Amiri decree sets date for election to CMC · Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will attend...

Volume 23 | Number 7802 | 2 RiyalsThursday 14 February 2019 | 9 Jumada II 1440 www.thepeninsula.qa

BUSINESS | 01 SPORT | 07

Halep, Kerber advance to Qatar Total Open quarters

Ooredoo Group records QR30bn

in revenue for 2018

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, met yesterday with First Lady of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Sainab Abdi Moallim, during her visit to Qatar. They discussed various topics of mutual interest in providing access to health and education in marginalised areas. H H Sheikha Moza hosted a luncheon in honour of the First Lady and the accompanying Somali delegation.

Sheikha Moza, First Lady of Somalia discuss education

QF's new school offers unique learning modelFAZEENA SALEEM THE PENINSULA

Qatar Foundation (QF) has announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind school in Qatar, which will offer a globally unique learning model to young children.

‘Academyati’ is a progressive school under the umbrella of QF’s Pre-University Education (PUE) and admissions are open now for the 2019-20 academic year. It will open in August 2019 for children aged 3 to 6 years, said officials yesterday during a press conference held at the QF headquarters.

The school, which is an idea of H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice-Chairperson and CEO of QF, has turned in to a reality and will offer a globally unique learning model that takes the concept of personalised edu-cation into a new dimension.

‘Academyati’ will be based at QF’s Education City and enrol 48 children initially. The school is designed to eventually expand and ultimately accommodate

children and young people aged 3-18.

“Designed to add to the legacy of quality education that has already been created by its diverse and specialised schools, QF’s new, progressive K-12

school, Academyati, will bring a whole new educational expe-rience to Qatar,” said Buthaina Ali Al Nuaimi, President, PUE.

“Academyati is a bilingual school offering individualised education, with an emphasis on

experiential learning within an innovative educational eco-system that will work in close partnership with parents and families. Academyati will graduate students who are aware, confident, empowered, and can bring positive change to their world,” she added.

Placing an equal emphasis on both personal and academic development, Academyati will provide tailored, creative, and nurturing learning experiences designed to ensure children studying at the school achieve their full potential.

“Academyati stands for ‘Innovation in Learning’. We believe in trusting today’s children. By exposing our children to experiences and quests as a way of learning, we aim to fuel children’s inde-pendence, empathy, curiosity, and creativity through their journey in Academyati. We have faith that their inner gifts will shape amazing outcomes,” said Maryam Alhajri, Director, Academyati.

“Each child at Academyati

will have a fully-developed per-sonal plan, tailored to nurture their personal growth and cre-ative process within a positive and supportive environment,” she added.

She also emphasized that the children will able to enter international universities through the curriculum taught at Academyati.

At Academyati children will be grouped into multi-age groups, rather than in a structure defined by grade levels or determined by their age. This will help children to learn at their own pace and from older or younger children, in a fluid, engaging, non-classroom setting. Each child will have a portfolio that fully documents their personal growth, as well as their learning outcomes and products.

Applications to Academyati will be open until May 1. To apply, visit ail.openapply.com. More information about QF’s new progressive school, can be had from: www.academyati.qa or through email [email protected]

Al Baker welcomes CAPA's ‘Doha Declaration’THE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker (pictured), has welcomed the publication of the Doha Declaration’, a manifesto that calls for a serious review of the existing aviation regulatory framework.

The Declaration, which was announced at the conclusion of the CAPA Qatar Avi-ation, Aeropolitical and Regulatory Summit held in Doha, comes 75 years after the his-toric Chicago Convention, which estab-lished the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) as well as a set of global rules for airspace, air safety and air travel.

Commenting on the Declaration, Al Baker said: “Qatar Airways wholeheartedly endorses the Doha Declaration and calls on airlines all over the world to join us in

supporting it.” The Doha Declaration says that 75 years after the aviation regulatory framework was established, it is time for a serious global review of its relevance today; the “business of freedom” underpins 10 percent of global GDP. It is too important to be constrained by economic regulation that was designed to meet entirely different conditions

The Doha Declaration recommends that governments should relax restrictive airline ownership and control rules, which underpin the bilateral air services system, constraining rationalisation of market access; increase efforts to encourage plurilateral liberalisation, for example as promoted by the European Union; enhance sustainability – in its broadest meaning – in the aviation sector and actively encourage aeropolitical discussion and further engagement at the highest levels.

The Declaration follows the recent

announcement that the State of Qatar and the European Union have concluded their negotiations for a landmark Compre-hensive Air Transport Agreement.

Al Baker added: “Earlier this week, Qatar Airways was proud to celebrate the milestone of becoming the first country in

the Gulf region to achieve a Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement with the European Union. This agreement, allied to the Doha Declaration, shows the world that we are committed to building trust among nations, overcoming the fear of competition and embracing the benefits of lib-eralisation in the Aviation field.”

Speaking at the con-clusion of the CAPA Con-ference, the first of its kind

to be held in the Middle East, Henrik Hololei, the Director General Mobility and Transport at the European Com-mission commented on the Doha Dec-laration, saying: “It is a good conclusion of the one-and-a-half days we have spent here.”

Amir to attend Munich Security ConferenceQNA

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will attend the 55th session of Munich Security Conference, which will be held from February 15 to 17 in Munich in the Federal Republic of Germany.

QNA DOHA

The Qatari-Turkish Higher Joint Military Committee concluded its three-day meeting in Doha yesterday. The conclusion of the meeting was attended by Chief of Staff of the Qatari Armed Forces H E Lieutenant-General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem and Second Chief of the General Staff, Corps General Metin Gurak.

The meeting comes in the framework of the strategic part-nership between the two countries and the committee’s annual meetings to review the progress achieved in the past, study future cooperation, evaluate military conditions, challenges in the region and the fight against terrorism.

On the sidelines of the meeting, H E Lieutenant-General (Pilot) Ghanem bin Shaheen Al Ghanem met with Second Chief of the General Staff, Corps General Metin Gurak. The meeting dis-cussed areas of military cooper-ation. The meeting was attended by senior officers of the armed forces and military attaches of both countries.

H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani’s idea turns into reality. ‘Academyati’ offers a globally unique learning model that takes the concept of personalised education into a new dimension.

The new school will be based at Qatar Foundation’s Education City and enrol 48 children initially.

Qatari-Turkish Higher Joint Military Committee ends meeting

Amiri decree sets date for election to CMCQNA/THE PENINSULA

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani issued yesterday Amiri Decree No. 4 of 2019 to set the election date of members of the Central Municipal Council on Tuesday Sha’ban 11 of 1440, April 16 of 2019. The decree stated a call on citizens who hold voting rights and are registered on the voter lists, to vote in their constitu-encies. The decree is effective starting from its date of publication in the official gazette.

Meanwhile, another report said that the final electoral rolls of the 6th Central Municipal Council elections will be announced today at the headquarters of all electoral constituencies, as these

headquarters will be ready as of Sunday to receive nominations.

Brigadier Abdulrahman Al Farahid Al Malki, Assistant Director General of Infor-mation Systems and Chairman of the Tech-nical Committee for CMC elections and member of the Supervisory Committee, said that the decisions of the appeals and grievance committees on which the final rolls of voters were issued cannot be appealed again. Al Malki pointed out that according to the schedule of elections, all the headquarters of the constituencies will begin on Sunday to receive requests for registration of candidates, and this period will continue until 21 February. �P2

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Ajax (NED) 3Real Madrid (ENG) 0

YESTERDAY’S RESULTS FIRST LEG FIXTURES

02 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019HOME

Amir ratifies Cabinet

decision setting up

Statistics Committee

DOHA: Amir H H Sheikh

Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani

ratified yesterday Cabinet

Decision No. 2 of 2019 to

establish a statistics com-

mittee and regulate its

work. The decision is effec-

tive starting from its date

of publication in the official

gazette. QNA

OFFICIAL NEWS

Amir issues two

ratifications



issued an instrument of

ratification approving a

memorandum of under-

standing between the State

of Qatar and the Argentine

Republic for cooperation in

the field of education, higher

education and scientific

research, signed in Buenos

Aires on October 5, 2018.

H H the Amir also issued an

instrument of ratification

approving a cooperation

agreement between Qatar

and the Kingdom of Morocco

in the field of construction

and infrastructure projects,

signed in Marrakech on

December 12, 2013. QNA

Amir ratifies decision

on retirement and

pensions for Nationals



ratified yesterday Cabinet

Decision No. 3 of 2019 in

the validity of some provi-

sions of Law No. 24 of 2002

regarding retirement and

pensions on Qatari employ-

ees in some companies. The

decision is effective starting

from its date of publication

in the official gazette. QNA

Shura Council Speaker meets envoys of Spain, Sweden and Peru

Speaker of the Shura Council H E Ahmed bin Abdullah bin Zaid Al Mahmoud held yesterday separate meetings with the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Spain, Belen Alvaro Hernandez, and the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden, Ewa Polano (pictured). The two meetings discussed the respective bilateral ties between the State of Qatar on one side and the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Sweden on the other side, and the means to enhance them in the parliamentary field. They also reviewed preparations of the 140th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and its accompanying meetings, which will take place in Doha in April. The Speaker of the Shura Council also met with the Ambassador of the Republic of Peru, Carlos Velasco Mendiola, whose term in office ended. The meeting focused on bilateral ties, particularly in the parliamentary field. The Speaker wished the Ambassador well in future missions, and for further progress and prosperity for bilateral ties.

Nod for draft decision

on poisonous seedsQNA DOHA

The Cabinet, which met yesterday with Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani in the chair, approved a draft decision of the Minister of Municipality and Environment to identify the poisonous seeds and seedlings that are prohibited to be planted and enter the State of Qatar.

Under the provisions of the draft decision, poisonous seeds and seedlings that are prohibited to be planted and enter Qatar shall be determined in accordance with Table 1 attached to this decision.

Poisonous seeds and seedlings used in the medical field and pre-vented to be planted and enter Qatar without the prior authori-zation of the competent authority shall be identified in accordance with Table 2 which is annexed to this decision. Minister of Justice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs H E Dr Issa bin Saad Al Jafali Al Nuaimi stated that the Cabinet reviewed topics on its meeting’s agenda as following:

The Cabinet also approved a draft MoU for cooperation in the field of Islamic affairs and endow-ments between Qatar and Sudan,

a draft cooperation agreement in the field of education, higher edu-cation, scientific research and technology between Qatar and the Kingdom of Eswatini and a draft Memorandum of Understanding for scientific cooperation in the fields of agriculture, environ-mental protection and rural affairs between the Ministry of Munici-pality and Environment in Qatar and the Department for Envi-ronment, Food and Rural Affairs in the United Kingdom.

The Cabinet reviewed the report prepared by the Follow-up Committee of the Implementation of Food Security Policies in the Public and Private Sectors on the plans and projects for imple-menting the National Strategy for Food Security. The importance of this strategy is represented in the unifying of stakeholders’ efforts concerned with the food security system, the optimal use of the State’s natural and financial resources, strengthening of the food security system against shocks in emergencies, the prior-itization of food security initiatives and projects, protection and pro-motion of local production, improvement of the quality and safety of food and the provision of a safe and healthy strategic stock.

Qatar to participate in national celebrations of KuwaitTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar, represented by the Organ-ising Committee for National Day celebrations in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and Sports, will participate in the national celebrations of the State of Kuwait by organising various cultural, traditional, artistic and sporting events.

The Qatari participation comes under the supervision and

organisation of the Qatar Cul-tural and Heritage Center, which includes many big events which will be held in cooperation with a number of partners, including the Culture and Arts Department.

These cultural, heritage, media, heritage and sporting events contribute to the depth of Qatar’s heritage, its historical ties with Kuwait.

