Eurovoix World Latest News From Song Contests Around The World Sinan Akçıl has discussed his selection and the song he will perform in Istanbul Sinan Akçıl has revealed new details of his performance in next weeks ABU TV Song Festival which is being held in Turkey He is set to perform “Fark Atıyor” on stage in Istanbul and revealed on social media that he is set to be joined by an eight-person dance team the singer explained how he was selected to take part: Just like in “Düm Tek Tek” during Eurovision Dear TRT Music General Coordinator Kenan Bölükbaşı mentioned this project It is like being selected for the Turkish national team I can say that I was selected for the national team for the second time.” Sinan explained that the version of “Fark Atıyor” that he will perform in Istanbul will be a new arrangement for audiences You can learn more about Turkey’s history in the ABU TV Song Festival and other Song Contests: Song Contests – 🇹🇷 Turkey (Türkiye) The 13th edition of the ABU TV Song Festival will take place on October 20 in Istanbul Türkiye hosted by the Turkish public broadcaster TRT This will be the second time that Istanbul has hosted the event The festival is set to be held at the Istanbul Lütfi Kırdar International Convention and Exhibition Center in the Anadolu Auditorium Up to 2,000 guests will be able to watch the contest live the event will be broadcast from 17:00 to 19:00 CET Image Source: Sultangazi’de | Source: Hurriyet, Hurriyet it has been a pleasure to find out more about this amazing continent through the Eurovision Family of Events it's been brilliant to see the site grow and flourish and continue to bring our readers everything from the world of Eurovision an independent asset manager with offices in Zurich is expanding its network with a new location in the Middle East Marcuard Heritage opens an office in Abu Dhabi operating under a prestigious Abu Dhabi Global Markets (ADGM) license represents a major milestone in the firm’s expansion efforts This expansion also reflects the firm's commitment to connecting key markets across Asia and Europe led by Senior Executive Officer Michael Kuenzi strengthens the firm's global presence and reinforces its role as a leading provider of wealth management services we gain access to a dynamic financial ecosystem reaffirming our commitment to delivering comprehensive client-centered wealth management solutions,» Sinan Bodmer The new office actively recruits experienced relationship managers to join a highly skilled team Guided by principles of independence and integrity Marcuard Heritage has built a strong global presence ADGM has quickly risen as a leading financial center and fostering a dynamic environment for hedge funds and asset managers finews.com publishes on its own Web-TV-Channel interviews with well-known figures of Swiss finance. + More on this topic + More on this topic + More on this topic This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The Druze generally vote on utilitarian considerations such as voting for parties expected to be included in the coalition and to influence government policy Social networks voiced fierce criticism following two legislative acts that have hurt Druze over the past year: Kaminitz Law and Nation State Law the Druze artificially separated their stance on these laws and voted for parties that supported those laws The Blue-White party spoke against the Nation State Law in its current form drew significant support from the Druze community Blue-White is only committed to amending the law and including a clause referencing equality within it The increase in support for the "Israel Beitenu" party is due to the fact that the Druze representatives in the Likud are not seen as representing the real interests of the Druze community the Druze candidate in the "Israel Beitenu" party expressed opposition to the Nation State Law Introduction mainly soldiers and members of the security forces and as such it is not possible to precisely examine their votes The Weight of the Druze Vote Leveraging the electorate by serving its utilitarian or expedient needs is not a new phenomenon electoral markets were common and widespread (in countries such as Great Britain for example) following the expansion of the right to vote by giving it to the masses Instrumental use of citizens’ votes goes against democratic principles and creates openings for various forms of corruption It is necessary to wrestle with this phenomenon yet the need of Zionist parties to have some semblance of inclusion of minorities in their frameworks on the one hand and the Druze need to improve their social and economic standing on the other has given way to the entrenchment of this phenomenon by Druze power-brokers thereby eroding the already limited electoral strength of the Druze population (just 1.3 percent of the general electorate) and weakening them as a group Most parties place conditions on the receipt of services or various nominations, both implicitly and directly. For example, when the National Religious Party had control of the Ministry of Education, school directors received appointments according to their family’s contributions to the party. Shas also operated in this manner when it ran the Ministry of the Interior, as have the Likud and Labor parties.[8] In several cases the national party would strike a deal with a local family Additional methods that have been used (and are still in use) are civil service appointments and promoting initiatives or services that are intended to advance a specific individual nominated the late Professor Na’im Araydeh This move contained a two-fold benefit for Lieberman enabling him to shake off the image of a racist who hates Arabs while winning the support of the Druze within his party and that the promotion had served him well This method of influence also utilizes businesses and other sources of income a small business owner told me he had turned a sizable profit after a party representative purchased services from him: “When he called me before the elections and I recruited nearly my entire clan to vote for him and it’s a very big clan in the village.” Israel Beitenu has gone even farther than this Hamed ‘Amar established a Druze youth movement within the party