Pro-Palestinian campaigners took the Dutch state to court on Friday as they argued that it has failed to prevent genocide in Gaza by maintaining military ties with Israel and failing to end all business investments in the occupied Palestinian territories.
"States with unique leverage have a unique responsibility to prevent genocide and not to wait for it to happen," legal adviser to Palestinian NGO Al Haq, Ahmad Abofoul, told the court in The Hague.
Addressing presiding judge Sonja Hoekstra van Vliet, Mr Abofoul said: "You have the opportunity to contribute to stopping this because the Dutch government's involvement in this is sustaining the situation - not only genocide [but also] the longest occupation in history."
Lawyers speaking on behalf of the Dutch state told the court that they rejected such claims and described the NGOs' case as vague and unfounded. NGOs argue that the Netherlands is required under the Geneva Conventions to ensure respect for international humanitarian law.
Ms Hoekstra van Vliet opened the session by stating that the situation in Palestine was "very severe" and "very sensitive". She said that both the defendants and the plaintiffs recognised the illegality of the Israeli occupation. "The question is: what is legally happening today, and what can you expect from the [Dutch] state?" asked Ms Hoekstra.
The presiding judge repeatedly pushed lawyer Wout Albers, who represented the NGOs, to clarify whether they were asking that the Netherlands should stop exporting all types of weapons, including defensive weapons, to Israel, or just offensive weapons. "When there is a risk of genocide...all means need to be applied," said Mr Albers, who cited exports of warship components, radar systems, and F-16 parts that he said had been used on Gaza.
The International Court of Justice found in January that it was "plausible" that Israel was committing a genocide in Gaza – a finding that is often heard among pro-Palestinian circles but is rejected by Israel. It was also echoed by the Dutch state's lawyer, Veldhuis van Asperen, who said: "I do think it's good to nuance that it hasn't been established that genocide is likely."
'Discouragement policy' in occupied territories
Mr van Asperen opened his statement by highlighting the "complexity of the foreign policy of the Dutch state," and rejecting claims by NGOs that the "Dutch state one-sidedly supports Israel" by pointing at its stated support of a two-state solution.
He also argued that the Dutch state had a comprehensive review process of its weapons exports and that courts cannot tell the state what foreign policy to adopt. This argument has also been put forward by the state in a separate court case in the Netherlands that has temporarily blocked exports of F-35s parts to Israel.
Terminating all business ties with the occupied territories would contravene EU trade law, added Mr van Asperen, who said the Dutch state had a "discouragement policy" regarding investments there. Ireland, also an EU country, has set a precedent by amending its laws to abide by an ICJ opinion issued in July that says states must "take steps to prevent trade or investment relations" with those territories. "Plaintiffs didn’t mention concrete collaborations between Israel and the Netherlands that would be against international law," Mr van Asperen said.
A report published in December 2022 by Dutch NGO Pax for Peace showed that nine Dutch banks, pension funds, insurers and asset managers invested €12.5 billion euros from 2019 to August 2022 in companies involved in the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories. "This puts them at high risk of contributing to systematic human rights violations," it said.
Mr Abofoul said that Dutch citizens and public servants were at risk of being sued. "Is it enough to say: we don't recognise settlements but we allow Dutch citizens to invest there?" Mr Abofoul asked the presiding judge. "What if, in the future, there will be individual criminal responsibility for Dutch citizens in aiding an abetting a war crime - is the Dutch government exposing Dutch companies and citizens to accountability and perhaps trials?"
A verdict is expected on December 13.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
MATCH INFO
Sheffield United 2 Bournemouth 1
United: Sharp (45 2'), Lundstram (84')
Bournemouth: C Wilson (13')
Man of the Match: Jack O’Connell (Sheffield United)
Indika
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2011%20Bit%20Studios%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Odd%20Meter%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%205%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Fifa%20World%20Cup%20Qatar%202022%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFirst%20match%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2020%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%2016%20round%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%203%20to%206%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EQuarter-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%209%20and%2010%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESemi-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2013%20and%2014%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2018%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
Frida%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECarla%20Gutierrez%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Frida%20Kahlo%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The view from The National
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Blah
Started: 2018
Founder: Aliyah Al Abbar and Hend Al Marri
Based: Dubai
Industry: Technology and talent management
Initial investment: Dh20,000
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 40
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
