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Fourth group of Gazans arrive in UAE for treatment

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Fourth group of Gazans arrive in UAE for treatment



The fourth group of Gazans being aided by the UAE arrived in the Emirates on Saturday, according to a report In the UAE’s The National. “The group of 77 patients – accompanied by 43 family members – were evacuated from Gaza and transported to the Emirates from El Arish Airport in Egypt,” the report said. It notes that this is one of several UAE initiatives that have been ongoing to help Gazans in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the current war.

The report noted that “Donation drives and aid collection campaigns have also been held across the Emirates. President Sheikh Mohamed and US Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday spoke about the importance of protecting civilians in Gaza, by working towards a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.”

People walk at the site of an Israeli strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on November 18, 2023 (credit: REUTERS/IBRAHEEM ABU MUSTAFA)
In addition, the UAE field hospital in Gaza is also now open. “Medical teams from the UAE will provide aid and treatment to injured Palestinian residents in Gaza,” the National Said. The hospital has 150 beds. “It can be used for general surgery, orthopedics, children and women, anesthesia, and intensive care for children and adults. It also offers clinics in internal medicine, dentistry, psychiatric treatment, and family medicine.”

This is important because Israel is now beginning to focus on southern Gaza where Hamas leaders are believed to be hiding. Israel carried out airstrikes in the south over the weekend. Arab News reported that one of these airstrikes targeted a housing complex that had been funded by Qatar. Israel surrounded Gaza City earlier this month. Gaza is cut in half by Israeli troops, who executed a maneuver during the ground operation that places an Israeli armored division between Gaza City and southern Gaza. Israel has asked Gazans to move to the south to safety and a new map provides more details on safe zones. More than 1 million Gazans are estimated to have already moved south.

‘Flexible plan’

A separate article at Arab News described the conditions faced by medics the UAE sent for the flights that are helping some Gazans. “UAE doctors and nurses have no knowledge of the cases they will receive beforehand, prompting them to follow a flexible plan throughout the mission. They must be prepared with all types of equipment and a range of specializations,” the report noted. “To increase their future preparedness, the medical staff constantly learn from the challenges of each mission and aim to improve for the next. During the first evacuation mission, for example, the team faced difficulties moving a patient with a spinal cord injury into the plane due to a lack of equipment to prevent his neck from moving. Another mission received a far higher number of patients than expected.”

This is important because it illustrates the key and important role the UAE is playing, along with other Gulf countries, to offer support to those in need in Gaza, or those who can be evacuated for medical reasons. The UAE is playing a practical and helpful role. Other countries such as Iran and Turkey have instead focused on fanning the flames of tensions. 





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Biden delays deporting Lebanese citizens from US over Hezbollah-Israel conflict

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Biden delays deporting Lebanese citizens from US over Hezbollah-Israel conflict



The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

“Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel,” Biden said in the memo.

“While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States.”

Increased attacks since Oct.7

Israel and Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a “support front” with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel’s military assault in Gaza.

Firefighters work to extinguish wildfires following a missile attack from Lebanon which fell on the Israeli-Syrian border, Valley of Tears, Golan Heights, on July 20, 2024. (credit: MICHAL GILADI/FLASH90)

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed terrorist group and the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon.





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Preparing for war: Haifa mayor describes city’s infrastructure changes tensions in North escalate

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Preparing for war: Haifa mayor describes city’s infrastructure changes tensions in North escalate



Haifa mayor Yona Yahav spoke this past Monday with Lior Rosenfeld on Radio North 104.5FM about the escalation of the war in the North and his entry into political office amidst the security situation.

Yahav began, “I cannot speak on behalf of the North as I don’t know exactly what’s happening there. No one updates me, as if we are not the largest and most important city in the North. Tomorrow, the Home Front Command is coming to see us for the first time, and we will see what they have to say. We are doing everything to ensure that the city itself and our residents are safe and know what to do in case, God forbid, missiles fall on us. They are more accurate than those in 2006.”