and the organization transfers funds from its budget to various Druze businesspeople in every village These businesspeople are then transformed into meaningful soldiers on election day The elections for the twenty-first and twenty-second Knesset generated a paradoxical situation: the Druze were required to vote against their stated interest and even against the declarations of their representatives in the Knesset The elections were held after two acts of legislation that greatly impacted the Druze: the amendment of the Planning and Building Law (known as the “Kaminich Ammendment”) social networks have been in an uproar against these pieces of legislation the Druze voted for parties which initiated and advanced these laws and supported them in each stage of legislation The situation rose to such crescendo that Amir Khneifes a principle supporter of the Zionist Movement issued an emphatic verbal attack of the Nation-State Law’s lead advocate Why then did the Druze vote for parties that advanced these laws in such large percentages 80% of Druze voted for Israel Beitenu.) It seems that the Druze made a superficial distinction between the Druze MK who had voted against the law in the plenary session – ‘Amar to an extent that seems unreasonable and contrary to logic Voting Trends Compared From the twentieth to the twenty-second Knesset elections the number of Druze voters rose by about six thousand one quarter of Druze voters voted for Israel Beitenu Behind Israeli Beitenu was the Zionist Union which included the Labor Party and Hatnua Movement the Labor Party had always been first among the Druze population usually winning between twenty and thirty percent of their votes Third amongst Druze voters was the Kulanu Party Akram Hasson succeeded to recruit a substantial part of votes from Daliyat al-Karmel and many other villages whose representative Abdullah Abu Ma’rouf was in a high position on their list (their rotating seating arrangement was not disclosed to the public) with a Druze representative who had been a deputy minister which was even less than Shas (8.6 percent) Analysis of Druze Voting Trends for Mainstream Parties Israel Beitenu: This party was the strongest among the Druze population in the twentieth Knesset elections The party’s advantage was the result of concerted and consistent party efforts among the Druze community the absence of a Druze candidate in a realistic position on the list of other parties aided the decline of the Likud Party The party’s power decreased by almost half in the twenty-first Knesset elections winning only 12.6 percent of the Druze vote This is partly due to the fact that the party’s Druze candidate did not appear to have a realistic chance of joining the Knesset according to forecasts that predicted that the party would not pass the mandate threshold the Meretz party placed a Druze candidate in a realistic position on its list and thus increased Druze support by a large measure Another reason for the decline in Israel Beitenu’s power was its support of the Nation-State Law In the twenty-second elections for Knesset the party’s power increased in the Druze sector mainly because Kulanu’s list was absorbed into the Likud making it impossible to vote for the former the fact the Druze candidate on the Meretz list was pushed back to an unrealistic position returned voters to Israel Beitenu the polls brightened as it seemed that Hamed ‘Amar who didn’t serve in the twenty-first Knesset would return to serve in the twenty-second cadence ‘Amar succeeded to convince many voters that he would personally fight against the Nation-State Law – which he did – and that they should vote for him despite his party He partially succeeded and his party received 18.8 of the Druze vote the party won 75 percent of the Druze votes the party won more votes than any other party of which three of its members have served as Chief of Staff for the Israeli Defense Forces caught the attention of the Druze because many of them recognize its leadership because of their service in the army The party expressed opposition to the Nation-State Law in its current platform and thereby stirred hope that the Druze would gain recognition as equal citizens through the law’s repeal the party’s commitment to the law in principle to amend it and include within it values of equality slightly hampered Druze motivation to vote for it The Druze had hoped for the law’s repeal and not merely its amendment while the commitment to equality on part of the Blue-White party referred exclusively to individual civil equality and not collective rights many Druze (as well as Jews of Arab origin) were affected by the nullification of the Arab language’s status as an official state language the Arabic language is the Druze population’s language of worship The forum of Druze military commanders had hoped that Blue-White’s list would include a Druze commander party leader Gantz chose the well-known and outspoken journalist With this move he signaled that he is not obligated to his friends in the military but to the advancement of the Druze and to making meaningful changes in their community such as advancing a woman (such as Kamal Mreih) to a leadership position the party won 36 percent of the Druze vote and in the twenty-second elections (after Meretz weakened) Blue-White’s support in the Druze sector grew to about half (47.8 percent) In Daliyat al-Karmel the party won 78.1 percent of votes The Likud: Although the Likud is in power and although its representative Ayoob Kara was a deputy minister and later a minister In the twentieth Knesset elections it won only 7.8 percent of Druze votes (as a comparison the brand new Kulanu party won 18.4 percent) where Druze businessman Saher Ismail had been appointed adviser to Gideon Saar the party received 11.1 percent of the Druze vote making it the fourth strongest party in the sector The Likud’s power rose due to the mobilization of Yarka whose resident was given a realistic placement on their list and the mobilization of the town’s neighbor The Likud retained its strength in the twenty-second Knesset elections (9.6 percent) even though it led the Nation-State Law and its Druze minister The reasons for the weakening of the Likud are its advancement