Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau signs a book of condolence for Queen Elizabeth as his wife Sophie looks on. AP
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau signs a book of condolence for Queen Elizabeth as his wife Sophie looks on. AP
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau signs a book of condolence for Queen Elizabeth as his wife Sophie looks on. AP
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau signs a book of condolence for Queen Elizabeth as his wife Sophie looks on. AP

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joins world leaders in signing book of condolence


Nicky Harley
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signed a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London on Saturday for Queen Elizabeth II.

He arrived in the British capital with other world leaders to attend the queen's funeral, which will be held on Monday.

International dignitaries arrived at Lancaster House throughout Saturday to sign the book.

Earlier, Prince William and his wife Kate joined King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla for a Buckingham Palace lunch with governors from the Commonwealth states.

The princess, who wore her hair down, was pictured smiling at the queen consort, who was holding a drink with a slice of lemon in it, as the pair chatted.

At one stage, Kate, who was wearing a long three-strand pearl necklace, placed her hand on the arm of Saint Lucia Governor-General Errol Charles as they spoke.

The princess also stood next to the king as he spoke to the dignitaries, while Prince William mingled in the busy room.

The governors of Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu were among those present.

Earlier, the King and Prince William met members of the public.

Daniel Mendez, husband of the Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam, signs a book of condolence to the late Queen Elizabeth at Lancaster House in London. AP
Daniel Mendez, husband of the Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam, signs a book of condolence to the late Queen Elizabeth at Lancaster House in London. AP

Daniel Mendez, husband of the Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam, looked solemn as he wrote his thoughts in the book of condolence.

Morie Komba, High Commissioner of Sierra Leone, signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London following the death of Queen Elizabeth. AFP
Morie Komba, High Commissioner of Sierra Leone, signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London following the death of Queen Elizabeth. AFP

High Commissioner of Sierra Leone, Morie Komba, joined the officials as the book of condolence began filling up.

Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese signs a book of condolence to Queen Elizabeth as his partner Jodie Haydon looks on. AP
Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese signs a book of condolence to Queen Elizabeth as his partner Jodie Haydon looks on. AP

Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese and his partner Jodie Haydon also attended Lancaster House.

Gaston Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, signs a book of condolence on the death of Queen Elizabeth at Lancaster House in London. AP
Gaston Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, signs a book of condolence on the death of Queen Elizabeth at Lancaster House in London. AP

Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne has signed the book after arriving in the UK.

Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam looked moved as she wrote a tribute to the late queen.

Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London following the death of Queen Elizabeth. PA
Governor-General of Belize Dame Froyla Tzalam signs a book of condolence at Lancaster House in London following the death of Queen Elizabeth. PA

Later on Saturday, President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, were scheduled to travel to London for the funeral.

The Bidens, who joined the queen for tea in June 2021, are due to pay respects to the sovereign, whose coffin is lying in Westminster Hall, on Sunday.

Afterwards, they will sign an official condolence book before attending a reception hosted by King Charles.

Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites

The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.

It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.

“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.

The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

What are NFTs?

Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.

You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”

However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.

This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”

This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.

Skoda Superb Specs

Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol

Power: 190hp

Torque: 320Nm

Price: From Dh147,000

Available: Now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Our legal columnist

Name: Yousef Al Bahar

Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

Match info

Who: India v Afghanistan
What: One-off Test match, Bengaluru
When: June 14 to 18
TV: OSN Sports Cricket HD, 8am starts
Online: OSN Play (subscribers only)

Islamophobia definition

A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.

WWE TLC results

Asuka won the SmackDown Women's title in a TLC triple threat with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair

Dean Ambrose won the Intercontinental title against Seth Rollins

Daniel Bryan retained the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against AJ Styles

Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women's Championship against Nia Jax

Rey Mysterio beat Randy Orton in a chairs match

Finn Balor defeated Drew McIntyre

Natalya beat Ruby Riott in a tables match

Braun Strowman beat Baron Corbin in a TLC match

Sheamus and Cesaro retained the SmackDown Tag Titles against The Usos and New Day

R-Truth and Carmella won the Mixed Match Challenge by beating Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox

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.

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

The Case For Trump

By Victor Davis Hanson
 

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League quarter-final (first-leg score):

Juventus (1) v Ajax (1), Tuesday, 11pm UAE

Match will be shown on BeIN Sports

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MATCH INFO

Champions League quarter-final, first leg

Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)

Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports

Our legal columnist

Name: Yousef Al Bahar

Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

European arms

Known EU weapons transfers to Ukraine since the war began: Germany 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger surface-to-air missiles. Luxembourg 100 NLAW anti-tank weapons, jeeps and 15 military tents as well as air transport capacity. Belgium 2,000 machine guns, 3,800 tons of fuel. Netherlands 200 Stinger missiles. Poland 100 mortars, 8 drones, Javelin anti-tank weapons, Grot assault rifles, munitions. Slovakia 12,000 pieces of artillery ammunition, 10 million litres of fuel, 2.4 million litres of aviation fuel and 2 Bozena de-mining systems. Estonia Javelin anti-tank weapons.  Latvia Stinger surface to air missiles. Czech Republic machine guns, assault rifles, other light weapons and ammunition worth $8.57 million.

Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

Electric scooters: some rules to remember
  • Riders must be 14-years-old or over
  • Wear a protective helmet
  • Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
  • Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
  • Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
  • Do not drive outside designated lanes
Six tips to secure your smart home

Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.

Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.

Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.

Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.

Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.

Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.

Updated: June 20, 2023, 11:35 AM