Yahav also discussed the city’s preparations for a war in the North.

“We are now changing the entire method of building public structures,” Yahav said. “We are preparing them for prolonged stays. The minimum will be four consecutive days in shelters and such buildings, which require preparation. For example, installing toilets, which we don’t have today, and we have given instructions to build them in places close to where new houses are being built. This has been fully understood, and developers have begun to understand that the talk about evacuation and reconstruction has undergone drastic changes in light of the security situation. For example, road width needs to be maintained for the sake of evacuating residents on these roads. These are things that were not considered until now and must now be taken into account.”

Yonah Yahav (credit: ASLAN ABGANA)

Yahav’s plans for the success of Haifa’s future

Yahav then discussed his appeal to the transportation minister to stop the Highway 23 Carmel Tunnels’ toll charge.

“We called on the transportation minister to stop the discrimination. Haifa and the North are always discriminated against compared to central Israel, and there’s no reason for this. There are huge tunnels dug in Jerusalem that do not cost residents any money to pass through. There’s no reason why the tunnels dug in Haifa should include a toll. I speak on behalf of Haifa residents, and we are preparing to petition if we do not receive an answer.”

Regarding his entry into his mayoral role about three months ago, Yahav said, “I found a completely ruined city. They destroyed the municipality, and it’s very difficult to move things around. I don’t understand how residents sat idly by and kept quiet. We are trying to go to government offices to fix relations, to get funds, to move projects to bring in fees – and we are doing all this in a short time.

“The ministers are acting openly and with the goodwill to help. I am now waiting for the money on the table. The casino building in Bat Galim will be a luxurious hotel on the Bat Galim seashore. This neighborhood will undergo a complete transformation and will be the most beautiful neighborhood in the country. It will also be the only neighborhood facing a recognized beach. We came to make a change, and we will succeed.”

In conclusion, he touched on the issue of wild boars: “You won’t be able to follow them because soon you won’t see them anymore.”





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‘Psychological operation’: Turkey condemns FM Katz social media post depicting toddler Erdogan

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‘Psychological operation’: Turkey condemns FM Katz social media post depicting toddler Erdogan



Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Ministry released a statement on Sunday condemning a social media post made by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, in which Katz presented Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan as a toddler on the lap of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

Katz, in a Sunday post on X, wrote “Erdogan @RTErdogan finances and arms terrorist organizations of Hamas to carry out attacks and murder against Israelis. The General Security Service captured a squad of students from Bir Zeit who were employed by the Hamas headquarters in Turkey to carry out murder attacks in Israel, through training and weapons and tens of thousands of dollars provided to them.

“Erdogan turned Turkey into a state that supports terrorism and subjects Turkey to the Iranian axis of evil in the name of extreme ideology and blatant anti-Semitism.”

Katz’s comments were made in reference to a recently thwarted terror attack planned by the student Hamas cell in Bir Zeit University, north of Ramallah. The attempted attack, the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) said, was directed by Hamas’s base in Turkey. 

TURKEY’S PRESIDENT Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, in Istanbul, earlier this month. Reports in the media suggested that this meeting was the result of a breakdown in relations between Hamas and Qatar. (credit: Turkish Presidential Press Office/Reuters)

Turkey condemns the social media post

The Turkish ministry responded “The Israeli Foreign Minister is trying to hide Israel’s crimes against the Palestinians behind a series of lies, slander and disrespect.

“Israel’s dirty propaganda targeting Türkiye and President Erdoğan, and psychological operation attempts will not bear fruit.

“The members of the Netanyahu Government, who have killed nearly forty thousand Palestinians in Gaza and are now trying to start a regional war in order to stay in power, will be tried in international courts and held accountable for their crimes.

“Türkiye will continue to speak the truth and defend the right of the Palestinian people to live in justice and peace.”

The ministry cited data provided by the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. 

Additionally, Turkey has repeatedly asserted that it does not categorize Hamas as a terrorist organization – despite its western allies acknowledging it as such and its proven attacks on Israeli civilians. 





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