The London-based Al Quds al Arabi carried a lead editorial that said there is no doubt that interference in Palestinian affairs is "rejected, provided that this rule applies to all other states, whether they are big or small, regional or international, Arab or foreign".
However, the paper said, it seems that the head of the authority in Ramallah, Mr Mahmoud Abbas, has another opinion or rather another interpretation of this golden rule.
"Yesterday, during a press conference held in Ramallah as he was receiving the American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Mr Abbas called on Iran not to interfere in Palestinian affairs. This talk, or rather this accusation, gave the impression that the American interference in Palestinian domestic affairs was allowed, while any other interference was banned.
What was also noticeable however, was that the statements of President Abbas were issued less than three hours prior to the issuance of similar statements by Mrs Clinton, revealing a tight coordination between both sides, making us think that the American secretary dictated these accusations to the Palestinian president.
"We hope that President Abbas will realize this obvious truth after he's done showing admiration to Mrs Clinton and upon the end of his first meeting with her."
The Saudi daily Al Watan carried a lead editorial commenting on the International Criminal Court's decision to issue an arrest warrant against the Sudanese President Omar Hassan al Bashir on charges related to crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.
"Even though the leaders of the African Union countries and many Arab leaders expressed their concern and their opposition to the issuance of the arrest warrant against the Sudanese president, taking into consideration the negative repercussions that this decision could have on the Sudanese domestic situation and the African continent, the court decided not to listen to these leaders under the pretext that 'justice' should take its course.
The issue at hand, the paper added, is not about convicting or acquitting someone, but about preserving the security, stability and unity of Sudan, considering that all the information points to the possible emergence of dangerous repercussions on the ground, particularly in Darfur.
But the decision also raises another issue: "If the international community really wants to allow justice to take its course and really wishes to get the criminals regardless of their positions, why is it not pursuing the war criminals in Israel who perpetrated crimes before the eyes of the international community?"
Dr Wahid Abdul Majid, a regular columnist for the UAE's Al Ittihad daily, wrote that the mutual visits between Saudi and Syrian officials gave rise to varying expectations about the future of Arab and regional relations in the coming period.
"The most optimistic expectations are that a reconciliation is at hand and it will melt all the ice and end the divisions that appeared most clearly during the war on Gaza." In any case, the author continued, the new atmosphere between Riyadh and Damascus has restored hope that the differences that distanced the two countries have now been overcome even though one of them is still being described as a "moderate" while the other is described as a "extremist" in the context of the wider Arab-regional divisions.
"We must discuss here a question that is rarely asked in this context: did Iran cause the Arab-regional divisions, or did it just exploit them and feed them?" The likeliest answer, Abdul Majid said, "is that Iran nourished, with its regional ambitions, the divisions which were started by the Arabs themselves."
The Arab order depended for more than a decade on the Egyptian-Saudi-Syrian axis which faced two serious earthquakes: the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, then the war on Iraq.
Saleh Ibrahime Al Tarifi, a regular columnist for Saudi's Okaz daily, wrote that "whenever I read in our newspapers a title that includes the words 'deluded' or 'an alien phenomenon in our society', I feel that our media insists on using this murky term in order to help us avoid looking into the mirror to see ourselves as we truly are, and not as we dream of being."
Whenever some Saudis are arrested in Iraq or any other suspect spot, the titles of the newspapers come out all the same: "a new chapter in the tragedy of the Saudis deluding themselves into going to Iraq". But some of those Saudis have bachelor degrees from our universities, Al-Tarifi said, which means that they are no longer youths and they should have enough maturity to guard against enticements and to distinguish between right and wrong, "except if our universities are producing minds that cannot distinguish between good and evil."
The conclusion, the author continued, is that the first step towards solving any crisis is recognising that there is a crisis and that "we are somewhat responsible for that crisis".
* Digest compiled by www.mideastwire.com
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
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What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
The biog
Full name: Aisha Abdulqader Saeed
Age: 34
Emirate: Dubai
Favourite quote: "No one has ever become poor by giving"
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Eriksen 80')
Inter Milan 0
Defending champions
World Series: South Africa
Women’s World Series: Australia
Gulf Men’s League: Dubai Exiles
Gulf Men’s Social: Mediclinic Barrelhouse Warriors
Gulf Vets: Jebel Ali Dragons Veterans
Gulf Women: Dubai Sports City Eagles
Gulf Under 19: British School Al Khubairat
Gulf Under 19 Girls: Dubai Exiles
UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
International Invitational: Speranza 22
International Vets: Joining Jack
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US' most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was first created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out projectiles, namely ballistic missiles, as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles both inside and outside of the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 93 miles above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then deployed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