The first event will be held at the Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Heritage Village in the traditional

heritage of the Gulf from Feb-ruary 14 until March 2, 2019. The second event will take place in the Mrouj area from February 21 to February 26, 2019.

The events, to be held under the activities of the village of ‘popular heritage’, will include seven different cultural and her-itage activities. These events are divided into indoor events in the Qatari pavilion and outdoor events in the square of the village of the popular heritage.

Date for election to CMC setFROM PAGE 1

He urged anyone who sees himself as capable of serving his country to go to the headquarters of the electoral constituencies to fill in the candidacy form in front of the election committee.

Concerning the conditions that candidates must meet, he explained that any Qatari male or female who fulfils the conditions in accordance with Article 5 of Law No. 12 of 1998 regulating the Central Municipal Council is

entitled to run for membership of the CMC. These conditions are that the candidate shall be a Qatari citizen of Qatari origin or who obtained Qatari citizenship provided that the candidate shall be a descendant of a person born in Qatar. The candidate should be at least 30 years old and literate.

Al Malki said candidates can go to the concerned constituency headquarters which will be opened from 4pm to 7pm to fill up the prescribed form.

03THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 HOME

Amir ratifies MoU in

agriculture between

Qatar and Morocco



issued yesterday an Amiri

Decree No. 6 of 2019 to

ratify a memorandum of

understanding on cooper-

ating in the agricultural field

between the governments

of Qatar and Morocco signed

in Rabat on March 3, 2018,

annexed to this decree and

to have the force of law in

line with Article 68 of the

constitution. QNA

OFFICIAL NEWS

MoU between Qatar,

Argentina ratified



issued an Amiri Decree No.

5 of 2019 to ratify a mem-

orandum of understanding

on cooperating in the legal

field between the Ministry of

Justice in Qatar and Ministry

of Justice and Human Rights

in the Argentine Republic,

signed in Buenos Aires on

July 28, 2016, annexed to

this decree and to have the

force of law in line with Article

68 of the constitution. QNA

Minister, Swiss envoy discuss ties in culture & sports fields

Minister of Culture and Sports H E Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali met yesterday with the Ambassador of the Swiss Confederation to the State of Qatar, Adgar Doereq. The meeting focused on bilateral cooperation in the culture and sports fields as well as the means to enhance them.

QFFD, QC sign deal for projects worth QR18m for SyriansTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Fund For Development (QFFD) has signed a grant agreement with Qatar Charity (QC) to address the humanitarian situation of Syrians within their country and in Lebanon in 2019.

The pact came as part of the $50m grant from the Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to support the Syrian people. The agreement, worth QR18,165,880, includes three projects, benefiting nearly 108,500 people and 5,000 families.

The first project will be carried out, as an urgent emer-gency response, for the affected families in the camps in the north of Syria, benefiting 9,000 persons at the cost of around QR7.3m. This project will involve the distri-bution of shelter materials including tents, insulators, and winter garment bags.

The agreement also com-prises a relief project, which will be implemented in the northern Syrian countryside to benefit

39,000 people at the cost of QR5.8m. Winter clothes, blankets and heating materials will be dis-tributed as part of this project.

Furthermore, another project includes the distribution of winter materials to Syrian refugees in the Lebanese town of Arsal, bene-fiting 60,500 persons. The cost of this project amounts to QR5m and includes the provision of blankets and mattresses for Syrian fam-ilies in Lebanon, in addition to rehabilitating the tents and pro-viding them with heating fuel, and distributing food baskets to 5,000 families for two months.

“The goal of this agreement is to quickly respond to the largest number of beneficiaries of this urgent aids, especially with regard to winter relief in northern Syria,” said Khalifa bin Jassim Al Kuwari, Director General of QFFD.

Yousif bin Ahmed Al Kuwari, CEO of Qatar Charity said: “These projects fall within QC’s human-itarian efforts to help Syrian ref-ugees and displaced people in order to ease their hardship, sup-porting them with meeting their basic needs.”

Yousif bin Ahmed Al Kuwari (left) and Khalifa bin Jassim Al Kuwari exchanging documents after signing the agreement.

Al Muraikhi bids farwell to Kyrgyzstan Ambassador

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs H E Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi met yesterday with the Ambassador of the Kyrgyz Republic to the State of Qatar, Nuran Niyazaliyev, on the occasion of the end of his tenure. The Minister extended his thanks to the Ambassador for his efforts in promoting bilateral relations, wishing him success in his future duties.

Dean’s List luncheon celebrates students’ excellence at VCUarts QatarTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar (VCUarts Qatar) recently held a special event to honour the students whose hard work and excellent academic skills earned them a place on the Dean’s List.

The families of the students were also in attendance for the special occasion as the students were awarded certificates hon-ouring their outstanding aca-demic achievements.

The Dean’s List is a recog-nition of superior academic per-formance and only students with a Grade Point Average of 3.5 qualify. Of the 103 outstanding Dean’s List students, 18 are freshmen, 31 are sophomores, 17

are juniors and 37 are seniors. Dr Donald Baker, the Exec-

utive Dean at VCUarts Qatar welcomed the students and their families, saying, “It is an honor to be on the Dean’s List and an honor for us to welcome you and

your families here. As students on the Dean’s List you set an example and set the standard for all other students. By being here today you have set yourselves up to be our outstanding alumni leaders but you have to keep on working both in your degree and outside of it.”

Certificates of Appreciation were also awarded at the event to four graduates from the Class of 2018 who were recently rec-ognized at the Ministry of Edu-cation and Higher Education’s Excellence Awards, which was held under the patronage of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

The graduates were Noof Khalid M. A. Al Heidous, Hissa A Al Hail, Al Jazi Khalid Al Thani, and Sara Haider A A Mashhadi.

The students recognised on the Dean’s List pose for a picture.

The Dean’s List is a recognition of superior academic performance and only students with a Grade Point Average of 3.5 qualify. Of the 103 outstanding Dean’s List students, 18 are freshmen, 31 are sophomores, 17 are juniors and 37 are seniors.

Amir sends condolences

to Iranian President

Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin

Hamad Al Thani sent yester-

day a cable of condolences to

President of the Islamic Repub-

lic of Iran, Dr Hassan Rowhani,

on the victims of the attack on

a Revolutionary Guards’ bus in

southeastern Iran, wishing the

injured a speedy recovery. The

Deputy Amir H H Sheikh Abdul-

lah bin Hamad Al Thani and the

Prime Minister and Minister of

Interior H E Sheikh Abdullah

bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani

sent similar cables to the Ira-

nian President yesterday. QNA


Public Prosecution holds various sports activities on NSDTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Public Prosecution organised various sports activ-ities on the occasion of the National Sport Day, which aims to expand the participation of the community in sports and physical activity, increase the rates of active participation and dissemination of sports culture among the members of the community at the Sheraton Park, Corniche.

The event was attended by the members of Public Prose-cution and staff. The sport activ-ities included running compe-tition, physical exercises, vol-leyball, basketball and

tug-of-war.The programmes and activ-

ities organised by the Public Prosecution aimed at empha-sizing the importance of the active and healthy life of its employees, and to create awareness about the importance of sport in life of the people.

Yousif Saif Buhindi, director of public relations and communications at the Public Prosecution, said that the sporting events of this year come in a different atmos-phere, especially after Qatar’s team historic achievement by winning the 2019 Asian Cup, which confirms that Doha has become the capital of sport in the region.

The participants at the Public Prosecution NSD activities.

CRA holds radiocommunication services workshopTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) held a workshop at its premises with the major stakeholders yesterday, in prep-aration to the Second Session of the Conference Preparatory Meeting (CPM) for the World R a d i o c o m m u n i c a t i o n Conference 2019 (WRC-19), which will be held at the ITU in Geneva this February 2019.

The workshop aimed to inform the participants about the CPM Report, discuss the agenda items of the Conference and agree on the positions that would be of the interest of the country.

The workshop covered various topics related to the radi-ocommunication services, like land mobile and fixed services, mobile broadband applications, satellite services, scientific services as well as marine, avi-ation and amateur services. The workshop also, discussed the

contributions submitted by Qatar Administration to the Con-ference Preparatory Meeting (CPM), along with the contribu-tions submitted to the Arab

Spectrum Management Group. The workshop was attended

by representatives of a number of government and private entities including the Qatar

Armed Forces, Ministry of Interior, Qatar Media Corpo-ration, Ooredoo, Vodafone Qatar, and Qatar Satellite Company (Es’hailSat).

The participants at the Communications Regulatory Authority workshop.

Zakat Fund studied 6,861 requests for assistanceTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Zakat Fund of the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs studied 6,861 requests seeking assistance last year, of which 4,539 cases were in the men’s section and 2,322 cases in the women’s section.

The files reviewed by the Social Research Division of the sections of men and women included 1,496 new cases for assistance, of which 927 were in the men’s section and 569 were in the women’s section, while the rest were for previous aid files.

The researchers conducted 2,622 cases to renew the ended assistance, of which 1,617 through the men’s section and 1,005 through the women’s section and study 1,958 requests for assistance, including 1,211 through the men’s section and 747 requests by women.

The number of families applying for assistance, all of which was done through the men’s sections, except one request that was through the women’s section.

The research of social and field assistance requests conducted by the Fund’s management is aimed at ascertaining the eligibility of appli-cants for assistance and to ensure the delivery of the Zakat to its beneficiaries.

Ibtihaj Muhammad narrates her journey as an athleteTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Foundation (QF) yesterday hosted a talk by pioneering US Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad as part of its Education City Speaker Series, where she spoke about her journey as an athlete, the chal-lenges and successes she has experienced as a woman in sport, and wearing a hijab in compe-tition.

The lecture, held in collabo-ration with Qatar’s Government Communications Office (GCO), took place at Qatar National Library and was moderated by Amina Ahmadi, co-founder of the sportswear and sports apparel brand Oola. It was fol-lowed by an in-depth question-and-answer session.

Ibtihaj said: “I feel very strongly about using my platform in meaningful ways, and I am very conscious that I always want to be an agent of change.”

At the 2016 Olympics in Brazil, Ibtihaj became the first US athlete to wear a hijab during

competition, and the first Muslim-American athlete to become an Olympic medallist, when she competed as a member of the bronze medal-winning US saber fencing team.

Talking about her journey as an athlete, she said: “I faced a lot of backlash. Not just within the fencing community, but even in my own household.

“Before I qualified for my first national team, everyone thought that I was crazy. People aren’t on board all the time with your dreams and goals in the way that you see them. But what I think is really interesting about your journey is that it’s your own, and it’s not meant for other people to understand. Had I

acceded to the idea of soci-ety’s expectations about where I should be and what I should be doing, I wouldn’t be sitting here today.

Offering a final piece of advice to her audience, Ibtihaj said: “I hope that your dreams are far greater than mine. I think it’s really important — not just for children, but for each of us,

no matter what age — that we always lead our lives with faith. And to always put faith ahead of fear, because fear can paralyse you. I know that I allowed fear to do that to me at different points in my life. I have learned to always be faithful and to believe.”

Wrapping up the event, members of the Qatar Fencing

Federation presented Ibtihaj with a fencing mask.

The Education City Speaker Series is a platform for Qatar’s youth and wider community to learn from, and engage with, experts and thought-leaders from a range of fields. Previous speakers include United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

US Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad at the lecture held by QF in collaboration with Qatar’s Government Communications Office (GCO) at Qatar National Library.

Qatar Charity completes QR31m fishing support project in GazaTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar Charity’s (QC) office in the Gaza Strip celebrated the completion of the Emergency Support Project for the Fisheries Sector.