of the Nation-State Law and of Druze party members who were not perceived as representatives with concern for the interests of their community Meretz: This party had historically received only one to two percent of the Druze vote it initiated two important actions in the twenty-first election campaign that increased its power it raised the flag for abolishing the Nation-State Law it placed an appropriate Druze candidate on a realistic position on its list These moves led Meretz to win 15.8 percent of the Druze vote and win 64.8 percent of the vote in its Druze candidate’s hometown of Beit Ja’an its popularity in the Druze sector shrank to 3.2 percent of the vote Shas: While its quite clear that there is no connection between the Shas party and the Druze population the party nevertheless receives a fair amount of its votes and the party earned a similar portion of votes in the twenty-first and twenty-second elections – 4.4 and 4 percent Shas won considerable support from Druze in the past due to the mobilization of clans from Yarka however their power has shrunk by half at present The party recruits votes through appointments at the Ministry of the Interior and therefor has relatively large power in Ma’ar and Abu Sinan where Druze from these communities (both formerly high-ranked commanders in the army) were given executive appointments when the Ministry of the Interior was under Shas’ control Conclusion In conclusion the Nation-State Law didn’t cause substantial changes in Druze voting trends They continued to vote according to classic codes: preference for parties currently in power or with the potential to be in power; preference for parties at the heart of Israeli consensus and of course preference for fellow villagers and family members even when a party itself works against the interest of the Druze (as in the case of the Nation-State Law) or doesn’t advance any initiatives on their behalf people voted for parties with no interest whatsoever in the Druze and 616 for Oren Hazzan (approximately one quarter of voters in the town of Yanuh-Jat) These votes demonstrate the weakening of the Druze and not only from an electoral standpoint; the Druze are an especially small minority its electorate is dispersed in an inefficient manner and uneducated in effective political strategies agreeing to give their votes for the advancement of short-term personal or family gain the Druze have not nurtured any party loyalties found themselves to be the odd man out or even wholly alienated from mainstream political ideologies in Israel The following figures reflect the distribution of the Druze vote for the Knesset (Figure 1 - above) and the distribution of votes in selected villages “The Consequences of the Nation-State Law: Violence Against Arab Citizens is Rising” [Hebrew] The Challenge of the Strengthening of Right-Wing Parties and Immigrant Parties Among the Druze [Hebrew] “Motivations of the Druze in Knesset Elections” [Hebrew] and Local Authority in the Arab and Druze Localities in Israel Tel Aviv: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies "Representation and De-Legitimation in Semi-Democratic Regimes: The Case of the Arab Citizens in Israel," Sociology and Anthropology Central Bureau of Statistics (2016). “Local Councils: Socio-Economic Rankings 2016.” Central Election Committee for Knesset (2019) “The Druze Population in Israel: A Collection of Statistics in Honor of the Pilgrimage of Nabi Shoa’ib” [Hebrew] “Lieberman on the Confrontations in Wadi Ara: Residents of the Area Should be Boycotted” [Hebrew] 19 Indictments: Everything You Need to Know About the Investigations of Israel Beitenu” [Hebrew] “Defense Minister of 78% of Israel” [Hebrew] Salim Brake is a lecturer of Political Science at the Open University and at Yazreel Valley College His research specializations are Israeli-Palestinian relations and Arab and Druze politics in Israel His recent publications include: The Arabs in Mixed Cities: Comparing Political Aspects [Hebrew] He is currently working on two forthcoming books: Characteristics of Knesset Members and the Relationship Between their Function and Results; and The Druze Community in Israel: Social and Political Aspects a book which is part of a comprehensive study of the Druze in the Middle East entitled Border Minorities in the Middle East: The Druze as a Case Study (Routledge) [1] Central Bureau of Statistics [2] Central Bureau of Statistics [3] From 1,780 citizens with the right to vote 314 (17%) of them voted in the twenty-first Knesset elections The breakdown by party is as follows: Blue-White – 117; Likud – 96; Kulanu – 25; Meretz – 23 377 (20%) voted in the twenty-second Knesset elections: Blue-White – 151; Likud – 102; Israel Beitenu – 19; Meretz – 6 [4] All data was taken from the Central Election Committee for Knesset’s website [5] Between the two election campaigns and even Druze lawmakers who petitioned to repeal the law began to make unsolicited statements especially in light of the Likud's success in the twenty-first Knesset elections [6]  Those interested in the Druze vote should see: Brake [7] For more information on this topic see: Brake [8] For more information on conditional state appointments and services in voting see: Brake [9] “Lieberman: We will remove the heads of those who are against us with an ax,” News 2 [10] In just one of many examples Lieberman declared there is no reason for Arabs to be citizens of Israel [11] Since joining politics Avigdor Lieberman has been investigated by the police for various matters his acquittal was owing to the statute of limitations that resulted from the unreasonable lengthening of the Attorney General’s handling of the matter and from the refusal of witnesses to testify as well as the disappearance of some For more information on this subject see: Alef is one the most corrupted parties in Israel in terms of the number of incidences and scope of corruption [12] The Election Committee data referred to herein represents numbers taken from predominantly Druze localities but not Druze votes from mixed villages and cities TRT Müzik will be broadcasting the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 from Istanbul on October 20 The Turkish broadcaster TRT will broadcast the 12th