US says it expects Israel to avoid attacking 'no-strike' zones in Gaza

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The White House on Monday said that it expects Israel to avoid attacking areas in southern Gaza that it identified as “no-strike” zones to allow Palestinian civilians to find safety during Israeli military operations.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that the administration of President Joe Biden is having daily conversations with Israeli leaders about protecting civilians in Gaza, and would continue to push for the entry of more humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave.

“They [Israel] have also indicated that there are areas where there will be no-strike zones,” Mr Sullivan told journalists.

“And in those zones, we do expect Israel to follow through on it.

“There are other areas in the south that Hamas continues to occupy with military infrastructure where targeted, precise strikes are part of Israel's ongoing military operations.”

The comments come as Israel's military called for evacuations in southern Gaza – an area that Palestinian civilians were ordered to flee to as Israel mounted attacks by air, land and sea.

Almost 16,500 Palestinians, the majority of the civilians, have been killed and most of the territory's 2.3 million residents have been displaced. Israeli bombardments have reduced large parts of the coastal enclave to rubble.

On Friday, a week-long temporary truce expired, bringing with it renewed Israeli bombardments. Scores of people have been killed and sporadic rocket fire into Israel has sent people into shelters.

During the truce, which was negotiated by the US, Qatar and Egypt, dozens of hostages held by Hamas were released in exchange for Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons. In addition, humanitarian aid flowed more easily into Gaza.

When Hamas fighters attacked Israel on October 7, they killed about 1,200 people and took about 240 hostage.

Mr Sullivan blamed Hamas for the collapse of talks that should have led to more hostages being released and the truce extended.

“Hamas is refusing to release civilian woman who should have been part of the agreement,” he said.

“And it is that refusal by Hamas that has caused the end of the hostage agreement and therefore the end of the pause in hostilities.”

He said there are still “intensive discussions” taking place between the US, Israel, Qatar and Egypt on finding ways to secure another truce that would lead to the release of additional hostages.

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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.”

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