This project comes within the framework of the Programme for the Promotion and Protection of Food Security in Palestine, in cooperation with the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture, at a cost of more than QR31m, with funding from the Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Speaking at the ceremony attended by government officials, Mohamed Abu Haloub, director of Qatar Charity’s office in the Gaza Strip, expressed his pleasure over the completion of the project, which has been under implemen-tation for about eight years.

Abu Haloub said that the

project was very important for the fishing sector, as it was suitable for relief and development inter-ventions emphasizing the con-tinued commitment of Qatar Charity towards supporting the Palestinian people and meeting their humanitarian and develop-mental needs.

He noted that the fishing project was one of the significant projects implemented by Qatar Charity during the past ten years, in addition to several other pro-grammes and projects carried out in several fields, including social welfare and orphans’ sponsor-ships, housing for the poor, edu-cation, health, agriculture, relief, emergency and others.

The project, which benefited more than 5,000 fishermen, managed to build four fish hatch-eries with a capacity of 130 cubic meters, with the aim of fattening fishes for hatching.


Ooredoo’s NSD activities at MIA Park a resounding successTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Qatar National Sport Day 2019, held on Tuesday at MIA Park, was a huge success according to organ-isers Ooredoo.

One of Ooredoo’s National Sport Day highlights was the football match that took place between the stars of Qatari clubs, with the participation of the Asian Cup champion Hassan Al Haydos, and the Ooredoo team.

Official data from the event confirms some 31,000 participants registered to take part. A phe-nomenal over 75 million steps were taken throughout the day, with plenty of those being taken while park visitors were enjoying some of the many activities on offer. The Park was divided up into six zones so participants could easily find activities to suit them and their families. Little ones had hours of fun on a range of giant inflatables in the kids zone, while a whole host of sports and games were on offer for the bigger ones in the other zones.

There were several traditional sports such as boxing, Zumba, taekwondo, aerobics, volleyball

and basketball, as well as a variety of wacky, fun activities such as a three-legged race, human chess and games of Ping Pong Waiter.

Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo, said : “We are immensely proud to say the 2019 Qatar National Sport Day was such a resounding success, and we were incredibly pleased so many Qatari citizens and resi-dents came to MIA Park to enjoy it with us. I had the pleasure of joining in with the day’s activities and it was exceptionally rewarding to see so many participants – from

those just learning to walk to senior generations – trying out new sports, enjoying favourite

disciplines and generally having fun being active.

“Supporting community

events that promote fitness and activity as part of a healthy life-style is a key part of Ooredoo’s

corporate social responsibility strategy, and we are delighted we could contribute to such a popular, worthwhile event. We hope eve-ryone found an activity they enjoyed, so Qatar stays fit and active!.”

Ooredoo offered 200 MB free data for every 2,000 steps taken, with the maximum free data on offer 1 MB for walking 10,000 steps. It also offered 500 MB free data for any customer scanning the QR code hidden in MIA Park, making sure customers made their way to the park to see what was on offer. In total, a whopping 7,658 GB of data was given away by the telco leader, to enthusiastic cus-tomers taking strides around the Park and joining in the various activities.

As part of the Qatar National Sport Day celebrations, Ooredoo also held a contest to find out 2019 goals; customers were asked to video or photograph themselves explaining their goals for 2019, and two lucky winners – Bader Abu Yasine and Tamara Anwar – were selected to win a whopping 500,000 Nojoom points to spend with one or more of the awesome Nojoom network of partners.

Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo, participating in National Sport Day activities.

CLPP hosts Minister-President of Paraguay’s Supreme Court of JusticeTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The College of Law and Public Policy (CLPP) at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) recently hosted Dr José Raúl Torres Kirmser, Minister-Pres-ident of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Republic of Paraguay.

President Kirmser also holds the positions of President of the Judicial Supreme Council and President of the Civil Chamber

at the Supreme Court of Paraguay.

In a lecture for faculty, stu-dents, and invited guests, Pres-ident Kirmser discussed the role of the Supreme Court of Par-aguay and its jurisdiction.

He responded to questions concerning judicial inde-pendence and the rights of indig-enous peoples.

President Kirmser’s visit to Qatar followed the agreement signed last October between Qatar and Paraguay to expand

bilateral relations and engage in collaborative commitments. The College of Law and Public Policy regularly invites leading local and international experts to share their expertise and per-spectives on topics of interest and global relevance.

The college offers a graduate Juris Doctor (JD) degree, which equips students with the skills to identify and address complex problems using civil law, common law and Sharia principles. The dignitaries at the meeting, yesterday.

Sidra Medicine expands epilepsy services for childrenTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Sidra Medicine has launched new pediatric neurology sub-specialty services, installed state-of-the-art technologies and embarked on a clinical research study to under-stand and advance the care and treatment of children with epilepsy.

The Division of Pediatric Neu-rology at Sidra Medicine has set up a Neurodiagnostic laboratory that offers outpatient electroen-cephalography (EEG) and ambu-latory home EEG services to measure brain activity and evaluate children with suspected or confirmed epilepsy. A dedicated inpatient pediatric Epilepsy Mon-itoring Unit (EMU) has also been installed. The EMU, a one-of-a-kind in the region and a first for Qatar, offers 24/7 simultaneous video EEG monitoring and has already helped in accurately diag-nosing dozens of children.

The Neurology Division has also launched new sub-specialty pediatric clinics including the Tuberous Sclerosis clinic, Headache clinic, Complex

Epilepsy clinic, Ketogenic Diet clinic and Spasticity clinic. The clinics explore all possible treatment options, beginning with conservative, non-invasive methods before considering neu-rosurgical procedures.

Dr Khaled Zamel, Division Chief of Pediatric Neurology said, “The world-class neurology staff and state-of-the-art technology assembled at Sidra Medicine has allowed us to care for patients in a more integrated manner. We have had many children whose lives have been transformed because of our application of patient and family focused neu-rology care initiatives. For example, thanks to the ambulatory EEG service, several of our young patients can be monitored at home while being assured the same level of treatment and care without the need to be in the hospital.”

There have been a number of patient success cases at Sidra Medicine since the launch of the EMU and EEG services including Mohammed a 11-year-old boy who used to display recurrent epi-sodes of unexplained abnormal behavior that affected his social

functions including his per-formance at school. He was admitted to the Sidra Medicine EMU where his episodes where monitored and recorded. This observation helped identify that Mohammed was in fact suffering from epileptic seizures. He was immediately prescribed anti-epi-leptic medications and has made a full recovery of his symptoms.

Abdulrahman, a 9-year-old boy, had a history of frequent unexplained episodes especially when he was sleeping. Electrodes were placed on his head and an ambulatory EEG device was attached which allowed his brain activity to be recorded for three consecutive days while he was at home. This evaluation confirmed that the episodes he was having were indeed seizures. He was pre-scribed a new medication which has helped control his condition.

In addition to the clinical services, the Division of Pediatric Neurology is currently under-taking research that will further understanding of the landscape of childhood epilepsy in Qatar and enable a personalized approach to treatment of the chronic illness.

The Pediatric Neurology Department staff at Sidra Medicine.

One of Ooredoo’s National Sport Day highlights was the football match that took place between the stars of Qatari clubs, with the participation of the Asian Cup champion Hassan Al Haydos, and the Ooredoo team.


PISQ students delight Pakistan’s Ambassador at Sport Day event with stunning performance THE PENINSULA DOHA

The Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the State of Qatar, Syed Ahsan Raza Shah, attended the National Sport Day event organised by Qatar Tennis, Squash and Badminton Feder-ation.

The students of Pakistan

International School (PIS) Qatar demonstrated various traditional sport of Pakistan. The Ambas-sador was extremely delighted to see the enthusiasm of the par-ticipants and thanked Qatar gov-ernment for attributing the day towards the importance of sport.

He was of the view that Sports Day was a clear manifes-tation of the State of Qatar’s

resolve to promote-cultural sports and multi-cultural inte-gration amongst various com-munities through better under-standing and knowledge of their cultural and tradition. The Ambassador thanked higher organising committee of Qatar Tennis Federation for organising a wonderful National Sport Day event.

Eugenio Caballero, Alice Rohrwacher join 2019 Qumra Masters line-upTHE PENINSULA DOHA

The Academy Award winning Mexican production designer, Eugenio Caballero and the acclaimed Italian writer and director, Alice Rohrwacher, have been confirmed as additional Masters in the fifth edition of the Doha Film Institute’s (DFI) Qumra, to be held on March 15 to 20.

Caballero is celebrated for his work on diverse projects including Guillermo del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth for which he earned an Academy Award while Rohrwacher was winner of the Grand Jury prize at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

Born in Mexico City, Caballero, credits include nearly 30 films, 20 of them as a designer. He is nominated at this year’s Academy Awards for the film Roma directed by Alfonso

Cuarón. Among other directors he has worked with are Jim Jar-musch (The Limit of Control), Baz Lurhman (Romeo and Juliet), Sebastian Cordero (Cronicas, Rabia and Europa Report) and Floria Sigismondi (The Runaways).

Rohrwacher directed Le Meraviglie (The Wonders),

winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. Born in 1981 in Fiesole, she has worked in music and docu-mentary projects as well as an editor and composer for theatre. Her first feature Corpo Celeste made its world premiere in the Directors Fortnight in Cannes 2011. Caballero and Rohrwacher

join French New Wave cinema legend Agnès Varda, prolific Jap-anese director and writer Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Polish auteur Pawel Pawlikowski for the 2019 edition of DFI’s dedicated industry incubation and talent development event that focuses on first- and second-time filmmakers.

The Qumra Masters will share their insights with emerging filmmakers, provide feedback on projects in consul-tation sessions, and discuss their own inspiring creative journeys in daily Masterclasses.

Qumra 2019 will provide 36 projects from 19 countries access to Masterclasses and networking opportunities for first and second-time filmmakers, driving Qumra’s mission to expand support for the development of emerging filmmakers from Qatar, the Arab region and around the world.

Fatma Hassan Al Remaihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI, said: “We are proud to welcome Eugenio Caballero and Alice Rohrwacher to the Qumra line-up. They have distinctive bodies of work that distinguish

them for their unique creative voice and cinematic expertise. All visionaries in film, the Qumra Masters will make incredible contributions to benefit emerging filmmakers.”

Hanaa Issa, Deputy Director of Qumra, said: “We are excited to share the experiences of these amazing artists with young film-makers from the region and beyond. Their personal perspec-tives on filmmaking will provide meaningful and lasting benefit to all participants and open up a new depth of understanding and possibi l i t ies in their discussions.”

Over six days, the Qumra delegates will take part in bespoke industry sessions designed to progress their projects and prepare them for international markets, in addition to the Masterclasses and mentoring sessions by the Qumra Masters.

Italian writer and director, Alice Rohrwacher (left) and Academy Award winning Mexican production designer, Eugenio Caballero.

Hyatt Plaza Mall to extend NSD celebrations THE PENINSULA DOHA

Hyatt Plaza Mall offered a wide range of sport activities and competitions in partnership with Kiddy Zone and Jungle Zone during the National Sport Day (NSD) dedicated to emphasise the importance of healthy living.

This year Hyatt Plaza Mall will extend their celebrations for 5 days of sports activities and healthy lifestyle which will

continue until February 16 to ensure that all families and kids get the chance to experience this activity and try all the sports games and challenges.

This event offers the perfect blend of sports and family fun atmosphere that bring all com-munity members of all ages together to create unforgettable experiences.

Moreover, it includes dif-ferent kind of sports activities such as: Track Race, Table Tennis, Foosball, Mini Indoor

Baseball, Mini Golf, Kinetic Gym Video Game, Soft Archery, Mini Bowling, Tennis, Football Drill (star-kick), Billiards, Small Bil-liards, Stationary Bike, Mini Sta-tionary Bike, Football Goal, etc.