ABU TV Song Festival on TRT Müzik The channel has aired the ABU TV Song Festival for viewers in Turkey since the country debuted in 2014 this year it will be airing the contest from 19:00 CEST on Sunday evening The 2024 event is set to be held 2 hours before the show is broadcast on television Image Source: ABU | Source: TRT started his career in the United States as a busboy cleaning tables and washing dishes in an Arab restaurant in Dearborn – bussing is one of the jobs practiced by many immigrants to the United States considering that when they arrive they lack the educational qualifications and linguistic skills What distinguishes the story of Abu Sinan is that he developed his business and culinary skills and became one of the most famous Mediterranean chefs in Michigan As his career has developed he has also become an owner and partner of a chain of restaurants in the state said that immediately after his arrival he began to work as a busboy at La Shish restaurant which Through his inadvertent contact with the chefs at La Shish Abu Sinan started gradually learning to cook himself by helping the cooks cope with last minute orders; which they did not have time to prepare immediately Abu Sinan continued to work at La Shish for three years before becoming an independent cook There was one incident seemed to elevate him to the next level Abu Sinan recalled one night a customer entered the restaurant and ordered Tomato Kibbeh (a dish made primarily of tomato The chefs on duty were too busy to prepare the complex dish in a timely manner Abu Sinan took the initiative to make the dish his first formal dish in a restaurant setting He anxiously anticipated the customer’s feedback the waitress returned to the kitchen to ask who prepared the Tomato Kibbeh: all chefs denied their involvement expecting the worst the feedback was extremely positive: the customers were so impressed with the dish that they gave $10 tip and expressed how delicious the dish was As for the start of his business career as a restaurant chain owner and manager Abu Sinan said that he began a business partnership with Abu Fahd Obeid founding and launching Royal Kebab Restaurant in Taylor This venture quickly achieved tangible success and made him think about expansion He then opened another restaurant in Hamtramck Malek Al-Kebab (King of the Kebabs Restaurant) Abu Sinan entered into a partnership at La Palma Restaurant with Dr Mohammed Sahobah located in flourishing midtown Detroit Now preparations are in full swing to open a new restaurant in Dearborn Abu Sinan intends to stylize this new restaurant in a unique way making it the first restaurant to serve such dishes under one roof in the city It seems that the success of the Abu Sinan did not come out of the blue especially new immigrants who are unable to find jobs easily Abdo Al-Ashwal expressed his gratitude to Abu Sinan for helping him get a temporary job without even being acquainted with him works at La Palma emphasizing that Abu Sinan is someone of a special high quality he respects everyone and is successful in all aspects of his business Abu Sinan treats everyone as a friend and thus is highly respected by his employees as well Abu Sinan is grateful to everyone who helped him and stood by him especially his employees and business partners stressing that he and his partners see themselves as one big family one of the secrets to the success they have achieved together © 2020 YemeniAmerican.com Dolan of New York is presently safe in Jerusalem amid Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel where air raid sirens in the late hours of April 13 alerted the country to incoming drones and missiles communications director for the Archdiocese of New York who is accompanying the cardinal on the scheduled April 12-18 trip to Israel and Palestine reported the delegation’s status to OSV News in Jerusalem in the early morning hours April 14 The cardinal is making this pastoral visit in his role as chairman of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association which supports the Catholic Church in the Middle East The visit marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Pontifical Mission for Palestine established by Pope Pius XII in 1949 and placed since its inception under the administration of CNEWA Israel’s military reported that Iran launched more than 200 attack drones cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israel overnight April 13-14 Most were intercepted before they could reach Israel’s airspace The Associated Press reported Iran’s attacks injured at least one person — a young Bedouin child — in southern Israel and also caused damage to a military base Iran’s bombardment was in retaliation for an April 1 airstrike in Syria that killed two Iranian generals in an Iranian consulate but Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility In a video posted to social media earlier in the day April 13 by The Good Newsroom the New York Archdiocese’s media outlet Cardinal Dolan walked in sunglasses through a walled street in Jerusalem as he described his first 24 hours there cheerfully wishing viewers a “peaceful Sabbath,” explaining that it was Saturday “We’re off to a great start.” the cardinal said he spent Friday evening sharing a Sabbath dinner with two rabbis and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa He noted he was on his way to visit with Cardinal Pizzaballa again would celebrate a Mass for CNEWA and then attend a luncheon Cardinal Dolan said CNEWA is “giving tremendous humanitarian and pastoral aid to the church in this sacred soil And they don’t ask for baptismal certificates who serves as president of both CNEWA and the Pontifical Mission to Palestine is accompanying Cardinal Dolan on the pastoral visit The trip was planned prior to Hamas’ Oct surprise attack on Israel — coinciding with a Sabbath and Jewish holiday — on some 22 locations pounding the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and launching a ground invasion The war’s casualties include at least 1,139 people killed in Israel and more than 33,600 people killed in Gaza and another 460 people killed in the West Bank Hamas continues to hold some 130 Israeli hostages in Gaza In an interview with OSV News