There was a certain amount of weariness attending the preamble to United Nations peace talks on Syria, which began in Geneva today – a sort of been-there, seen-it-before sense of jadedness. Not simply because it was the eighth round of talks being held in a bid to end the nearly seven-year conflict but mainly because top of the agenda was whether Syrian government representatives would even bother turning up.
Yesterday the regime finally confirmed it would be coming tomorrow, a day after it was supposed to show. It demonstrates yet more contempt from Bashar Al Assad for his people, who are suffering intolerably while he holds sway over his country's future. All other parties are poised to reach a fair deal. Nasr Al Hariri, head of the Saudi-backed High Negotiation Committee umbrella opposition group, said it was "united and ready for real talks with the government". That is a tough pill to swallow for opposition leaders, who until recently were calling for Mr Al Assad's removal as non-negotiable. Up until they met in Riyadh a week ago, they could not see a way forward with the regime being involved in any way. Yet disparate opposition groups have managed to set aside their own differences to form a 36-member unified delegation and have come to the UN table without preconditions.
That is a huge conciliatory gesture, which has yet to be matched by the man responsible for untold suffering. The Syrian conflict has resulted in the deaths of more than 330,000 people, with millions being driven from their homes, equivalent to 40 per cent of the country. The UN has accused the Syrian government of launching sarin and chlorine attacks on its own people. The regime's barbarism has no place in the inclusive transitional government being proposed by the opposition. Yet despite their willingness to include him in talks and set aside their differences for a far more important cause – a fair deal for the Syrian people – he has not even bothered to turn up.
Mr Al Assad is not interested in looking after his people's best interests, only his own. Upholstered by Russian military enforcements and backed by the triumvirate of Russia, Iran and Turkey, which simultaneously held talks in Sochi last week attended by him, he is only interested in consolidating his power. His failure to even send representation on his behalf to the UN talks in Geneva yesterday demonstrates his sneering disregard for his critics. With 55 per cent of the country under his government's control once again, he is banking on a military solution to re-establish his regime's power, not one reached by delicate negotiations or any submission on his part. It is becoming increasingly clear that by pretending to engage in previous rounds of talks, he was giving them lip service alone.
The UN peace envoy helming the talks, Staffan de Mistura, said he suffered from chronic optimism. He is going to need it. It might be all the opposition has on its side.
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.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
RESULTS
6pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah – Group 2 (PA) $40,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: AF Alajaj, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
6.35pm: Race of Future – Handicap (TB) $80,000 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner: Global Storm, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
7.10pm: UAE 2000 Guineas – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Azure Coast, Antonio Fresu, Pavel Vashchenko
7.45pm: Business Bay Challenge – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Storm Damage, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor
20.20pm: Curlin Stakes – Listed (TB) $100,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Appreciated, Fernando Jara, Doug O’Neill
8.55pm: Singspiel Stakes – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner: Lord Glitters, Daniel Tudhope, David O'Meara
9.30pm: Al Shindagha Sprint – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Meraas, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
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The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 720hp
Torque: 770Nm
Price: Dh1,100,000
On sale: now
Match info
Manchester City 3 (Jesus 22', 50', Sterling 69')
Everton 1 (Calvert-Lewin 65')
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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