National Sport Day activity is a part of Hyatt Plaza’s efforts to promote physical activity through exercises and making the right behavioural choices to achieve Qatar’s national vision and human focus towards building a healthy and pros-perous society.

Oryx GTL marks NSD with several eventsTHE PENINSULA DOHA

As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme and its commitment to contribute to the promotion of a healthy lifestyle among its employees and members of society, Oryx GTL celebrated the National Sport Day through establishment of several sporting events in cooperation with Al Kharaitiyat Football Club.

The event was attended by executive management of the

company and a number of employees and their families. The executive management and a number of employees had a tour in the early morning around Al Kharaitiyat Club on the bicycles, accompanied by a pro-fessional team from Doha Cycling. After the warm up, par-ticipants moved to the different areas to enjoy their favourite sport. Many popular sports like football tournament, Cricket and table tennis were among the activities available.

There was also a special

area for children with several attractions like bouncy castles in addition to some competitions like Tug of war, Musical chairs, and Balloons Competition.

CSR team was part of this year’s sports day activities by allocating a place for children’s cycling in cooperation with Doha Cycling. Sasol also joined in the event and offered fun and inter-active game for children to play during Sport Day. Medical and security support services were on stand-by, to ensure the safety and security of all participants.

The employees of Oryx GTL during a tour around Al Kharaitiyat Club on bicycles as part of the National Sport Day celebrations.

The students of Pakistan International School Qatar with the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the State of Qatar, Syed Ahsan Raza Shah, during the National Sport Day event organised by Qatar Tennis, Squash and Badminton Federation.

Various activities at Hyatt Plaza Mall as part of NSD celebrations.

Caballero and Rohrwacher join French New Wave cinema legend Agnès Varda, prolific Japanese director and writer Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Polish auteur Pawel Pawlikowski for the 2019 edition of DFI’s dedicated industry incubation and talent development event that focuses on first- and second-time filmmakers.

NU-Q students explore legacies at annual Creative Media FestivalTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Working with the theme ‘Legacy and Promise,’ students at North-western University in Qatar (NU-Q) spent 48-hours producing multimedia projects with film and photography as well as creative writing and live performance at the University’s annual Creative Media Festival.

The theme inspired students to explore how legacies are formed and what promises leg-acies hold for the future. Moving forward to increasingly critical moments on the global scale such as mass migration, climate change, and political populism, students were urged to consider

what promises are being made to future generations.

One team of students used photographs and live per-formance for their project “The Good, The Bad, and The Evil” to demonstrate how sometimes only the bad things happening in the world get portrayed in media while goodness is over-shadowed or simply does not receive deserved recognition. The hope is to break that cycle of coverage in the future and rise above evil.

Another group addressed climate change and the impor-tance of keeping the planet clean as their promise for the future through visual designs. Others used film and dance to convey

their ideas about personal family legacies and cultural traditions that they carry with them.

“The festival, now in its second year at NU-Q connects distinguished professionals as empowering mentors, and a challenge to respond with imme-diacy as the students create extraordinary projects over a mere 48-hours,” said Everette E. Dennis, dean and CEO of NU-Q. “It shows that when we equip our students with the knowledge, tools, experience, and proper platform, they rise to the occasion and work hard together to demonstrate their potential as effective communi-cators and deliver powerful mes-sages as a result,” said Dennis.

Festival of Cultures Exhibition on February 16 THE PENINSULA DOHA

Marriott, one of the finest 5 star hotels in Qatar, will be hosting one-of-a-kind of exhibition where vendors of different cultures and backgrounds will come together to display and showcase their products to illus-trate the diversity in Doha.

‘Festival of Cultures Exhi-bition and Bazaar’ has welcomed

all to come together and expe-rience a wonderland of unique cultures. It will be a fun-filled day for all communities to come and enjoy with their loved ones. The main purpose of this event is to promote peace, togeth-erness and spread love and appreciation of different cultures from around the globe.

Under the theme ‘Explore, Experience, Enjoy’, local vendors will represent their talent of

handmade items and others will represent their countries with vast variety of attractive com-modities for everyone.

The event will exhibit arts, exquisite handicraft, exotic jew-ellery, shoes, blue clay pottery, home decor, accessories clothing and much more. The event will take place in a sophisticated lush setting of Marriott Hotel - Al Fayrouz Ballroom on February 16 from 11am to 7pm.


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09THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 MIDDLE EAST

A bus that was reportedly blown up by a suicide attack in southeastern Iran, yesterday.

Suicide bomber kills 27 members of Iran’s elite guardsAGENCIES TEHRAN

A car bomber struck a bus carrying members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, killing as many as 27 people in one of the deadliest ever assaults on the elite corps just two days after celebrations marked the 40th anniversary of the Islamic revo-lution.

The bus was travelling on a highway near the town of Chanali in Iran’s southeastern Sistan-Bal-uchistan province, the state-run Fars news agency reported, citing officials it didn’t name. Ten others on board were wounded, the agency said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. In a statement published by the Tasnim news agency, the Guards accused “agents of intelligence services tied” to the US of car-rying out the attack to mar anni-versary celebrations this week.

A “car loaded with explo-sives” targeted the bus, it said, adding that those killed were

border guards who were headed home.

In September last year, Islamic State militants and an Arab group claimed responsi-bility for a deadly assault on a military parade, in the country’s oil-rich southwest, that killed and wounded dozens of people, including members of the Guards.

The Trump administration has centered its Mideast policy on countering Iran, supported by American allies in the region. Washington exited the 2015 mul-tiparty nuclear accord last year and re-imposed crippling sanc-tions against the country. It has vowed to punish the country for its missile program and regional policies. The Islamic Republic is

engaged in a proxy confrontation with Saudi Arabia and Israel across regional conflicts from Syria, where it backs President Bashar Al Assad, to Yemen.

In comments yesterday, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who controls the Guards, issued his latest denun-ciation of the US Problems between the two countries weren’t “solvable” and negotia-tions with American officials wouldn’t “lead anywhere apart from financial and moral damage,” he said.

While violence and bomb attacks are not uncommon on both Iran’s western and eastern frontiers — bordering unstable countries Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan — audacious and

Absent Iran takes center stage at Mideast conference in PolandAP WARSAW

Although it is absent from the stage, Iran is nevertheless taking the spotlight at a Middle East security conference co-hosted by the United States and Poland that has highlighted deep divisions between the US and some of its traditional allies.

Amid uncertainty over its aims and questions about what it will deliver, the conference opens late Wednesday in Warsaw with some 60 nations in attendance. Yet, in an apparent test of US influence and suspicions in Europe and elsewhere over the Trump administra-tion’s intentions in Iran, many countries aren’t sending their top diplomats and will be represented at levels lower than their invited foreign ministers.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Vice-President Mike Pence are attending along with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his counter-parts from numerous Arab nations. But France and Germany are not sending Cab-inet-ranked officials, and European Union

foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is staying away.

Russia and China aren’t participating, and the Palestinians, who have called for the meeting to be boycotted, also will be absent. Iran, which is this week cele-brating the 40th anniversary of its Islamic Revolution, denounced the meeting as a “circus” aimed at “demonising” it.

In a bid to encourage better partici-pation, Pompeo and others sought to broaden what was initially advertised as an Iran-centric meeting to include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the fight against the Islamic State group, and the conflicts in Syria and Yemen. That effort produced only mixed results, particularly with longtime European allies who are trying to save the 2015 Iran nuclear deal after last year’s US withdrawal.

And, while the agenda gives no hint of any concrete actions that might result beyond creating “follow-on working groups” on a variety of common concerns like terrorism and cybersecurity, com-ments from several participants belied the underlying theme: countering Iran.

Pence will address the conference on a range of Middle East issues, Pompeo will talk about US plans in Syria following President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw US troops and Trump’s senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner and his peace partner, Jason Greenblatt, will speak about their as-yet unveiled Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

Greenblatt, whose portfolio extends only the Israeli-Palestinian peace effort, said Iran is the top priority and derided the Palestinians for their boycott and insistence that their case is the region’s most important issue.

In a series of tweets yesterday, Green-blatt said the Palestinian position “impedes nations from countering the common enemy of Iran.”

“Iran is the primary threat to the future of regional peace/security,” he said. “That’s what Palestinian leaders don’t grasp; as a consequence of being detached from new realities, we see Palestinians increasingly left behind/more isolated than ever.”

And, on his way to Warsaw,

Netanyahu made clear the conference is centered on Iran.

“It is a conference that unites the United States, Israel, many countries in the world, many countries in the region, Arab countries, against Iran’s aggressive policy, its aggression, its desire to conquer the Middle East and destroy Israel,” he told reporters.

Pompeo has predicted that the con-ference will “deliver really good out-comes” and has played down the impact of lower-level participation. “We think we will make real progress,” Pompeo said. He didn’t, however, offer any details about specific outcomes.

Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Cza-putowicz, the conference co-host, also steered clear of describing potential results. And, even he could not paper over the differences between the US and Europe, including Poland, over the Iran nuclear deal. “We consider this to be a valuable element on the international arena,” Czaputowicz told a joint news con-ference with Pompeo on the eve of the conference.

organised assaults that directly target the Islamic Republic’s security services are still rare.

Iranian authorities have blamed the US and its regional ally, Saudi Arabia, for attempting to fuel dissent inside the country, in particular in border provinces

and regions with minority pop-ulations who already suffer from low employment and harsher living conditions.

The attack also came as the US convened a meeting in Warsaw, Poland, in part to discuss American efforts to

undermine Iran’s economy and curb its military influence in the Middle East. European nations that remain committed to a 2015 deal with Iran aren’t sending top level officials. Neither Russia nor China is attending the two-day event.

Palestinians carry the body of Hassan Nabil Nofal, 17, who was hit in the head by an Israeli tear gas bomb last Friday in the Bureij refugee camp and died yesterday, during his funeral in Gaza City, yesterday.

Hamas vows resistance in face of Israeli crimesANATOLIA GAZA CITY

A leader of Palestinian resistance movement Hamas held Israel responsible for killing unarmed Palestinian protesters — including minors — along the Gaza-Israel buffer zone.

“The Israeli occupation is fully responsible for these crimes against humanity, which include the targeting of innocent and unarmed children,” Ismail Radwan told reporters.

He went on to assert that the blood of two Palestinian children

recently killed by Israeli troops near the buffer zone “had not been shed in vain”.

Last Friday, two Palestinian teens were killed — and 17 others injured—by Israeli troops deployed near the fraught buffer zone. Gaza’s Health Ministry later identified the pair as Hassan Shalabi, 14, and Hamza Ashtiwi, 18.

“We will continue to wage our resistance until the long-standing goals of our people are met,” said Radwan.

Since Palestinians began holding rallies along the buffer

zone in March of last year, more than 250 protesters have been killed — and thousands more injured — by Israeli army gunfire. Demonstrators demand the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes in his-torical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.

They also demand an end to Israel’s 12-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of many basic commodities.

Al-Quds TV faces risk of shutdownANATOLIA/ GAZA CITY

Lebanon-based Palestinian television channel Al Quds TV will go off the air by the end of February if it does not receive desperately needed funding, its director in Gaza said.

“If the necessary funds aren’t provided by the end of this month, it is inevitable that the channel will shut down,” Imad Ifranji said.

The channel has been experiencing a financial crisis for the last three years which it has failed to overcome despite tightly managing its expenses and cutting staff, Ifranji said.

He said the channel’s Gaza office has been unable to cover its operational costs for the past four months and around 50 employees have not received their salaries for nearly a year.

Al Quds TV had 350 per-sonnel when it was founded in 2008 but now has only 150, he said. He noted that the channel is around $6 million in debt.