published April 4 CNEWA communications director Michael La Civita said Cardinal Dolan did not plan to visit the Gaza Strip but planned to meet with hostages’ families “The church always has to keep open the windows to dialogue,” said La Civita “The cardinal is going there as the chair to be that instrument that symbol of showing another way … so that we hopefully have a just peace.” especially after seven humanitarian aid workers were killed by an Israeli missile strike in Gaza April 1 La Civita said the delegation was undeterred “This is where you have to have faith that we will be protected by the Lord through the intercession of the Blessed Mother.” Maria Wiering is senior writer for OSV News Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla has held a bilateral discussion session with Song Yu Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) Chairman; Samir Raslan the Ministry’s Undersecretary for Exploration and Agreements The meeting discussed the company’s current activities in Egypt which operates under the name United Energy after the latter acquired it in March The Minister praised the progress witnessed by the company’s projects in Egypt in the areas of Borg Al Arab and Western Wadi El Natrun in the Western Desert as well as the partnership with Enap Sipetrol in the area of East Ras Qattara in addition to the service agreement with the General Petroleum Company in several development areas in the Eastern Desert El Molla has also shed the lights on the efforts to accelerate the start of the exploration program in West of Wadi El-Natroun and highlighted the company’s eagerness to expand its exploratory activities through the announced international bid rounds Sarah has been writing in the oil and gas field for 8 years She has a Bachelor Degree in English Literature She has three years of experience in the banking sector Get all latest content delivered to your email a few times a month Learn how to describe the purpose of the image (opens in a new tab) Leave empty if the image is purely decorative ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " The ABU TV Song Festival 2025 looks likely to be held in Mongolia, with the announcement of the next General Assembly hosts. The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union has announced that Mongolia will be the hosts of the 2025 ABU General Assembly.… The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union has discussed opening the ABU TV Song Festival up to its radio only members. The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union General Assembly is underway in Istanbul, Turkey. As part of the General Assembly the Programme Committee met yesterday… Khai Bahar will be performing his debut single “Bayang” on stage this evening at the ABU TV Song Festival 2024. The Malaysian representative Khai Bahar will be performing “Bayang” for audiences across the Asia-Pacific region this evening at the ABU… Tonight the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 takes place in Istanbul, Turkey with eleven countries represented. The 13th edition of the ABU TV Song Festival is this evening in Istanbul, Turkey. The event is returning to Turkey and Istanbul for… Silet Open Up will represent Indonesia at the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 in Istanbul, Turkey with “Kaka Main Salah”. Speaking to Eurovoix World, Silet Open Up has revealed the song he will be performing at the ABU TV Song… The eleven artists participating in the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 have arrived in the host city of Istanbul. The artists taking part in the 12th edition of the ABU TV Song Festival in Turkey have arrived ahead of this… TRT Müzik will be broadcasting the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 from Istanbul on October 20. The Turkish broadcaster TRT will broadcast the 12th ABU TV Song Festival on TRT Müzik. The channel has aired the ABU TV Song Festival… Ahead of the ABU TV Song Festival, Sinan Akçıl has discussed his selection and the song he will perform in Istanbul. Sinan Akçıl has revealed new details of his performance in next weeks ABU TV Song Festival which is being… Shan Yichun has been announced as the Chinese representative for the ABU TV Song Festival 2024 in Istanbul, Turkey. 23-year-old Shan Yichun will be representing China at this year’s ABU TV Song Festival in Turkey. Shan is best known as… The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union has revealed the line-up of participating countries and artists in the ABU TV Song Festival 2024. The broadcasters and artists participating in the 13th edition of the ABU TV Song Festival in Istanbul, Turkey have been… TDM the public broadcaster of Macau has confirmed to Eurovoix World it is discussing ABU TV Song Festival 2024 participation. Teledifusão de Macau has confirmed to Eurovoix World that it is currently discussing whether it will be participating in the… SBS has confirmed to Eurovoix World that it will not be participating in the ABU TV Song Festival 2024. The Australian broadcaster SBS has confirmed that it will not be returning to the ABU TV Song Festival this year in… MedaiCorp has confirmed to Eurovoix World that they will not be participating in the ABU TV Song Festival 2024. Singapore will not be returning to the ABU TV Song Festival in Istanbul, Turkey, later this year. Singapore has participated twice… The ABU TV Song Festival 2024 is set to take place on October 20 in Istanbul, Türkiye. The 13th edition of the ABU TV Song Festival will take place this October in Istanbul, Türkiye hosted by the Turkish public broadcaster… Eurovoix World takes a look ahead at all of the song contests and events that we will be covering during 2024. Viña del Mar International Song Festival 2024 – February 25 to March 1 The 63rd edition of the Viña… Reporting by Sinan Abu Mayzer and Zainah El-Haroun Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab , opens new tab Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. , opens new tabScreen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. © 2025 Reuters. All rights reserved more hopeful era to be a site for the parliament of the Palestinian Authority.That hall now lies abandoned and disused after the breakdown of