Some 10,000 people prayed Thursday outside Istanbul's Fatih mosque before eight Turkish and Palestinian flag-draped coffins lined up in a row in a traditional service for the dead.
Some 10,000 people prayed Thursday outside Istanbul's Fatih mosque before eight Turkish and Palestinian flag-draped coffins lined up in a row in a traditional service for the dead.
Some 10,000 people prayed Thursday outside Istanbul's Fatih mosque before eight Turkish and Palestinian flag-draped coffins lined up in a row in a traditional service for the dead.
Some 10,000 people prayed Thursday outside Istanbul's Fatih mosque before eight Turkish and Palestinian flag-draped coffins lined up in a row in a traditional service for the dead.

Aid boat from Ireland on course for Gaza

The boat, laden with 750 tonnes of aid, is set to arrive in Gaza tomorrow or Saturday. On board are 15 people including a Nobel Prize winner and a former top UN official.

  • English
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An Irish aid boat is on course to dock in Gaza at the weekend, activists said today and called on the UN to help ensure its safe passage after deadly Israeli raids stopped a flotilla this week. The MV Rachel Corrie carrying 15 people including a Nobel Prize winner and a former top UN official was less than 720 kilometres from where six boats were boarded in an Israeli raid which left nine dead.

"We want to emphasise that our aim is not provocation but getting our aid cargo into Gaza," said former UN assistant secretary general Denis Halliday, in a statement released by the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC). "We are calling on the UN to inspect the cargo and escort us into Gaza, and to send a UN representative to sail on board before they enter the exclusion zone," he added. Irish prime minister Brian Cowen has said that the Rachel Corrie must be allowed to reach Gaza and warned of "the most serious consequences" if Irish citizens were injured.

Five of those on board are Irish, including Halliday and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Maguire, 66. The others are five Malaysians, four Indonesians and a Scottish captain. "It's going about 200 miles a day," said Kevin Squires of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC). "So it's expected to reach sometime on Saturday," he told AFP, while adding: "I think they want to get there during the day, in daylight, so they might slow down or speed up, depending on when that would actually be."

Asked how its passengers would respond if Israeli authorities try to stop or board the vessel, he added: "Their aim is to get to Gaza, but if the Israelis try to stop them they won't resist. "They'll sit down and put their arms in the air ... They can't very well carry on through a blockade. They will sit down and be arrested," he said. The boat is carrying some 750 tonnes of aid including medical and school supplies, toys, and cement, according to the vessel's manifest, supplied by the organisers.

The cement - intended for reconstruction in Gaza, according to organisers - may prove problematic. "The presence of cement on board the vessel is not regarded by the Israelis as a product that is simply humanitarian. We await to see what emerges from that definition," the Irish premier said on Wednesday. One of the Malaysians on board, Shamsul Akmar, said: "We are prepared to face whatever situation that awaits us and we are determined to go ahead and carry on with this mission."

"Everyone on board is in high spirits," he added in a Twitter message posted by Malaysia's Perdana Global Peace Organisation. The boat is named after Rachel Corrie, an activist killed in 2003 as she tried to prevent an Israeli military bulldozer from razing a Palestinian home in Rafah. Ms Corrie's parents Cindy and Craig called today for international pressure on Israel to allow aid ships safe passage to Gaza.

"The US and other governments can and must insist that other boats from the flotilla, including the MV Rachel Corrie, named for our daughter, be permitted to sail through international waters to Gaza unobstructed," they said. Mr Halliday added: "We all remain in good spirits, and we want to thank everyone all over the world for all their support." * AFP

Mourners in Istanbul hoisted coffins Thursday to cheers of "God is great!" as they honoured activists slain during an Israeli commando raid, and the father of the lone American killed praised his teenage son as being a martyr for a just cause. The joint funeral came as Israel rejected demands for an international panel to investigate its deadly takeover Monday of six aid ships trying to break Israel's three-year blockade of the Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hotly rejected calls to lift the blockade on Hamas-ruled Gaza, insisting the ban prevents missile attacks on Israel. Some 10,000 people prayed Thursday outside Istanbul's Fatih mosque before eight Turkish and Palestinian flag-draped coffins lined up in a row in a traditional service for the dead. Eight Turks and an American of Turkish origin were honoured, ranging in age from over 60 to 19. A ninth victim, a Turkish man, was having a service on Friday. "Our friends have been massacred," said Bulent Yildirim, the head of the Islamic charity group IHH that organized the Gaza flotilla, before mourners carried the coffins through the crowd to cars to be taken for burial. * AP

While you're here
Key findings of Jenkins report
  • Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
  • Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
  • Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
  • Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
HWJN
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results

ATP Dubai Championships on Monday (x indicates seed):

First round
Roger Federer (SUI x2) bt Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
Fernando Verdasco (ESP) bt Thomas Fabbiano (ITA) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
Marton Fucsovics (HUN) bt Damir Dzumhur (BIH) 6-1, 7-6 (7/5)
Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) bt Karen Khachanov (RUS x4) 6-4, 6-1
Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) bt Milos Raonic (CAN x7) 6-4, 5-7, 6-4

Polarised public

31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views

19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all

Source: YouGov

RESULTS
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The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

Tips for job-seekers
  • Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
  • Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.

David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East

While you're here
COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Xpanceo

Started: 2018

Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov

Based: Dubai, UAE

Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality

Funding: $40 million

Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)

While you're here
While you're here
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ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
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Rafael Nadal's record at the MWTC

2009 Finalist

2010 Champion

Jan 2011 Champion

Dec 2011 Semi-finalist

Dec 2012 Did not play

Dec 2013 Semi-finalist

2015 Semi-finalist

Jan 2016 Champion

Dec 2016 Champion

2017 Did not play

 

WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?

1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull

2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight

3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge

4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own

5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

On Women's Day
UAE currency
More from this package
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
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More on animal trafficking
Specs

Engine: 51.5kW electric motor

Range: 400km

Power: 134bhp

Torque: 175Nm

Price: From Dh98,800

Available: Now

Tamkeen's offering
  • Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
  • Option 2: 50% across three years
  • Option 3: 30% across five years 

Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital

UAE squad

Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.

The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

The biog

Date of birth: 27 May, 1995

Place of birth: Dubai, UAE

Status: Single

School: Al Ittihad private school in Al Mamzar

University: University of Sharjah

Degree: Renewable and Sustainable Energy

Hobby: I enjoy travelling a lot, not just for fun, but I like to cross things off my bucket list and the map and do something there like a 'green project'.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

EUEurope