“If no savior comes and the Palestinian authorities take action, we will lose a significant media outlet that conveys the message of the Palestinian people and undertakes the duty of fighting against occupation forces through the media,” Ifranji added.

UN court has jurisdiction to hear part of Iran-US disputeAP THE HAGUE

The International Court of Justice ruled yesterday that it has jurisdiction to hear part of a case brought by Iran against the United States that seeks to claw back around $2bn worth of frozen Iranian assets.

The US Supreme Court awarded the money to victims of a 1983 bombing in Lebanon and other attacks linked to Iran.

At hearings last year, the United States raised five objections to the court’s juris-diction and the admissibility of the case, which Iran filed in 2016.

The ruling came amid high tensions between Washington and Tehran after President Donald Trump pulled America out of the nuclear deal last year.

The United Nations’ highest court upheld one US objection to its jurisdiction, but it rejected another and said the third objection should be discussed at a later stage in the case.

The judges also rejected two US objections to the admissi-bility of the case.

The case will now proceed to the merits phase and is expected to take months or years to complete.

Tehran filed the case in 2016 based on the 1955 Treaty of Amity between Iran and the US, a bilateral agreement that Washington withdrew from last year.

The little-known treaty

regulating commerce between the two countries was among numerous ones signed in the wake of World War II as the Truman and Eisenhower admin-istrations tried to assemble a coalition of nations to counter the Soviet Union.

It includes a clause that sends unresolved disputes about interpretation of the treaty to the world court.

The attack at the heart of the case was a suicide truck bombing of a US marine bar-racks in Beirut in October 1983 that killed 241 military per-sonnel and wounded many more.

A US court ruled that the attack was carried out by an Iranian agent supported by the Hezbollah militant group.

The court, in an 11-4 majority ruling, upheld a US objection to its jurisdiction based on state immunity claimed by Iran, however they unanimously rejected Washington’s assertion that measures freezing Iranian assets fell outside the scope of the treaty.

The judges unanimously rejected US claims that the case was an abuse of process and that it should be thrown out because of Tehran’s alleged sponsorship of terrorism and involvement in nuclear proliferation.

Iranian representative Mohsen Mohebi called the decision a success, but added he had expected the court to reject all of the American objections. American lawyers left the court without commenting.

Israel refuses to let UN council visit Palestinian areasAP/UNITED NATIONS

UN diplomats say Israel has refused to let the UN Security Council visit territory that the Palestinians claim for a future independent state.

Last week, the council authorized its current pres-ident, Equitorial Guinea’s U.N. Ambassador Anatolio Ndong Mba, to consult the Israeli and Palestinian ambassadors about a trip. Palestinian Ambassador Riyad Mansour responded that a council visit would be viewed “in the most positive way.”

But Kuwait’s UN Ambas-sador Mansour Al Otaibi says Ndong Mba reported to the council Wednesday that “Israel categorically refused the council visit,” though Ambas-sador Danny Danon said the government would welcome visits to Israel by individual ambassadors.

A council visit requires support from all 15 council members and approval by the countries concerned.

Al-Otaibi said he wants to continue consultations so “hopefully we reach a consensus.”

A car bomber struck a bus carrying members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, killing as many as 27 people in one of the deadliest ever assaults on the elite corps just two days after celebrations marked the 40th anniversary of the Islamic revolution.

AHMET GURHAN KARTAL ANATOLIA

10 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019VIEWS

QUOTE OF THE DAY

We continue to regret the withdrawal of Great Britain, but

it’s a reality and therefore now it’s

about providing as much security as

possible.

Angela Merkel German Chancellor

‘Nothing is agreed’: 50 days remaining before Brexit

This was probably an overused quip among all the other Brexit jargon during the divorce negotiations, as both the UK

and the EU tried to hold their cards close to the chest. But now, a mere 50 days until the Brexit deadline, set to transform the UK into a non-EU country on March 29, nothing has been agreed on, despite a seemingly endless parade of discussions, negotiations, and joint declarations. Should any other EU member state have taken up exit nego-tiations, they would probably have been over by now, with a straight-forward deal long since signed.

However, a unique border issue has so far played a huge but negative part in all stages of the divorce talks

between the UK and the EU. The 499-kilometer (310 mi.) border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will become the only land border between the UK and the bloc as of March 29 – given that the UK will not ask for an extension on the exit date, as indicated by Prime Minister Theresa May.

A special clause in the withdrawal agreement reached by May and EU officials, namely the backstop, aimed to provide a sense of insurance to the seamless border continuing after Brexit, but it faces objections from a majority of MPs and Northern Ire-land’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the partners of May’s government.

May has 50 more days until the Brexit date, but she desperately needs wider support in the House of

Commons for her Plan B strategy – or, in actuality, Plan A minus the backstop. May has promised “alter-native arrangements” that would replace the backstop, but the EU have maintained the deal was done around the red lines set by the British gov-ernment and will not be renegotiated.

As the British premier travels to Brussels on Thursday to speak with EU negotiators about her still-to-be-revealed alternative arrangements, there seems to be little hope that the EU will make any concessions on what they have already agreed. ‘Special place in hell’ May’s visit comes a day after the European Council President Donald Tusk stepped into a hornet’s nest by wondering aloud “what a special place in hell looks like for those who promoted Brexit” without a proper plan.

The signing of the declaration of intent marks a qualitative leap of the strategic partnership between Doha and Paris and it reaffirms the common, solid and constructive aspects of the bilateral relations.

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK [email protected]

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM [email protected]

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI [email protected]

ESTABLISHED IN 1996

EDITORIAL

Qatar-France partnership

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani recently announced the signing of a declaration of

intent to establish a strategic dialogue between the State of Qatar and French Republic. The announcement was made after a meeting between H E Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdul-rahman Al Thani and the Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic Jean-Yves Le Drian, who was on a visit to Qatar. During the meeting Qatar and France discussed issues of wide-ranging interests to both the coun-tries and issues of international importance and they exchanged views on regional issues, especially the Gulf crisis and the Palestinian issue.

In the recent past, Qatar has been making its presence felt in the international arena through visits by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to the United States, Europe, Latin America, Asian countries etc. H E the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs has been relentlessly touring countries across the world to enhance Qatar’s relations with those countries and to find solutions to problems the world is facing in general. There has been

a flurry of visits by heads of states and top diplomats of dif-ferent countries to Qatar as well and the visit by the French Min-ister is the latest among them.

The signing of the decla-ration of intent marks a quali-tative leap of the strategic part-nership between Doha and Paris and it reaffirms the common, solid and constructive aspects of the bilateral relations. The agreement covers several areas such as defence, security, health, education, culture, sports, economy, investment, com-bating terrorism and follow up of the developments of the rela-tionship between the two coun-tries and the implementation of the different mutual agreements, H E the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs said during a joint press con-

ference with the French Minister. Such dialogue strategy will create the right background and atmosphere for coor-dination of action and building partnership and material-ising the vision of both the countries.

The French minister praised the strong ties between his country and Qatar, which covers several areas of cooper-ation such as defence, security and culture. The visiting min-ister said that the dialogue will cover a wide scope of areas and will continue on a regular basis. He added that the it will help finding a political solution in Libya resulting in security and stability in the region. The dialogue will also focus on ways to resolve the Syrian crisis, support sover-eignty and stability of countries beset with crisis such as Lebanon and Iraq. It is also expected to bring comfort to the struggling Palestinian regions, especially Gaza, which requires a concerted effort from the international community.

The French minister said that the increasing number of threats and crises in the Middle East and elsewhere shows the importance of security and defence cooperation between Qatar and France.

Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the French Republic Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani stressed the importance of Qatar’s role in sport, pointing out that the country preparations are continuing to host the World Cup 2022, which will be a global event for peace.

Qatari embassies celebrate NSD

The diplomatic, consular and rep-resentative missions of the State of Qatar abroad organized various sporting events on the

occasion of Qatar Sport Day, amid great participation and interest.

In London, the Embassy of the State of Qatar in UK organized sports activ-ities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar in the United Kingdom Yousef bin Ali Al Khater, and the diplomatic and embassy staff, in addition to a large number of local school students. The program included activities in athletics at an ath-letics venue in the British capital to promote the IAAF World Champion-ships to be held in Doha in September.

In Paris, the Embassy of the State of Qatar in the French Republic organized sports activities on the occasion of the National Sports Day with the partici-pation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the French Republic Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani, and the diplomatic and embassy staff.

The Ambassador stressed the importance of Qatar’s role in sport, pointing out that the country prepara-tions are continuing to host the World Cup 2022, which will be a global event for peace. In Kuwait, the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Kuwait organized events to celebrate the State’s Sports Day. The event was attended by Qatar’s Ambas-sador to Kuwait Bandar bin Mohammed Al Attiyah, Military Attache of the State of Qatar in Kuwait Major General Ibrahim bin Saad Al Kubaisi, Director General of the Kuwait Public Authority for Youth Abdulrahman Badah Al Mutairi, and CEO of Ooredoo Kuwait Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdullah Al Thani, in addition to members of the diplomatic mission and

its staff, a number of Qatari nationals and representatives of Qatari insti-tutions in Kuwait. In Ankara, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Turkey organized a sports event on the occasion of the National Sport Day. The event was attended by Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Turkey Salem bin Mubarak Al Shafi, dip-

lomats at the Embassy and a number of Turkish citizens.

In Stockholm, the Embassy of the State of Qatar organized sports activities in the center of Stockholm on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Kingdom of Sweden Sheikha Moza bint Nasser Al Thani, and the diplomatic and embassy staff.

In Brussels, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the Kingdom of Belgium organized sports activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Belgium Abdul-rahman bin Mohammed Al Khulaifi, and

the diplomatic and embassy staff. In Kiev, the Embassy of the State of

Qatar in Ukraine organized sports activ-ities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Ukraine Hadi bin Nasser Al Hajri and the diplomatic and administrative staff of the Embassy. The program included various sports activities, including a friendly football match between Ukrainian orphans.

In Budapest, the Embassy of the State of Qatar in Hungary organized sports activities in one of the capital’s clubs on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Charge d’Affaires of the Embassy of the State of Qatar to Hungary Hassan bin Nasser Al Khalifa, and the diplomatic and embassy staff. The program included various sporting activities.

In Dhaka, the Embassy of the State of Qatar organized sports activ-ities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Bangladesh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Dhaimi, the diplomatic and embassy staff.

In Cairo, the Permanent Delegation of the State of Qatar to the Arab League held sports activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day in the presence of the members of the mission and the staff members of the delegation.

The Deputy Permanent Repre-sentative to the Arab League Ambas-sador Hassan Al Mutawa said that the National Sport Day is an important annual event for all Qataris, making sport one of the most important pillars of the National Vision 2030.

In Beirut, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Lebanon organized sports activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Lebanon Mohammed Hassan Jaber Al Jaber.

In Asmara, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the State of Eritrea organized sports activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Eritrea Jaber Ali Al Athba, the diplomatic and embassy staff and a number of citizens.

In Munich, the Consulate General of the State of Qatar in Munich, Germany, organized sport activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Consul General of the State of Qatar in Munich Rashid bin Saeed Al Khayarin, the dip-lomatic and consular staff and a number of Qatari nationals and members of the Arab community residing in Munich.

In Milan, the Consulate General of the State of Qatar organized sports

activities on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the partici-pation of Consul General of the State of Qatar in Milan Fahd bin Ibrahim Al Mushiri, in addition to the diplomatic and consular staff.

In Sarajevo, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to Bosnia and Herze-govina organized sporting events on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Sultan bin Ali Al Khater, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the diplomatic team and embassy staff.

In Geneva, the Permanent Dele-gation of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office at Geneva organized sporting events on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador Ali Khalfan Al Mansouri, Permanent Rep-resentative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office at Geneva. The program included various sporting activities.