the Oslo peace process and the outbreak of the second Palestinian Intifada Palestinians in Abu Dis have been cut off from Jerusalem neighbourhoods to the west by a high concrete wall that Israel built to stop suicide bombers and gunmen entering the city.Students at a nearby university have used the wall as a backdrop to project movies during warm summer nights when they sit outside.The White House document accompanying the U.S plan's release said the barrier should "serve as a border between the capitals of the two parties."It said Jerusalem should "remain the sovereign capital of the State of Israel and it should remain an undivided city."It continued: "The sovereign capital of the State of Palestine should be in the section of East Jerusalem located in all areas east and north of the existing security barrier and could be named Al Quds or another name as determined by the State of Palestine."HOLY SITESThat would leave within Israel's control the hill at the heart of the Old City known to Jews as Har ha-Bayit or The Noble Sanctuary.The holiest place in Judaism it was home to the Jewish temples of antiquity and its restraining wall built by Herod the Great - known as the Western Wall - is a sacred place of prayer for Jews.Atop the plateau are two imposing Muslim holy places the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque Muslims regard the site as the third holiest in Islam after Mecca and Medina.It is this compound that Palestinians seek as part of the capital of a future state and to which Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was referring when he said it was "impossible for any Palestinian Muslim or Christian child to accept" a state without Jerusalem.The day after the Trump plan identified Abu Dis as a potential capital residents were scornful of the notion.Mohammed Faroun said: "The capital of Palestine is Jerusalem."Another resident Islamic and Arab."Additional reporting by Sinan Abu Mayzer in Abu Dis a Hamas spokesperson urged "all fronts to unite and confront the escalation by the arrogant (Israeli) occupation."HOLIDAY CLOSUREThe Israeli military said that in light of the security situation it would extend a closure on the West Bank and Gaza until April 13 two Israeli sisters from a settlement in the occupied West Bank were killed when their car came under fire by suspected Palestinian gunmen an Italian tourist was killed when a car driven by a man from an Arab city in Israel ploughed into a group in a shoreline park in Tel Aviv.The funeral of the two sisters who had dual Israeli and British nationality is due to be held later on Sunday.After a year of escalating Israeli-Palestinian violence tensions are running especially high as Ramadan and Passover coincide with a focus on the Al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem's walled Old City Clashes there between police and worshippers helped spark a 10-day war Israel-Gaza war in 2021.As in previous years the government is expected to ban entry to the compound to non-Muslims for the last 10 days of Ramadan which is expected to end on April 20 or 21 though far-right Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for the ban not to be imposed this year.Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi and Maayan Lubell; Writing by James Mackenzie and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Toby Chopra Reporting by Steven Scheer and Ari Rabinovich; Editing by Toby Chopra This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. Nidal al-Mughrabi and Maayan Lubell; Editing by Kim Coghill Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders Complete digital access to quality analysis and expert insights complemented with our award-winning Weekend Print edition Terms & Conditions apply Discover all the plans currently available in your country See why over a million readers pay to read the Financial Times Sinan Al Awsi wins high praise for turning area near his home into verdant paradise shrubs and flowering plants enough for them to thrive in a desert clime requires devotion That’s why social media users have admired Sinan Al Awsi for his incredible accomplishment of planting 200 trees in his district here who has lived in the United Arab Emirates since 1999 worked tirelessly for seven years to turn Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street Al Awsi painstakingly planted 105 coconut trees and more than 80 flowers throughout this time embellishing a 500-meter length with colorful vegetation This remarkable undertaking was motivated by his desire to improve his area Al Awsi acquired a lorryload of specially selected dirt and painstakingly planted each tree to realize his vision “The Abu Dhabi Municipality has been incredibly supportive granting me permission to extend my tree-planting efforts,” he expressed gratefully Al Awsi’s exceptional dedication caught the attention of UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan The esteemed recognition Al Awsi received during his meeting with Sheikh Mohamed at Qasr Al Bahr filled him with overwhelming joy and pride “Sheikh Mohamed’s reception was a medal on my chest and a great honour that cannot be summarized in a few lines I am immensely grateful to President Sheikh Mohamed for acknowledging my initiative I am proud to contribute to the ecosystem and sustainability of Abu Dhabi known for his involvement in prominent engineering projects such as the Sheikh Zayed Bridge devoting countless hours to nurture and care for the trees he planted Al Awsi explained that his initiative to plant and maintain trees was his way of expressing gratitude to the UAE which has welcomed and supported him and his family for the past 24 years His efforts focused on a 500-metre stretch of Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Street This green transformation included a remarkable selection of 105 coconut trees known for their low maintenance requirements and self-cleaning capabilities boasting captivating colors and fragrant aromas he adorned the front of his building with 30 trees of different varieties Caring for the trees became an integral part of Al Awsi’s daily routine dedicating two hours each day—one in the morning before work and another in the afternoon after work He revealed