Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
A pro-Palestine march took place in central London on Saturday, with protesters calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Demonstrators met at Bank Junction at midday and walked to Parliament Square.
The event was organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
London Metropolitan Police set conditions for the protest, enforcing an exclusion zone around the Israeli embassy and requiring the protest to adhere to a predetermined route.
The police emphasised the importance of lawful conduct during the event and the need to conclude speeches and assembly by the late afternoon.
Thirteen people were arrested by Saturday evening, police said, most of them for holding "offensive placards''.
UK's abstention from UN ceasefire resolution draws criticism
The protest follows the UK's decision to abstain from a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, a motion ultimately vetoed by the US.
Dame Barbara Woodward, UK ambassador to the UN, said Britain was focusing on supporting “further and longer pauses” for humanitarian aid and the release of Israeli hostages while condemning the actions of Hamas against Israeli civilians.
Ben Jamal, director of the UK-based Palestine Solidarity Campaign, expressed deep concern over the situation in Gaza, comparing the destruction to that experienced in German cities during the Second World War Two, but over a much shorter period.
Speaking to The National, he said: “The vote yesterday by the UK was a particularly shameful moment in a long history of complicity with Israel's oppression of the Palestinian people by successive UK governments.
“But at this moment, when Israel has killed over 17,000 Palestinians, including more than 7,000 children, and is making clear its intention to carry on and commit more wholesale slaughter, for the UK to refuse to endorse a resolution calling for a ceasefire for the release of all hostages, and for humanitarian aid to be brought to the people of Gaza is a disgrace”.
The UK's “isolation on the world stage”, Mr Jamal said, is highlighted by the fact that 13 of the 15 UN Security Council members supported the resolution, with only the US and the UK failing to vote in its favour, despite widespread international backing.
He said there was need for a permanent ceasefire and urged the UK government to "cease its complicity" in what he described as war crimes against the Palestinian people.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: “Yesterday marked a new shameful chapter in the complicity of successive UK governments with Israel’s violation of international law”.
The protests in London are part of a larger series of demonstrations that have been continuing for several weeks, reflecting growing public concern and activism regarding international conflicts and humanitarian crises.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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.”
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