In Berlin, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to Germany organized a sports event on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Germany Sheikh Saud bin Abdul-rahman Al Thani, the diplomatic and embassy staff, as well as a number of Arab ambassadors and diplomats, Qataris. The program included various sporting events at the Aspria Club in Berlin.

In Ottawa, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to Canada organized a sports event on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the participation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Canada Saud Bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud, the diplomatic and embassy staff. The program included various sporting events.

In Khartoum, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to The Sudan organized sports events on the occasion of the National Sport Day with the partici-pation of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Sudan Abdulrahman bin Ali Al Kubaisi, and the diplomatic and embassy staff along with representa-tives of institutions, companies and national organizations operating in Sudan and representatives of the media and the press. The program included various sports activities with the partic-ipation of all. In Rome, the Embassy of the State of Qatar to the Italian Republic organized sporting events on the occasion of the National Sport Day.

Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Italy, Dr. Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Al Malki, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to Italy Ahmed bin Salim Ba Omar, and Acting Charge d’Affaires Sami Al Zamanan of the Embassy of the State of Kuwait, in addition to the staff of the diplomatic embassy and the staff par-ticipated in the events.

QNA

The Qatar embassy in the US celebrating Qatar National Sport Day.

For MBS, Qahtani was the backbone of his court, and [Mohammed] assured him that he will be untouched and will return when the Khashoggi case blows over,” a Saudi royal told the Journal, using the crown prince’s initials. “MBS had no intention whatsoever to let go of Qahtani.”

The complexities of Trump’s anti-Iran campaign will be on display in Warsaw, when Pompeo will co-host a conference ostensibly on the Middle East but widely seen as an anti-Iran summit. While Israeli and prominent Gulf officials will be in attendance, some traditional European allies will not be: The foreign ministers of France and Germany chose to skip the proceedings.

11THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 OPINION

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The Uighurs’desperate situation

Trump shields the Saudi crown prince

THE WASHINGTON POST

ISHAAN THAROOR THE WASHINGTON POST

The strange case of the Uighur musician and poet Abdurehim Heyit reveals a lot about China’s incarceration and

attempt to brainwash1 million or more minority Muslim Uighurs in Xin-jiang province. Heyit, a master of the two-stringed dutar, was reported by Turkey to have died in one of the camps China built for the Uighurs. Denying that he was dead, China released a video of Heyit saying he was in “good health,” but the video could not be verified as genuine, and the uncertainty over his fate raises anew the disturbing question of what is going on in the concentration camps that China has tried to hide from the world.

China has sought for years to

assimilate the Muslim Uighur popu-lation into the majority Han Chinese, partially by flooding Xinjiang province with migrants from else-where. But the effort to crush the population has picked up speed under President Xi Jinping, whose government set up an archipelago of bleak outposts for carrying out forced indoctrination, to eradicate the Uighur language, traditions and culture. At first, China denied these camps existed; then China admitted that they exist but claimed they are for “re- education” and vocational training. As eyewitnesses have ver-ified, the real purpose is much darker, to coerce the detainees to give up their language and culture. Experts have said more than 1 million Uighurs are now detained, out of a population of more than 11 million. Dolkun Isa, president of the World Uighur Congress, told us there may be 2 million or more imprisoned, based on word leaking out to Uighur families and those who have been released.

Other nations, fearful of Chinese bullying and eager to preserve eco-nomic ties, have been slow to condemn or even acknowledge this ongoing crime against humanity. But on Saturday, the government of

Turkey, a large Muslim state with a significant Uighur population,denounced China’s prac-tices as “violating the fundamental human rights” of the Uighur popu-lation in Xinjiang and called the con-centration camps “a great shame for humanity.” Other governments also should speak out against this cultural genocide.

Isa is among those Uighurs abroad who also have paid a terrible price. His communications with his family were cut off 22 months ago, and his mother died without a farewell. His two brothers disappeared into the black hole of detention; one of them is a professor, among the 338 Uighur intellectuals whose detention has been documented. (The true number is undoubtedly higher.) Isa told us of worrisome reports that Uighur detainees are now being moved out of Xinjiang to prisons elsewhere in China, clouding their fate even further. China must be held to account for crimes against the Uighur popu-lation. Worthy legislation is pending in Congress to address this, and the time has come for the rest of the world to demand admission to the camps, in search of a lost Uighur musician and more than 1 million others.

The end of last week was the final date for the Trump administration to submit a congressional report

answering whether the Saudi crown prince was responsible for the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October. The administration let the deadline pass with little acknowledgment.

The snub drew outrage. Under the terms of the Magnitsky Act - US human rights legislation lawmakers had triggered shortly after Khashoggi’s killing - Trump had 120 days to respond to the request and then possibly move to impose further punitive sanctions. Anger over the killing of the Saudi citizen, a con-tributor to The Washington Post’s Global Opinions page, forged an unusual bipartisan consensus in Congress.

So far, the White House has dog-gedly refused to turn on its allies in Riyadh. It didn’t matter that the CIA’s own assessment was that the oper-ation to abduct the dissident writer on a visit to Turkey was probably ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman himself; a senior administration official released a statement arguing that the president “maintains his discretion to decline to act on congressional com-mittee requests.”

“The non-answer is a blatant dodge that ignores the finding of the CIA and the abundant evidence behind it,” The Washington Post’s editorial board noted in response. “It makes a mockery of the Magnitsky law, as well as of US principles by covering for the crown prince to protect the cozy relations between him and President Trump, as well as Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.”

Lawmakers weren’t happy,

either. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said the White House’s refusal to submit a report by the deadline “violates the law.” He added that he was “urging” the White House to act, saying, “I expect them to comply with the law.” Senators reintroduced a bill requiring sanctions for those responsible for Khashoggi’s death and brought sep-arate new legislation that would place tough standards on a mooted nuclear deal with Riyadh.”America should never descend to this level of moral bankruptcy,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said in a statement. “Congress will not relent in its efforts to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for this heinous crime.”

At a news conference in Budapest, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rejected Kaine’s comments. “America is not covering up for a murder,” the US top diplomat said Monday, insisting that American offi-cials were seeking “additional infor-mation” from Saudi counterparts and taking further action. The Trump administration already announced sanctions on 17 people linked to the killing, he noted, including prom-inent Saudi courtiers.

But as more evidence comes to light, it looks increasingly as though the White House is seeking to shield the man with the most power in Saudi Arabia: the crown prince.

This week, The New York Times reported on a 2017 conversation between the crown prince and a key aide in which he vowed to use “a bullet” to end Khashoggi’s criticism of the Saudi regime. Not long before that, a UN human rights expert said that Saudi Arabia had “seriously cur-tailed and undermined” Turkish attempts to properly investigate Khashoggi’s disappearance after entering the Saudi Consulate in

Istanbul.“Evidence collected during my

mission to Turkey shows prime facie case that Mr. Khashoggi was the victim of a brutal and premeditated killing, planned and perpetrated by officials of the State of Saudi Arabia,” special rapporteur Agnes Callamard said in a statement.

Key allies of the crown prince may ultimately escape serious pun-ishment, too. According to a new report in the Wall Street Journal, one of the main ringleaders that Saudi Arabia has named in the plot, Saud Al Qahtani, has retained much of his power. Though fired from his official position in the court and included in the list of Saudi individuals subjected to sanctions by the United States, he remains an informal adviser to the crown prince and was recently spotted on a trip to the United Arab Emirates.

“For MBS, Qahtani was the backbone of his court, and [Mohammed] assured him that he will be untouched and will return when the Khashoggi case blows over,” a Saudi royal told the Journal, using the crown prince’s initials. “MBS had no intention whatsoever to let go of Qahtani.”

Saudi officials are still waging a propaganda war over the killing. In a Sunday interview with CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, described Khashoggi’s death as “tragedy” and a “mistake” but added that the “crown prince had nothing to do with this.” He then endured an awkward exchange with his interlocutor, CBS anchor Margaret Brennan, who pressed him on how it was possible that Saudi authorities had no idea where Khashoggi’s body was.

“I think this investigation is ongoing, and I would expect that eventually we will find the truth,” Jubeir finally mustered.

Trump has his own reasons for rallying behind the Saudi throne. His dodging of the congressional request was a sign of how White House offi-cials “are slow-rolling” the Khashoggi affair, former State Department spokesman John Kirby said in an interview with CNN. The Saudis are vital allies in Trump’s maximum-pressure campaign on Iran - and the White House is scared of tarnishing them. “This whole episode shows you the degree to which this administration has gone all in on Saudi Arabia,” Kirby added. “It shows you the degree to which their Middle East policy is about Iran, and they see Saudi Arabia as the biggest counterweight against Iran.”

The complexities of Trump’s anti-Iran campaign will be on display in Warsaw on Wednesday, when Pompeo will co-host a conference ostensibly on the Middle East but widely seen as an anti-Iran summit. While Israeli and prominent Gulf officials will be in attendance, some traditional European allies will not be: The foreign ministers of France and Germany chose to skip the

China has sought for years to assimilate the Muslim Uighur population into the majority Han Chinese, partially by flooding Xinjiang province with migrants from elsewhere.

proceedings. The Saudis, Israelis and Emiratis - “like-minded” partners insofar as they oppose Tehran - will be better represented.

Speaking to the National, an Abu Dhabi-based newspaper, a European official at the United Nations described the Trump administration’s pre-Warsaw planning as “a series of chaotic decisions being made at random.” For now, that fumbling may be the best thing protecting senior Saudis from real repercussions over Khashoggi’s killing.

Murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s fiancee Hatice Cengiz speaking during a press conference on a book entitled “Jamal Khashoggi: His Life, Struggles and Secrets”at Turkish Arab Media Association in Istanbul.

Campaign for Buhari

12 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA

Strike paralyses Algeria’s seaportANATOLIA/ALGIERS

Workers at the Port of Algiers abruptly declared a strike yesterday, crippling operations at Algeria’s largest seaport.

Run by the Dubai Ports Group, the port only unloaded a single cargo ship yesterday — out of 14 — as a result of the strike. According to a trade union source, the strike comes as part of a larger protest that began Tuesday evening to demand higher wages.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency on condition of ano-nymity, the source said that a deal between port workers and management — signed over a year ago — had never been implemented.

According to the same source, port managers told workers earlier this week that implementation of the agreement had been postponed “indefinitely”.

Boko Haram attacks governor’s convoy in northeast NigeriaANATOLIA MAIDUGURI

Boko Haram insurgents attacked the campaign convoy of the governor of Nigeria’s northeast Borno State, security sources said yesterday.

Early yesterday the

insurgents ambushed Governor Kashim Shettima’s convoy near the border with Cameroon while campaigning ahead of Saturday’s presidential and parliamentary elections in the volatile region.

“The governor was going to Gamboru from Dikwa to cam-paign when Boko Haram

ambushed and opened fired on the long convoy,” a security source at the governor’s office said in Maiduguri, the provincial capital, on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Five people were feared dead, according to the source.

“Some of the vehicles at the end of the convoy were tar-geted,” an official said.

Over a dozen young soldiers supporting the military’s fight against Boko Haram were also in the convoy targeted by the insurgents. The military declined to comment on the incident.

The governor has yet to return to the capital after the incident. Due to the lack of phones in the area, reports of the attack came to the capital this evening. The attack came just days before the country’s general elections amid fears of security challenges.

Malawi removes 260 minors from adult prisonsAFP/BLANTYRE, MALAWI

Malawi has removed nearly 270 minors from two adult prisons, a legal action group said yesterday, following a court ruling and warnings about food shortages, disease risk and overcrowding.

The move came after a High Court ruling in June 2018 which ordered Bvumbwe and Kachere prisons to release all children being held there in a case brought by civil society organisations.