that the most labor-intensive tasks were typically reserved for Fridays The tree-planting initiative took place in two phases The first phase commenced in 2005 but had to be paused in 2012 due to housing and workplace-related reasons Al Awsi highlighted their effortless maintenance “Coconut trees naturally cleanse themselves requiring minimal intervention apart from regular irrigation and leaf removal date palms require cleaning four times a year not to mention the additional tasks of pollination and harvesting,” he explained Al Awsi graduated from the University of Baghdad with a degree in Civil Engineering His passion for agriculture developed during his childhood He currently resides in Abu Dhabi with his wife One of his daughters holds a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering Al Awsi’s son is pursuing dentistry studies in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah Al Awsi has contributed to various private sector companies as a road and bridge consulting engineer Notable projects under his belt include the iconic Sheikh Zayed Bridge and maintenance work on several bridges within Abu Dhabi Island Sinan Al Awsi’s remarkable accomplishment stands as a testament to his dedication and love for his second homeland His green oasis on Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Street serves as a shining example of individual initiative and commitment to the environment Get the latest news and updates straight to your inbox Watch: Expats since 1960s leave Dubai home of 48 years Video: Tears and joy as nurses gifted SUVs in Abu Dhabi Police honour 8-year-old girl for returning Dh17,000 This article was published more than 1 year ago Palestinians walk past stalls set up in a street in Rafah as Muslims prepare for the holy fasting month of Ramadan amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.MOHAMMED ABED/Getty Images Palestinians prepared for Ramadan in sombre mood with heightened security measures by Israeli police and the spectre of war and hunger in Gaza overshadowing the normally festive Muslim holy month as talks to secure a ceasefire stalled Thousands of police have been deployed around the narrow streets of the Old City in Jerusalem where tens of thousands of worshippers are expected every day at the Al Aqsa mosque compound considered the most sacred place by Jews who know it as Temple Mount has been a long-standing flashpoint for trouble and was one of the starting points of the last war in 2021 between Israel and Hamas U.S. dispatches aid ship to Gaza after Biden vows to build pier That 10-day conflict has been dwarfed by the current war 7 when thousands of Hamas fighters stormed into Israel Israel’s relentless campaign in Gaza has drawn increasing alarm across the world as the growing risk of famine threatens to add to a death toll that has already passed 31,000 After some confusion last month when hard-right Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said he wanted restrictions on worshippers at Al Aqsa Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the numbers admitted would be similar to last year “This is our mosque and we must take care of it,” said Azzam Al-Khatib the religious foundation that oversees Al Aqsa “We must protect the presence of Muslims at this mosque who should be able to enter in big numbers peacefully and safely.” Ramadan will begin on Monday or Tuesday of this week the usual decorations around the Old City have not been put up and there was a similar sombre tone in towns across the occupied West Bank where around 400 Palestinians have been killed in clashes with security forces or Jewish settlers since the start of the war “We decided this year that the Old City of Jerusalem won’t be decorated out of respect for the blood of our children and the elders and the martyrs,” said Ammar Sider Police said they were working to ensure a peaceful Ramadan and had taken extra measures to crack down on what they described as provocative and distorted information on social media networks and had arrested 20 people suspected of incitement to terrorism “The Israel Police will continue to act and allow for the observance of Ramadan prayers safely on the Temple Mount while maintaining security and safety in the area,” police said in a statement Israel’s policing of Al Aqsa has long been among the most bitterly resented issues and last month Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called on Palestinians to march to the mosque at the start of Ramadan clashes that erupted when police entered the mosque compound drew condemnation from the Arab League as well as Saudi Arabia with which Israel had been seeking to normalize diplomatic ties extending its push to build ties with regional powers including the United Arab Emirates which would have allowed Ramadan to pass peacefully and enabled the return of at least some of the 134 Israeli hostages held in Gaza where half the 2.3 million population is squeezed into the southern city of Rafah many living under plastic tents and facing a severe shortage of food “We made no preparations to welcome Ramadan because we have been fasting for five months now,” said Maha who would normally have filled her home with decorations and stocked her refrigerator with supplies for the evening Iftar celebrations when people break their fast most of the food items are being sold for imaginary high prices,” she said via chat app from Rafah which has seen record violence for more than two years and a further surge since the war in Gaza Tulkarm or Nablus braced for further clashes fears of car ramming or stabbing attacks by Palestinians have also led to heightened security preparations there is little alternative but to hope for peace “Ramadan is a blessed month despite the fact this year is not like every year and we will welcome the month of Ramadan as usual hopefully all the destruction and the siege in Gaza will change and all will come back in a better condition.” Report an editorial error Report a technical issue Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s comment community. 