The Lebanese city of Nabatieh is beginning to bustle again after months of devastating attacks by the Israeli military, even as the sound of distant explosions serves as a reminder of the continuing presence of Israeli troops in southern Lebanon.
The main city of the Nabatieh governorate is one of the major commercial centres in the south, ringed by about 40 villages and with roads leading into Lebanon’s mountains and the Mediterranean coast.
The ancient souq in the city centre is now barely recognisable, such is the level of destruction in the area. In October, as Israel stepped up attacks on targets it claimed to be linked to the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, an air strike destroyed the municipal headquarters as a meeting to discuss aid distribution was being convened, killing 16 people including the mayor.
About 85 per cent of Nabatieh’s buildings – from homes to offices and banks – were destroyed, according to Mohammad Jaber, a representative of the local traders’ association, as well as about 300 businesses in city and the adjoining district of Kfarjoz.
“The partial destruction is massive and much larger than that,” he said, speaking to The National outside his jewellery shop in the souq, which appeared to have escaped unscathed and was busy with customers.
“We experienced a devastating, catastrophic, barbaric war during which many areas were destroyed, but Nabatieh was the most severely hit.”
One of the businesses in the souq that did not escape the bombing is the Falafel Al Arnaout restaurant, which is littered with debris, covered in dust and still without power supply.
The owner Ali Arnaout said the recipes he used were passed down from his grandfather, who arrived from Palestine a century ago, to his father and then on to him.
“Look, this says 'from Palestine to Nabatieh'," Mr Arnaout said, holding a charred sign at the back of the room. “Magazines and newspapers used to write about us, but everything is [now] destroyed," he said of the restaurant, which is more than 100 years old.
“In 2006, I had a store near Al Qard Al Hassan and it was destroyed,” he said, referring to the previous war between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. Branches of Al Qard Al Hassan, a financial institution linked to Hezbollah, were targeted repeatedly by Israel in the latest war, which is currently paused by an extremely tenuous ceasefire.
Mr Arnaout said he was looking for a new place to open but he also wants to restore the ruined Falafel Al Arnaout premises.
Excavators began clearing the city of rubble after Israel and Hezbollah agreed to the truce in late November. But the fate of the ceasefire is in the balance, as each side accuses the other of breaching conditions of the agreement. Israel has carried on with its extensive demolition of border villages and continues to carry out sporadic air strikes. Hezbollah was supposed to withdraw to north of the Litani river, about 30km from the Israel border, and Israeli troops were required to pull out of southern Lebanon within a 60-day period ending on January 26.
Despite the devastation and hundreds of deaths caused by Israel’s attacks, signs that Nabatieh was an important support base of Hezbollah remain.The group’s yellow flags can be seen flapping in the January wind, while pictures of its long-time leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed by Israel in late September, and his expected successor Hashem Safieddine, killed the following month, are plastered across the city.
“Nabatieh is recovering and hopefully it will get better,” said municipality official Hassan Jaber, who now operates from a room in the souq that overlooks a square strewn with rubble.
He said about 90 per cent of shops outside the souq have reopened, while the popular weekly Monday market in the souq resumed this month and was busy this week. The exact scale of damage in the souq, which was almost completely destroyed by Israel, is yet to assessed.
“All the rubble is being removed and there will be reconstruction," Mr Jaber said. "It will certainly take time, not just a couple days – rather a year or two – but hopefully it will further recover."
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
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Studying addiction
This month, Dubai Medical College launched the Middle East’s first master's programme in addiction science.
Together with the Erada Centre for Treatment and Rehabilitation, the college offers a two-year master’s course as well as a one-year diploma in the same subject.
The move was announced earlier this year and is part of a new drive to combat drug abuse and increase the region’s capacity for treating drug addiction.
The five pillars of Islam
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The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Jiu-jitsu calendar of events for 2017-2018:
August 5:
Round-1 of the President’s Cup in Al Ain.
August 11-13:
Asian Championship in Vietnam.
September 8-9:
Ajman International.
September 16-17
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, Ashgabat.
September 22-24:
IJJF Balkan Junior Open, Montenegro.
September 23-24:
Grand Slam Los Angeles.
September 29:
Round-1 Mother of The Nation Cup.
October 13-14:
Al Ain U18 International.
September 20-21:
Al Ain International.
November 3:
Round-2 Mother of The National Cup.
November 4:
Round-2 President’s Cup.
November 10-12:
Grand Slam Rio de Janeiro.
November 24-26:
World Championship, Columbia.
November 30:
World Beach Championship, Columbia.
December 8-9:
Dubai International.
December 23:
Round-3 President’s Cup, Sharjah.
January 12-13:
Grand Slam Abu Dhabi.
January 26-27:
Fujairah International.
February 3:
Round-4 President’s Cup, Al Dhafra.
February 16-17:
Ras Al Khaimah International.
February 23-24:
The Challenge Championship.
March 10-11:
Grand Slam London.
March 16:
Final Round – Mother of The Nation.
March 17:
Final Round – President’s Cup.
A German university was a good fit for the family budget
Annual fees for the Technical University of Munich - £600
Shared rental accommodation per month depending on the location ranges between £200-600
The family had budgeted for food, books, travel, living expenses - £20,000 annually
Overall costs in Germany are lower than the family estimated
As proof that the student has the ability to take care of expenses, international students must open a blocked account with about £8,640
Students are permitted to withdraw £720 per month
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company%20Profile
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How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
Challenge Cup result:
1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults
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