BEIRUT // Syria's military has withdrawn from cities since peace monitors arrived but army snipers remain a threat, the Arab League's secretary-general said yesterday.
Nabil Elaraby said the much-criticised monitoring effort had already made a difference. The Arab Parliament, a unit of the league, says the monitors should pull out because the killing has not stopped.
"The accomplishments of the delegation include the withdrawal of all military, such as tanks, from cities and residential areas, as well as the access of food items to Syrian populations and the retrieval of corpses," Mr Elaraby said in Cairo.
Armed rebels captured dozens of members of the security forces by seizing two military checkpoints yesterday, the opposition said.
They said army deserters also clashed with security forces at a third checkpoint, killing and wounding an unspecified number of troops loyal to the president, Bashar Al Assad.
Mr Al Assad is struggling to defeat a popular uprising and avoid becoming the latest leader to be toppled by Arab Spring revolutions, after the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen.
After almost 10 months of violence in which the United Nations says more than 5,000 people have been killed, the Arab League monitoring mission has spent the past week assessing Mr Al Assad's compliance with a peace plan it brokered.
"We call upon the Syrian government to fully commit to what it promised," Mr Elaraby said.
The Arab League plan calls for Mr Al Assad to withdraw troops and tanks from the streets, release detainees and talk to the opposition.
Mr Elaraby said the monitors had achieved the release of 3,484 prisoners and succeeded in getting food supplies into Homs, one of the centres of the violence.
"Give the monitoring mission the chance to prove its presence on the ground," he said.
But many Syrian opposition activists are sceptical that the observer mission can put real pressure on Mr Al Assad to halt the violence.
The reported attacks on military checkpoints came three days after the anti-government Free Syrian Army said it had ordered its fighters to stop offensive operations pending a meeting with the Arab League delegates.
Rami Abdelrahman, director of the opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said yesterday's operation took place in the northern province of Idlib.
Separately, the Observatory said two people were killed by gunfire in Homs yesterday, and the bodies of another two were handed over to their families. Security forces killed a farmer in Douma, on the north-eastern edge of Damascus, as they carried out raids searching for suspects wanted by authorities, it said.
In Damascus, Kinan Shami, a member of the Syrian Revolution Coordinating Union activists group, said people were taking huge risks by gathering in cities where Arab League monitors were expected, in the hope of talking to them.
"The people are trying to show the monitors the repression, and are risking their lives to meet them because everywhere they go the monitors are surrounded by security," Mr Shami said.
"Other than getting arrested and beaten or killed, they could easily face endless counts of treason and communicating with foreign powers."
But Issam Ishak, a high-level member of the main opposition Syrian National Council, said the monitors must be given a chance.
"Their presence is helping further erode the fear factor and is encouraging the expansion of the protests," he said.
* Bloomberg and Reuters
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THE POPE'S ITINERARY
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
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
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
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
What drives subscription retailing?
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlmouneer%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dr%20Noha%20Khater%20and%20Rania%20Kadry%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEgypt%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E120%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBootstrapped%2C%20with%20support%20from%20Insead%20and%20Egyptian%20government%2C%20seed%20round%20of%20%3Cbr%3E%243.6%20million%20led%20by%20Global%20Ventures%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
FIGHT%20CARD
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How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
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Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
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SPECS
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now