Despite the diplomatic tension, illegal construction work continues in East Jerusalem yesterday.
Despite the diplomatic tension, illegal construction work continues in East Jerusalem yesterday.

Obama and Netanyahu meet behind closed doors



WASHINGTON // Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu met behind closed doors in the White House last night for the first time since a diplomatic feud erupted over plans for 1,600 new illegal Israeli homes in East Jerusalem. Reporters were excluded, no public remarks were scheduled afterwards and a White House spokesman refused to comment on what might be discussed. Observers speculated that the arrangement signalled a continued strain in the relationship.

The public disagreement and exchange of sharp rhetoric raised concerns, particularly in Israel, that relations between the longtime allies were on the verge of a meltdown. Both sides now seem more willing to move past the dispute, as many analysts predicted, but it remains unclear how - and if - the two sides will compromise on the settlement issue. On Monday the Israeli prime minister told the pro-Israel lobbying group the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac): "The Jewish people were building Jerusalem 3,000 years ago, and the Jewish people are building Jerusalem today. Jerusalem is not a settlement. It's our capital."

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, meanwhile, reiterated the administration's position earlier on Monday, telling the same audience that Israeli settlement construction undermines trust between Israelis and Palestinians and "exposes daylight" between the United States and Israel. "Our credibility in this process depends in part on our willingness to praise both sides when they are courageous, and when we don't agree, to say so, and say so unequivocally."

Still, both Mr Netanyahu and Mrs Clinton signalled a return to more friendly terms and a shared desire to press ahead with proximity talks, or indirect negotiations, mediated by the United States. The two leaders held a meeting on Monday that Israeli officials described as "friendly", and Mrs Clinton in her speech referred to the US-Israel bond as "rock solid, unwavering, enduring and for ever". Mrs Clinton and Mr Netanyahu presented a united front in their opposition to Iran, which Israel views as its greatest threat.

"A radical Iranian regime armed with nuclear weapons could bring an end to the era of nuclear peace the world has enjoyed for the last 65 years," Mr Netanyahu told Aipac, adding that Israelis will "always reserve the right of self-defence." He concluded his speech by saying that he is "certain that Israel and America will always stand together". Mr Netanyahu, along with Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence minister, also had a working dinner on Monday with Mr Biden and Gen James Jones, the US national security adviser. "They had a productive, candid discussion on the full range of issues in the bilateral relationship," according to an account of the meeting provided by the White House Press Office.

Although the settlement issue continues to be a sticking point, Mr Netanyahu is believed to have agreed to the US request that all outstanding issues, including the future of Jerusalem and the status of final borders, be added to the agenda of the proximity talks. Settlements were expected to figure prominently in Mr Obama's meeting last night with Mr Netanyahu, though few other details of what the two planned to discuss could be known in advance. Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, said Mr Obama was looking forward to a "good discussion" with Mr Netanyahu, and reiterated that the relationship with Israel is strong.

A White House spokesman declined to comment further on what might be discussed. Mr Netanyahu's visit to Washington in November was also closed to the press. Aaron David Miller, a former Middle East negotiator in Republican and Democratic administrations and now a scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center, said he thought the Obama administration's decision to wind down tensions was a "good play". "There's no profit whatsoever in ratcheting this up. It's a loser. It's a dog's lunch of an issue and it will get the administration nowhere," he said. "The administration is keeping its powder dry in the event that there is a serious opportunity to push the negotiations forward."

sstanek@thenational.ae

Ads on social media can 'normalise' drugs

A UK report on youth social media habits commissioned by advocacy group Volteface found a quarter of young people were exposed to illegal drug dealers on social media.

The poll of 2,006 people aged 16-24 assessed their exposure to drug dealers online in a nationally representative survey.

Of those admitting to seeing drugs for sale online, 56 per cent saw them advertised on Snapchat, 55 per cent on Instagram and 47 per cent on Facebook.

Cannabis was the drug most pushed by online dealers, with 63 per cent of survey respondents claiming to have seen adverts on social media for the drug, followed by cocaine (26 per cent) and MDMA/ecstasy, with 24 per cent of people.

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest

Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.

Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.

Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.

Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.

Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.

Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia

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Company profile

Name: Dukkantek 

Started: January 2021 

Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani 

Based: UAE 

Number of employees: 140 

Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service) 

Investment: $5.2 million 

Funding stage: Seed round 

Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office  

Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

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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

'Brazen'

Director: Monika Mitchell

Starring: Alyssa Milano, Sam Page, Colleen Wheeler

Rating: 3/5

Company%20Profile
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)

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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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Rating: 4/5
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Business Insights
  • As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses. 
  • SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income. 
  • Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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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
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding