Day: June 20, 2023

Israeli occupation forces this evening closed the main northern entrance to Ramallah, known as the DCO checkpoint, and prevented the movement of Palestinian cars in and out of the city, said security sources. Sources told WAFA that forces shut down the DCO checkpoint in both directions, causing a heavy traffic jam. The DCO checkpoint is normally congested with Palestinians entering or leaving the de facto Palestinian capital.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

The Israeli occupation forces today issued demolition orders against three houses, a shed, and a paved road in the town of al-Karmel, in the South Hebron Hills, according to a local activist. Usama Makhamreh, an activist, said the so-called Israeli military government’s Planning and Administration Authority, accompanied by an army force, stormed an area of al-Karmel and handed demolition orders to three local residents against their houses. One order affected a 160-square-meter house that is still in the construction phase, a 70-square-meter house where seven people live, and a 100-square-meter where a family lives. The forces also handed a demolition order against an agricultural shed, as well as a recently paved road that serves the area communities.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Two Palestinian youths were shot and killed this evening at the hands of an Israeli settler and soldiers after an alleged shooting attack on the Ramallah-Nablus road, which resulted in the killing of four Israeli settlers and the injury of others. Palestinian security sources told WAFA that 26-year-old Mohannad Shehadeh, from the village of Orif to the south of Nablus, was fatally shot by an Israeli settler’s gunfire following the alleged shooting attack that took place at the entrance to the settlement of Elie, north of Ramallah. Another Palestinian, identified as Khaled Sabah, 24, also from the village of Orif, was shot and killed near Tubas after a pursuit by Israeli soldiers following the shooting attack. The Ministry of Health said Sabah’s body was riddled with bullets to the head, chest and arm. He was brought dead to a hospital in Tubas. Israel claims the two youths were involved in the shooting attack. A total of 172 Palestinians were killed in the occupied territories since the start of the year at the hands of Israeli occupation forces.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency

Foreign assets of Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) have surpassed AED574 billion at the end of April 2023 for the first time in its history.

Figures released today by the apex bank showed that the bank’s foreign assets increased monthly by 6.85 percent, from AED537.39 in March 2023 to AED574.18 billion at the end of last April.

The CBUAE’s foreign assets increased annually by 27 percent, compared to AED452.18 billion in April 2022, an increase of AED122 billion in 12 months.

The apex bank attributed the monthly increase to a 4.7 percent rise in the foreign securities held to maturity to AED158 billion at the end of April from AED150.92 billion in March, a YoY increase of 123.6 percent as compared to AED127.78 billion in April 2022.

Current account balances and deposits with banks abroad reached AED366.5 billion at the end of April, a monthly increase of 7.8 percent from AED339.98 billion in last March, with a 19 percent year-on-year increase at AED264.1 billion in April 2022.

Statistics showed that other foreign assets reached AED49,67 billion at the end of April, a month-on-month increase of 6.8 percent, from AED46.49 billion in last March.

Source: Emirates News Agency

ABU DHABI, 20th June, 2023 (WAM) — New judges of the Federal Supreme Court have taken the legal oath before President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The judges included Muhammad Ali Ali, Dawood Ibrahim Muhammad Ali Abu Al-Shawareb, Ibrahim Obaid Ali Al Ali, Miftah Salim Saad, and Hassan Muhammad Hassan. During the oath-taking ceremony, which took place at Qasr Al Bahr, His Highness the President wished the judges success in their new posts to support the rule of law, administer justice and strengthen the system of justice and equality in the country. The President stressed that these principles had been firmly established in the UAE since its inception, and were considered key pillars of its growth and development. His Highness said that the judiciary was not so much a job or a profession as a noble mission that plays a pivotal role in the progress, success and stability of societies. The new judges expressed their pride in the leadership’s confidence, stressing that the UAE was a state based on the rule of law, and that they would work with all sincerity and impartiality to adhere to this principle in their work. New UAE ambassadors taking up positions at overseas embassies were also sworn in before the President. During the oath-taking ceremony at Qasr Al Bahr, His Highness wished the new ambassadors success in their new duties, calling on them to make every effort to strengthen the UAE’s relations with the countries to which they had been appointed. He urged them to help expand the UAE’s range of interests with these countries, and serve the interest of Emirati citizens there. His Highness also called upon the ambassadors to present a positive image of the UAE and its people, in addition to building bridges of understanding with the countries of their posting. His Highness said the UAE was keen to build effective partnerships with different countries, and added that its ambassadors and representatives abroad had a great responsibility to facilitate this. The legal oath was taken by Salem Saeed Musabeh Al Mahyoubi Al Shamsi, UAEAmbassador to the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Anwar Othman Barout Salim Al Baroudi, UAE Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Salem Ali Khamis Obaid Al Shamsi, UAE Ambassador to the Republic of Angola; and Rahma Abdul Rahman Al Shamsi, UAE Ambassador to the Republic of the Maldives. The new ambassadors expressed their pride in the leadership’s confidence in choosing them to represent their country abroad, and said they would work diligently to further strengthen the UAE’s relations with the countries they had been posted to. They also said they would embody the principles of His Highness the President in advocating peace and cooperation at the regional and international levels. The oath-taking ceremony for the judges and ambassadors at Qasr Al Bahr was attended by His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court; Abdullah bin Sultan bin Awad Al Nuaimi, Minister of Justice; Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State; Khalifa Shaheen Al Marar, Minister of State; and a number of officials.

