursuing the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050,” said Mr Guterres.
“If adopted by every country, city, financial institution and company around the world, a global coalition for carbon neutrality by 2050 can still prevent the worst impacts of climate change.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will on February 23 chair virtual UN Security Council talks on the links between climate change and war.
The UK will in November host the review conference of the Paris agreement in Glasgow.
Inger Andersen, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, Unep, said public pressure and bold policymaking could galvanise efforts to cut carbon emissions and raise cash to innovate our way out of a looming catastrophe.
“In showing how the health of people and nature are intertwined, the Covid-19 crisis has underlined the need for a step-change in how we view and value nature,” said Ms Andersen.
“Green recovery plans for pandemic-hit economies are an unmissable opportunity to accelerate the transformation.”
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
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- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
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- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
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- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
