After more than two weeks stranded onboard two private rescue ships in the Mediterranean, 49 migrants who sailed from the coast of Libya in December have arrived in the Maltese capital of Valletta after a number of EU member states agreed to take them in.
The ships Sea-Watch 3 and Sea-Eye, operated by German NGOs, were allowed to dock in Valletta, after Malta brokered a deal to end a standoff that will see the migrants transferred to eight European countries. Malta allowed the two ships to shelter from bad weather and be resupplied, but it had until now refused to let those on board disembark.
The eight countries include Italy after Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Luigi Di Maio, the leader of the Five Star Movement, backed the agreement, sparking the fury of coalition partner and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini.
The deal will also result in the eight countries - Italy, France, Germany, Portugal, Ireland, Romania, the Netherlands and Luxembourg - taking in 249 other people brought to Malta by its military patrol boats in December.
Mr Salvini, who was in Poland on Wednesday to strike an European alliance with the leaders of the autocratic ruling party Law and Justice, slammed the agreement saying he "absolutely" opposed new migrant arrivals in Italy.
In what critics are viewing as an act of political mutiny, Mr Salvini threatened to use his position to oppose the decision.
“I won’t authorise migrant arrivals,” he said during a press conference in Warsaw with his Polish counterpart. He added that the EU was “succumbing to the blackmail of [people] smugglers and NGOs. This risks becoming a huge problem.”
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Read more:
Italy seeks populist alliance in Poland ahead of EU parliamentary elections
Boat with 311 migrants docks in Spain after spending Christmas at sea
Rescued migrants head for Spain after Italy closes ports
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Mr Conte, who initially tried to reach a compromise by suggesting Italy would only accept children and women, said that if Mr Salvini were to prevent migrants from being transferred by sea, he would personally take them to Italy by plane.
It is also unlikely that Mr Salvini will have the political authority to effectively prevent the deal.
The incident – which saw the 49 migrants, including several children, stranded at sea over Christmas – reopened the debate on the European Union’s immigration policies.
"The past weeks have not been Europe's finest hour... If human values and solidarity are not upheld, then it is not Europe," EU migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said.
Sea Watch International spoke of the 49 migrants as “hostages” and welcomed the decision to allow them to reach a safe port.
Amnesty International's Southern Europe researcher Elisa De Pieri said “the dangerous, unseemly spectacle of politicians bickering whilst women, men and children are stranded in a sea of cruel indifference, must not be repeated".
However, evidence suggests the opposite is likely. Europe is currently facing its most significant refugee crisis since the end of the Second World War, with over 4 million refugees displaced by fighting in Syria alone.
Talk of a migrant quota have stoked controversy, with France announcing it will not accept more than 30,000 refugees and some eastern European countries refusing to let migrants in altogether.
Meanwhile, Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel believes the future of Schengen – the area of free movement between 26 European states - is hinging on it.
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Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
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The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
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Transmission: Single-speed automatic
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Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
The struggle is on for active managers
David Einhorn closed out 2018 with his biggest annual loss ever for the 22-year-old Greenlight Capital.
The firm’s main hedge fund fell 9 per cent in December, extending this year’s decline to 34 percent, according to an investor update viewed by Bloomberg.
Greenlight posted some of the industry’s best returns in its early years, but has stumbled since losing more than 20 per cent in 2015.
Other value-investing managers have also struggled, as a decade of historically low interest rates and the rise of passive investing and quant trading pushed growth stocks past their inexpensive brethren. Three Bays Capital and SPO Partners & Co., which sought to make wagers on undervalued stocks, closed in 2018. Mr Einhorn has repeatedly expressed his frustration with the poor performance this year, while remaining steadfast in his commitment to value investing.
Greenlight, which posted gains only in May and October, underperformed both the broader market and its peers in 2018. The S&P 500 Index dropped 4.4 per cent, including dividends, while the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index, an early indicator of industry performance, fell 7 per cent through December. 28.
At the start of the year, Greenlight managed $6.3 billion in assets, according to a regulatory filing. By May, the firm was down to $5.5bn.
List of alleged parties
May 12, 2020: PM and his wife Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at least 17 staff
May 20, 2020: They attend 'bring your own booze party'
Nov 27, 2020: PM gives speech at leaving party for his staff
Dec 10, 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary Gavin Williamson
Dec 13, 2020: PM and his wife throw a party
Dec 14, 2020: London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff event at Conservative Party headquarters
Dec 15, 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
Dec 18, 2020: Downing Street Christmas party
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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The%20specs
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Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Company%20profile
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