Source: Emirates News Agency

NAIROBI, 20th June, 2023 (WAM) — Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and COP28 President-Delegate, met William Ruto, President of the Republic of Kenya, along with energy ministers and leaders from other African nations, at the Africa Energy Forum in Nairobi, where he emphasised the importance of making climate finance more available, accessible, and affordable to enable countries in the continent to achieve their clean energy potential. In a joint statement with the COP28 President-Designate, President Ruto commended the UAE, its leadership and the COP28 Presidency on their long-standing support for sustainable development and climate action. Kenya and COP28 will jointly champion actions to triple installed renewable energy capacity by 2030, and will cooperate on policy and scaling finance. A joint working group has also been launched through the Africa Climate Summit and COP28 to focus on a just energy transition and unlocking climate finance to accelerate green growth in Africa. With abundant clean energy resources, including wind, solar, hydro and geothermal sources, and precious metals, Africa “has the potential to emerge as a hub for renewable energies, and a significant driver of clean growth for the world,” Dr. Al Jaber said. “But one major obstacle stands in its way. And that is a lack of available, accessible and affordable finance.” Clean energy investment in Africa represents only 2 percent of what is invested globally and less than 10 percent of the 120 billion dollars a year that is the “baseline requirement,” Dr. Al Jaber said. “We need to be candid about the issues and determined to fix them,” he stated. The COP28 President-Designate repeated calls for developed nations to meet their historic commitment of delivering US$100 billion a year in climate finance for developing nations, and reiterated the need for reform of international financial institutions (IFIs) and multilateral development banks (MDBs). “We know that the current international financial architecture is not fit for purpose. IFIs and MDBs are not distributing concessional finance anywhere near quickly enough,” he said. “Reform is urgently needed,” and if this is not possible in time, “we must explore new mechanisms for lowering risk and massively expanding the flow of private investment to build a pipeline of bankable, sustainable clean energy projects.” Harmonising standards for voluntary carbon markets could also help Africa to attract capital, while countries should also look at supportive policies and regulations to “help develop a favorable investment climate for the private sector,” the COP28 President-Designate said. Dr. Al Jaber hailed Kenya’s success in providing 80 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources. “That didn’t happen by accident,” he said. “It happened because visionary government policies combined with smart investments met practical-minded people of action.” Kenya will be a regional champion in the drive to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, he said. “Africa’s potential as a clean energy giant is massive,” Dr. Al Jaber said. “Developing that potential will require political will, visionary ambition and lots of capital. Some of this is already happening through evidence-based energy transition plans. The AFDB is spearheading innovative, blended public and private finance solutions to expand clean growth through Africa 50. And the UAE has deployed over US$12 billion in development and renewable projects across Africa through public-private partnerships.” During his meeting with President Ruto, Dr. Al Jaber discussed adaptation and mitigation efforts, including the transition to green energy and COP28’s action plan that aims to build bridges nurturing collaboration between the global north and south. The President-Designate also met with Davis Chirchir, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Energy and Petroleum, to discuss the need for accelerated partnerships on renewable energy, in the lead up to the Africa Climate Summit, taking place in Nairobi in September, and COP28. Dr. Al Jaber also attended a ministerial roundtable on the energy transition, attended by ministers from more than 15 nations, and took part in a townhall discussion with representative of youth, indigenous peoples’, and civil society. In one of his visit’s highlights, Dr. Al Jaber met young social entrepreneurs from M-KOPA, a company developing innovative financial products that are helping home-grown, clean tech businesses get off the ground.

Source: Emirates News Agency