Victor Mhango of the Centre for Human Rights Edu-cation, Advice and Assistance said all 267 juveniles who were being held at the two jails had been released.

“The welfare of children in prison has always been a serious matter of concern. Our laws have recognised that prisons are not suitable for children,” he said. Malawi only has two juvenile reform centres, which are often full.

The court ordered that children awaiting trial should be transferred to remand homes, and those found guilty should be transferred to reform homes within 30 days.

Algeria’s Bouteflika dismisses national police chiefREUTERS ALGIERS

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika dismissed national police chief Mustapha Lahbiri yesterday, the presidency said in a statement that gave no reason for the move.

Bouteflika had named Lahbiri to the post in June 2018, replacing Abdelghani Hamel, who had been in the post for eight years and was also fired without reasons provided.

Analysts and local media linked Hamel’s removal to the seizure of 701 kg of cocaine at the western port of Oran at the end of May, and the handling of the subsequent investigation.

The presidency statement said Abdelkader Kara Bouhadja, hitherto director of the judicial police, would take over from Lahbiri.

Bouteflika said on Sunday he would seek a fifth term in a pres-idential election set for April 18, according to the state news agency APS, ending months of uncertainty caused by his poor health.

Bouteflika, 81, who has been in office since 1999 but has been seen in public only rarely since suffering a stroke in 2013 that con-fined him to a wheelchair, is likely to be re-elected as Algeria’s opposition remains weak and fragmented.

IS defends last Syria redoubt as family members fleeAFP DAMASCUS

Islamic State (IS) militants made a desperate last stand in eastern Syria yesterday, while their wives and children fled the final, blood-soaked implosion of its bastion.

The US-backed Syrian Dem-ocratic Forces on Saturday launched a final push to expel IS fighters from the sole remaining morsel of the proto-state they declared in 2014 across parts of Syria and Iraq.

Thousands of people have flooded out of the so-called “Baghouz pocket” near the Iraqi border in recent days — mostly women and children, but also suspected jihadists.

Several dozen people fled Baghouz yesterday afternoon, walking to an SDF-held position four kilometres (two miles) away from the village.

As they approached, the SDF rushed down to filter out the men. They separated 15, all with long beards, and took them one by one behind a rock to search them. Afterwards, they loaded them into a truck to take them to a gathering point where coalition troops were present.

In an open field serving as the main civilian reception location, about 300 women and children, almost all of them Iraqi,

sat in small groups. After fleeing Baghouz on foot on Tuesday afternoon, most had spent the night out in the open.

“I tried to go get a blanket for my kids but there weren’t enough,” said Umm Ayham, a young Syrian woman from the northern province of Raqa.

“Some people had lit a fire, burning plastic they found on the ground and baby diapers, so I went by it to get warm.”

Hundreds of people fled the IS holdout in the night of Tuesday, SDF spokesman Mustefa Bali said.

Inside, the Kurdish-led SDF fighters were advancing slowly against hundreds of jihadists.

“We have retaken positions lost in a counterattack launched two days ago by IS. We have pro-gressed and taken new posi-tions,” Bali said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said the SDF fighters were making painstaking progress.

“There are mines throughout the sector,” said Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the

Britain-based war monitor. “The SDF are firing rockets,” he said, and both sides were locked in heavy clashes on the edges of Baghouz village.

Since December, more than 38,000 people, mostly wives and children of IS fighters, have fled into SDF-held areas, the Observ-atory says. That figure includes around 3,500 suspected jihadists detained by the SDF, according to the monitor.

In SDF-held territory earlier Wednesday, two dozen members of the coalition forces searched men who had escaped.

About five waited in line to be patted down, including one man in a rickety wheelchair.

A coalition force member led one of the younger men to a sub-sequent point for a retina scan.

Further on, those that had been searched were kneeling on the ground with coalition troops circling around them.

The alliance launched a mil-itary offensive to expel IS from the eastern banks of the Euphrates in the oil-rich province

A military vehicle with the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is seen in the Baghouz area in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor yesterday, during an operation to expel hundreds of Islamic State group (IS) militants from the region.

of Deir Ezzor in September. Since then, more than 1,300 jihadists as well as 650 SDF fighters have been killed, while more than 400 civilians have lost their lives, the Observatory says. SDF spokesman Bali said at the weekend that up to 600 jihadists could remain inside the pocket, most of them foreigners. US President Donald Trump on Monday said the coalition may declare victory over IS in Syria within days.

A victory in Baghouz would allow the United States to withdraw all its 2,000 troops

from Syria, as announced by Trump in December. The pullout announcement shocked Wash-ington’s allies, as well as US mil-itary commanders.

In a report last week, the US Department of Defence warned that without sustained counter-terrorism pressure, IS could resurge within months.

Syria’s Kurds hold hundreds of suspected foreign IS fighters and have long urged their home countries to take them back, but these have been reluctant.

Acting Pentagon chief Patrick Shanahan on Tuesday

made an unannounced visit to Baghdad. A senior Pentagon official told reporters travelling with Shanahan that Washington was pressing its allies to repat-riate their nationals.

“We think coalition members need to take respon-sibility for their citizens who are fighters. It’s been a message we’ve delivered time and time again. And we are seeing hopeful progress,” he said.

Syria’s civil war has killed 360,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

US airstrikes in Somalia ‘won’t bring peace’: ExpertsANATOLIA JOHANNESBURG

More US airstrikes in Somalia against Al Shabaab will not bring peace to the troubled nation or discourage the terrorist group from continuing its operations, experts said.

“Somalia needs a national dialogue. International support should focus on reaching a nego-tiated peace and justice based on reconciliation,” Shadrack Gutto, an emeritus professor at the Uni-versity of South Africa, told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday.

Gutto said that the interna-tional community should help train and equip the Somali national army so it can achieve the capacity to protect its own territory.

He added: “No foreign power can bring stabilization to another country, especially where there are divisions, as in the case of Somalia, where one group

-- Al-Shabaab -- says it’s fighting to create an Islamic state, while other groups fight for clan or ethnic dominance.” “I think that US airstrikes are a short-term [i.e., cosmetic] solution for sta-bilizing Somalia,” Gutto said.

For the last several years, the U.S. has been conducting joint operations with the African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), along with the Somali army, with the fre-quency of U.S. airstrikes in the country increasing noticeably in 2017.

Now a month rarely passes without the Pentagon announcing a fresh round of strikes in Somalia ostensibly aimed at weakening Al-Shabaab, an Al Qaeda ally that has fought for more than a decade to over-throw the Somali government.

Last week, Thomas Wald-hauser, commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), told the US Senate’s Armed Services

Committee that repeated air-strikes had failed to degrade Al-Shabaab’s capabilities.

“The bottom line is the Somali national army needs to grow; it needs to step up and take responsibility for its own security,” he was quoted as saying. Gutto also confirmed that the US had increased the frequency of its air raids carried out in Somalia from 35 in 2017 to 47 in 2018.

So far this year, Waldhauser said, the U.S. had already carried out over 10 airstrikes in the troubled Horn of Africa country.

He went on to praise Tur-key’s humanitarian efforts in Somalia, describing Turkish assistance as “critical” to rebuilding the country, much of which was destroyed by decades of conflict.

Turkey provides badly-needed humanitarian aid —including food, medicine and education -- to Somalia’s most

vulnerable communities, building several hospitals and schools in recent years, along with an airport.

Yusuf Serunkuma, a research fellow at Uganda’s Makerere University, also believes that dia-logue — rather than force— is the key to ending years of conflict.

“Neither having a strong Somali national army nor increasing [the frequency of] attacks on Al-Shabaab will pacify Somalia,” he said.

“The Somali government should instead engage all stake-holders, including Al Shabaab, in dialogue,” he said by phone from Kampala.

An expert on the Horn of Africa region, Serunkuma called on the Somali government to grant local clan elders -- who wield considerable influence over their clans -- more power in the country’s representative assemblies.

He also urged the governzent

and its international partners to address the factors that led to the 1991 coup that resulted in the overthrow of late President Mohamed Siad Barre.

Somalis, the majority of whom are Muslim and who speak a single language, are divided primarily along tribal lines. In recent years, however, Somali activists have cam-paigned hard to rally their com-patriots against deep-seated clan politics.

Their efforts appear to have yielded results, with the growth of “anti-tribal” movements recently springing up across the country and in the Somali diaspora.

Meanwhile, Somalia’s inter-national partners, including Britain and Turkey, continue to host dialogues between the country’s rival factions — a policy Serunkuma believes could, unlike US military might, eventually yield peace.

People attend campaign rally for current President and Presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari ahead of Saturday’s presidential and parliamentary elections in Abuja, Nigeria, yesterday.

The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces on Saturday launched a final push to expel IS fighters from the sole remaining morsel of the proto-state they declared in 2014 across parts of Syria and Iraq.

Huge fire hits paint factory in Bengaluru

13THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 ASIA

India’s citizenship bill lapses in Upper HouseREUTERS GUWAHATI

Protesters in northeast India claimed victory yesterday after a bill that the government says will help Hindus in neighbouring countries settle in India lapsed before it could be ratified by parliament’s Upper House.

The Citizenship Amendment Bill is aimed at helping Hindus and members of other non-Muslim minority communities in neighbouring Muslim coun-tries move to India.

But critics say the legislation is as an attempt by Prime Min-ister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) burnish its Hindu-nationalist credentials ahead of a general election, that must be held by May.

The bill had incited excep-tional opposition in remote, eth-nically diverse northeastern states where for years residents have complained that migrants

from Bangladesh are a burden on society.

For days, protesters have taken to the streets, bringing chaos to several cities in the region. Authorities have responded with curfews and blocks on broadcasters in an attempt to quell the unrest.

The lower house of par-liament passed the bill last month but it was not ratified by the upper house before the end

of its last session before the election, on Wednesday.

Activists in the northeast welcomed parliament’s failure to push the legislation through.

“This is a moral victory for the people of the northeast with the BJP forced to bow down to the voices of struggle,” Samujjal Bhattacharya, a leader of the All Assam Students’ Union, one of the protesting groups, said. Members of the Assam state organisation had threatened to “shed blood” to block the bill.

Protests over recent days have also rocked the small state of Manipur, where authorities imposed an indefinite curfew and suspended mobile internet services for five days late on Tuesday, following violent protests.

Police said people were defying the curfew. Protests also erupted in Mizoram state, where some activists have given voice to old separatist aspirations.

Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, talks with his West Bengal counterpart, Mamata Banerjee, during the “Save Democracy” rally to protest against India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in New Delhi, yesterday.

AFP NEW DELHI

Two Indian ministers were left red-faced yesterday after their attempts to glorify Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government on Twitter back-fired spectacularly.

Critics have accused Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of running a relentless propaganda campaign on social media to increase its base of supporters. Media reports have suggested the party employs a “backroom army of trolls” to attack its rivals and run smear campaigns. Yes-terday, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal shared a video purportedly showing India’s first semi high-speed train zipping past at lightning speed, in order to trumpet Modi’s pet “Make in India” initiative.

But it turned out to be a digitally altered video with the speed of the train enhanced by two times, prompting a backlash from Twitter users.

“Massive respect for Piyush Goyal. He just made the video 2X times faster and called it semi-high speed train when he could have made it 6X times faster and called it super high speed train,” wrote one user.

Goyal has yet not com-mented on the video, which can still be seen on his timeline.

India’s junior minister for finance and shipping, Pon Rad-hakrishnan also found himself at the receiving end after inad-vertently criticising his own

government in multiple tweets. The minister retweeted posts with the hashtag #Modi-forNewIndia without reviewing the content.

“ # M o d i 4 N e w I n d i a Working for the middle class is low on the agenda of Modi govt,” read one of his tweets.