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For more information on our commenting policies and how our community-based moderation works, please read our Community Guidelines and our Terms and Conditions Sharjah: The Department of Islamic Affairs in Sharjah has inaugurated seven new mosques of various sizes and architectural styles in the emirate The new mosques are located in different regions of the emirate’s cities including three mosques in the city of Sharjah This comes as part of the department’s preparations for Ramadan and to facilitate the access of the emirate’s residents to places of worship and perform rituals with ease the department inaugurated the Al Amin Mosque which was built according to the modern architectural style mixed with the Islamic design next to the Sharjah Driving and Training Institute The opening was attended by Major General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi and a number of Islamic Affairs and Driving Institute officials The department also inaugurated the Saad bin Malik Mosque in the Al Raqiba 7 area of the Al Suyuh suburb which was built according to the Islamic architectural style mixed with the modern design 55 of which are for the women’s prayer room In the Kishisha 4 area of the Rahmaniyah suburb the department inaugurated the Abu Sinan bin Muhsin Mosque the department opened the Mosque of the scholar Muhammad bin Ali Al Shawkani Meanwhile the new Abu Amer Al-Ash’ari mosque is located in the Hamriyah region west the department opened in Al Hosn 1 area in the city of Al Dhaid while Abdullah Bin Wahb Mosque in the Southern Al Burier area can accommodate 220 worshipers The two mosques were built according to the Islamic style Abdullah Al Sabousi praised the efforts of all the workers who did their utmost to complete the opening of mosques before Ramadan pointing out that these mosques come within the department’s programme to welcome the month of Ramadan as consultants and contractors were directed to expedite the completion of mosque construction works UAQ’s LuxeGlamp promotes sustainable eco-tourism Dubai: RTA renames UAE Exchange Metro Station Construction Week Online Home » Business » Qatar set for more solar power recharge stations Qatar’s public parks are set to receive additional mobile phone solar charging stations Ras Laffan Industrial City’s Community Outreach Programme (RLIC-COP) has offered support to Al Shamal Municipality to install solar-powered charging stations for mobile phones in three public parks of Al Shamal Area The additonal 10 solar-powered charging stations will soon be set up in Al Ruwais The solar-powered mobile charging station is called the ‘Solar Multi-Function Charging Tree’ with each having two light poles which can provide eight hours of continuous lighting Nearby beaches in Abu Dhalouf and Al Ruwais will also offer 34 shaded areas with solar lights The project is part of Al Shamal Municipality’s environment preservation efforts and sustainability development initiatives RLIC-COP offers support enterprises that benefit the local community in Al Khor and Northern Areas of Qatar The initiative was established by the seven leading energy companies operating in Ras Laffan Industrial City: Qatar Petroleum Qatargas is managing the project on behalf of the RLIC-COP and Qatargas public relations manager Azzam Abdul Aziz al-Mannai described the initiative as a commendable step in line with the objectives of the Qatar National Vision 2030 Yemen's longtime ruler told tens of thousands of supporters Friday that he's ready to step down but only if he can leave the country in "safe hands," while anti-government protesters massed for a rival rally Ali Abdullah Saleh spoke in a rare appearance before a cheering crowd outside his presidential palace in the Yemeni capital Friday on a day of dueling demonstrations an even larger number converged on a square chanting slogans calling for his ouster and waving red cards emblazoned with the word "leave" despite fears of more violence a week after government security forces shot dead more than 40 demonstrators in Sanaa The bloodshed last Friday prompted a wave of defections by military commanders swelling the ranks of the opposition and leaving the president isolated Saleh also imposed a state of emergency that allows media censorship search homes and arrest and detain suspects without judicial process who has held power for more than three decades has repeatedly sought to appease the protesters to no avail we don't want power but we need to hand it over to trustful hands collaborator hands," Saleh told his supporters who carried pictures of the president and signs reading "No to terrorism!" but we want to do it properly and at the hands of our people who should choose their leaders," he said calling the opposition a small minority of drug dealers Security forces parked tanks and military vehicles close to the palace and beefed up their presence around Saleh's ruling party building and the interior ministry Saleh's forces tried to prevent more anti-government demonstrators from entering Sanaa Troops manning checkpoints on roads leading to the capital searched cars but soldiers told us that the capital was closed," said al-Hawlani whose tribe has joined anti-Saleh protests "They said we could come after the protests end." Protesters who had called for a million people to gather in Sanaa on Friday -- the holiest day of the Muslim week where believers traditionally congregate in mosques -- also stepped up security around the downtown square where they have held demonstrations for weeks Pro-demonstrator forces patrolled the square clutching assault rifles and searching people trying to enter the square with prayer mats tossed over their shoulders for noontime prayers "We are trying to gather as many people as possible here He needs more pressure to leave," said demonstrator Magid Abbas Saleh is already under a great deal of pressure diplomats and provincial governors jumped ship and sided with protesters Yemen's hardened opposition turned down Saleh's offer to step down by the end of the year Instead they demanded he leave immediately and called for constitutional change that would limit presidential terms Reproduction of material from any Salon pages without written permission is strictly prohibited Patent and Trademark Office as a trademark of Salon.com Associated Press articles: Copyright © 2016 The Associated Press