ALEPPO // Fighting shook Syria on Saturday, with rebels trying to seize the state television building in Aleppo and Damascus bombarded, as the UN deplored the failure of diplomacy to end the conflict.
Echoing UN chief Ban Ki-moon's remarks a day earlier that the violence was intensifying, a watchdog said July was the deadliest month since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's regime erupted in March 2011.
Rami Abdel Rahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 4,239 people, the vast majority civilians, died in July, bringing the overall toll in nearly 17 months of fighting to more than 21,000.
"The death toll is escalating," Abdel Rahman said, noting June had been the second-deadliest month.
And with thousands more displaced, lacking basic needs and unable to get medical treatment, the Red Cross and this month's UN Security Council president, France, highlighted humanitarian concerns.
Loud explosions shook Aleppo as fighter jets and helicopter gunships overflew the northern city and rebels attempted to storm the state TV building, said the Britain-based Observatory.
"Rebel forces planted explosives (at the TV station), and regime forces shelled the area" before the rebels withdrew, it said.
State media said the army defended the site from "mercenary terrorist groups."
There was also fierce fighting in the rebel-held quarters of Salaheddin and Seif al-Dawla, the Observatory said, as troops fought to retake the city two weeks after rebels moved in and claimed to have captured half of it.
Meanwhile, the southern Damascus suburb of Tadamun was hit by some of the "most violent" shelling seen since troops launched a huge offensive against rebels in the capital last month, the Observatory said.
The violence, which killed at least 13 people across the country on Saturday, has been relentless. Another 84 died around the country -- 46 civilians, 19 rebels and 19 soldiers -- a day earlier, the Observatory said.
On Friday, following envoy Kofi Annan's resignation in frustration over failure of an April peace plan to take hold, UN chief Ban warned world powers they must overcome their rivalries to put an end to a "proxy war" in Syria.
And the UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to condemn the Security Council for its failure to act and criticise the regime for using heavy weapons.
Ban said growing radicalisation and extremism had been predicted at the start of the uprising, as had been a "proxy war, with regional and international players arming one side or the other.
"All of these dire predictions have come to pass," he told the General Assembly.
The Security Council had become paralysed by divisions, he said, adding: "Now, with the situation having worsened, they must again find common ground."
Following the General Assembly vote, US ambassador Susan Rice said that, "despite the continued opposition of an increasingly isolated minority, the overwhelming majority of UN members clearly stands resolutely with the Syrian people."
That was an allusion to Russia and China, who voted against the resolution and who had already vetoed three Security Council resolutions on Syria.
But Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the assembly gave "blatant" support to Syrian rebels and that its backers were the countries providing "mercenaries and arms" to the opposition.
China's deputy ambassador, Wang Min, said pressuring only Damascus would "cause further escalation of the turmoil and let the crisis spill over to other countries in the region."
Syria strongly opposed the resolution and its UN envoy, Bashar Jafaari, accused Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Gulf states of arming rebels.
South Africa, while voting in favour, said the text should have been tougher on the opposition.
The opposition Syrian National Council said the resolution showed Assad's regime had lost legitimacy.
"This vote confirms that... the international community does not believe in its legitimacy anymore," said SNC director Abdel Basset Sayda, adding the rebels would not pull out of Aleppo.
"The Free (Syrian) Army did not withdraw, and will not withdraw from Aleppo, and we are in contact with them to provide them with supplies," Sayda said.
A Syrian security official said troops were "testing the terrorists' defence systems (in Aleppo) before annihilating them by carrying out a surgical operation."
Russia expressed serious concern over rebel attempts to gain control of Aleppo and condemned foreign nations for providing the opposition with military supplies.
"Moscow is very worried by the dangerous development in the situation, the violence and provocations aimed at expanding the scope and the cruelty in the civil war," said the foreign ministry in Moscow.
France's UN ambassador Gerard Araud said Paris would use its presidency of the Security Council to push for humanitarian aid for Syrians, warning Russian and Chinese intransigence could lead to "a final disaster".
"Progress on the political front will be difficult, I have to confess," said Araud.
But things can be done "on the humanitarian front, because above and beyond the deadlock on the Security Council or the resignation of Annan, there is the suffering of the Syrians."
The International Committee of the Red Cross called on all parties to respect international humanitarian law.
Robert Mardini, ICRC operations chief for the Middle East, reminded both sides that civilians must never be targeted and that medical services be protected.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Breaking News: The Remaking of Journalism and Why It Matters Now
Alan Rushbridger, Canongate
'C'mon C'mon'
Director:Mike Mills
Stars:Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman
Rating: 4/5
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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.
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
Starring: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shantanu Maheshwari, Jimmy Shergill, Saiee Manjrekar
Director: Neeraj Pandey
Rating: 2.5/5
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
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
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MATCH INFO
Chelsea 3 (Abraham 11', 17', 74')
Luton Town 1 (Clark 30')
Man of the match Abraham (Chelsea)
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
FIXTURES
December 28
Stan Wawrinka v Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Milos Raonic v Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 29 - semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Stan Wawrinka / Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Milos Raonic / Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 30
3rd/4th place play-off, 5pm
Final, 7pm
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SUNDAY'S ABU DHABI T10 MATCHES
Northern Warriors v Team Abu Dhabi, 3.30pm
Bangla Tigers v Karnataka Tuskers, 5.45pm
Qalandars v Maratha Arabians, 8pm
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Where%20the%20Crawdads%20Sing
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
THE%20SPECS
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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.