“Modi govt started the process of online tracking of applications for environmental approvals, bringing down approval time from 600 days to 1,800 days,” read another.

Hundreds of other accounts loyal to Modi and the BJP retweeted Rad-hakrishnan’s posts verbatim. Some of the tweets have since been deleted. Pratik Sinha, co-founder of fact-checking website Alt-News, said he had edited a shared Google doc-ument that exposed how the BJP’s social media army churned out propaganda on a daily basis and was picked by government loyalists. “How do you get a union minister to tweet what you want? Well, you go and edit the trending document made by BJP IT cell, and then you control what they tweet,” wrote Sinha.

India’s right-wing groups recently accused Twitter of a “left-wing bias”, saying the network was suspending accounts supportive of the BJP.

On Monday, a 31-member panel headed by a BJP law-maker, summoned Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to appear before it on February 25.

12 kids injured in blast at Kashmir schoolREUTERS/SRINAGAR

At least 12 students were injured in an explosion at a school in Kashmir yesterday, police said, though the cause of the blast was not immediately clear. Kashmir has been plagued by separatist violence for years, with clashes between security forces and militants killing more than 100 civilians over the past year.

But witnesses did not report any clash before

the blast in a 10th-grade classroom at the Falai-e-Millat private school, just south of the state capital, Srinagar.

“We were studying and all of a sudden there was an explosion and we ran out and I saw my legs bleeding,” Faisal Ahmad, 16, said.

Police were investigating, a spokesman said. A 13-year-old boy was killed and one injured

in Kashmir last week after finding unexploded ordance after a clash.

Indian firefighters battle a massive industrial fire on the grounds of a paint factory on the outskirts of Bengaluru, yesterday. No casualties were reported in the blaze that ignited the United Paints stockyard in Madanayakanahalli in the southern Karnataka state.

Two managers of New Delhi hotel arrestedAP NEW DELHI

Two managers of a New Delhi budget hotel where a fire killed 17 people have been arrested, police said. The general manager of the Arpit Palace Hotel, Rajender Singh, and manager, Vikar Kumar, were booked on suspicion of culpable homicide for the fire Tuesday, Delhi police spokesman Anil Kumar said.

Police Additional Commis-sioner Amit Sharma said the fire,

which also injured four people, was likely caused by a short circuit.

Most of the deaths at the hotel in Karol Bagh, an area in central New Delhi full of shops and budget hotels that make it popular with tourists, resulted from suffocation, according to the Delhi government minister of health and urban devel-opment, Satyendar Kumar Jain.

A friend of a family of 13 who had traveled to Delhi from southern India to attend a

wedding said three members of the family had died from burns.

The hotel developer had a permit from the fire department to build up to four stories. But the building appeared to have six floors, including an unau-thorized kitchen Jain said was built from sheets of fiberglass on top of the roof. A video shot by a witness showed the roof con-sumed by flames. Fire author-ities said wood-paneled hallways and stairwells fed the fire and cut off escape routes.

Oppn’s Delhi rally wants Modi outIANS NEW DELHI

Top opposition leaders yesterday called for the ouster of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as they rallied in the national capital in a show of strength but some of them admitted to differences within their ranks ahead of the Lok Sabha battle.

In fiery speeches, Chief Min-isters Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), N Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh) and Arvind Kejriwal (Delhi), whose AAP organised the public meeting near Jantar Mantar, described Modi and BJP President Amit Shah as threats to Indian democracy. The rally, which drew thousands of mainly

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) sup-porters, also saw the participation of NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Farooq Abdullah of National Con-ference, Sharad Yadav, Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party, DMK’s Kanimozhi, CPI-M’s Sitaram Yechury and rebel BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha among others.

“The current situation is worse than the Emergency,” thundered Trinamool Congress leader Banerjee, saying attempts by the Modi government to frighten her by sending CBI offi-cials will not succeed.

Naidu expressed the hope that Modi will become “ex-Prime Minister soon”. The Telugu Desam Party President attacked the Modi government over such

issues as demonetization, farm distress, rising unemployment, misuse of CBI and other agencies as well as attacks on the federal structure.

Congress leader Anand Sharma, who took part in the rally despite persisting Con-gress-AAP tensions in Delhi, said there will be agreements among opposition parties at some places and none at some others. “However, attempts should be made in the country’s interest.”

Warning that the BJP was using the communal card ahead of the elections, Abdullah asked the opposition parties to forget “conflicts among our-selves” to forge a united anti-Modi alliance.

Bangladesh not to be part of Saudi-led armed struggleANATOLIA DHAKA

Bangladesh will not take part in any Saudi-led military operation in anywhere including Yemen, its top diplomat said.

“Bangladeshi military will take action only in case of an attack on the two sacred mosques in two sacred cities

-- Makkah and Madinah,” Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen told reporters.

He was referring to the Kaaba, the most sacred mon-ument of Islam, in Makkah and Al Masjid Al Nabawi, the mosque of Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) in Madinah, as two sacred mosques, when he was

speaking at a press briefing on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s maiden overseas tour to Germany after resuming office for third consecutive term.

On February 4, Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia agreed to sign a defence deal to enhance mil-itary cooperation while Bangla-desh’s army chief Aziz Ahmed was on a tour to visit the

newly-built Bangladesh mission in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Once the deal is signed today, Bangladesh will deploy some 1,800 troops in Saudi Arabia to defuse and remove mines along war-torn Saudi-Yemen border.

Momen said the deal does not mean that Bangladesh is going to join the Saudi-led war.

Bangladesh will just work on removing mines along the Saudi-Yemen border as part of its com-mitment to any peacebuilding process, he added.

Among the members of a Saudi-based Islamic military coalition comprised of 34 states to combat terrorism, Bangladesh has more than two million workers in Saudi Arabia.

Maldives seeks whistleblowers in search for looted cashAFP COLOMBO

The Maldivian government urged its citizens to support its anti-corruption drive yesterday after it launched a website to help trace millions of dollars reportedly stolen during the former regime.

The whistleblower site went live on Tuesday, days after the government sought international help to find mil-lions of dollars allegedly siphoned off by former pres-ident Abdulla Yameen, who faces embezzlement and money laundering charges.

Launching the portal, Pres-ident Mohamed Ibrahim Solih called on government employees and ordinary cit-izens to anonymously lodge reports of corruption, an official in his office said.

“The campaign is to assure the community that his admin-istration will not tolerate cor-ruption at any level,” the official said.

Users were encouraged to access the whistleblower site through proxy servers to ensure anonymity.

Maldivian police have said their investigations found evi-dence linking Yameen and his justice minister Azima Shakoor to the theft of state funds and money laundering.

In December, courts in the tourist paradise froze some $6.5m in accounts allegedly linked to Yameen who suffered a shock defeat in elections in September.

The authorities believe millions of dollars could be stashed abroad and talks were underway with foreign entities to repatriate any cash found.

Yameen, who came to power in 2013 and jailed many of his opponents or forced them into exile, has also been accused of receiving close to $1.5 million in illicit payments during his failed bid for re-election.

Twitter gaffes pile up for Indian ministers

Critics say the legislation is as an attempt by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) burnish its Hindu-nationalist credentials ahead of a general election, that must be held by May.

14 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019ASIA

Afghanistan dismisses12 election officialsREUTERS KABUL

Afghanistan has dismissed 12 election officials amid an inves-tigation into corruption following problems with the organisation of a general election last year, with fears growing that the purge could delay a July presidential election.

President Ashraf Ghani’s government agreed to an amendment of the election law to improve transparency fol-lowing meetings with political, civil society groups and oppo-sition parties, and his spokesman said the removal of the 12 was a consequence.

“After the election law was amended in a grand consensus, endorsed by the cabinet and signed by the president, then the commissioners could no longer stay in their jobs,” said Shah Hussain Murtazawi, a presi-dential palace spokesman.

He did not elaborate on the reason for the sacking of the seven officials from the Inde-pendent Election Commission and five commissioners from the Election Complaints Com-mission. Wasima Badghisi, one of the dismissed commissioners, said the decision was political and would not be accepted.

Other were not immediately available for comment.

The Attorney General’s Office said in a statement on Tuesday the 12 officials were barred from leaving the country as an investigation had been launched into accusations of corruption, abuse of authority and incompetence.

The Transparent Election Foundation for Afghanistan, an independent election monitoring group, said the dismissals were a hasty political decision rather than a reform that would help the electoral process.

The parliamentary election was held on Oct. 20 after months of wrangling and delay, and marred by accusations of wide-spread fraud, including ballot-stuffing, technical problems with b iometr ic regis trat ion equipment as well as attacks by Taliban insurgents.

Election authorities have yet to announce the final results.

New commissioners, once appointed, will face the task of preparing for the presidential election in which both Ghani and his chief executive, Dr Abdullah Abdullah, are candi-dates. The presidential election was originally planned for April this year but was pushed back to July.

Over 12,000 Qataris visited Azerbaijan last yearSIDI MOHAMED THE PENINSULA FROM BAKU

More than 12,000 Qataris visited Azerbaijan last year due to many facilities provided to them to visit the country including on arrival visa facility, said a senior official at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan.

“Citizens of Qatar can get visa for 30 days upon arrival and we are planning it for Qatar’s residents as well. We will send recommendation to the author-ities concerned in this regard,” said Kanan Guluzada, Head of Media and Public Relations Services at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan.

“In 2017, about 8,000 Qatari citizens visited Azerbaijan and this number increased to 12,458 in 2018. Qatar Airways operates between Doha and Baku and has two flights daily,” he said. Guluzada pointed out that tourism was not a priority for the

government before but three years ago Azerbaijan government started to develop this sector and “we have seen a great development as we started to build many facilities that attract tourists and we have about 600 hotels to welcome tourists from 3 to 5 stars”.

As for Qatar, he said, Azerbaijan government was organizing many activities through government’s represent-ative in the Middle East and ‘will do more to make them know more about Azerbaijan because relations between the two coun-tries are strong’.

Azerbaijan is a beautiful country and has many natural tourist destinations as well as rich cultural heritage. Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, is one of the most beautiful tourist desti-nations, where modern monu-ments are combined with his-torical and archeological parts.

The buildings of Azerbaijan are a glorious mixture of style, reflecting the cultural shifts and changing trends of hundreds of years. From minarets to mosaics, medieval to modern, every corner reveals something different.

Among the most important tourist attractions in the city that The Peninsula visited is Heydar Aliyev Center (Museum) which is considered as one of the main attractive places for tourists and has also become a symbol of modern Azerbaijan and modern

Baku. The Center was designed by Zaha Hadid (an Iraqi-British architect), and the overall shape of the building resembles a wave-like ascension from the ground towards the sky followed by gradual descent down to the earth.

The Museum presents the information regarding the life and activities of Azerbaijan’s national leader Heydar Aliyev, who is one of the most important figures in the history of Azerbaijan and ruled the country from 1993 to 2003.

The Center was opened in 2013 after the construction work

lasted about seven years and the total area of the center is about 57,000 square meters and the height up to 80 meters.

Another important feature in Azerbaijan is the Old City built inside a wall dating back to the pre-Christmas period. It has a mosque that is built around 1076 and has been frequently visited by many tourists, especially from the Gulf countries.

Inside the Old City, the Maiden Tower is the symbol of Azerbaijan’s capital city Baku. It is considered a magnificent architectural monument. The

Maiden Tower is 28 meters high on its northern side and 31 meters on the southern side while the walls are 5 meters.

Throughout the centuries, The Maiden Tower has suf-fered the effects of both natural and human attrition. Thus, restoration works have been performed on it from time to time.

As for the new city (new Baku), it was built after 2004, where the country witnessed an important economic renais-sance. The infrastructure was developed and many of the country’s old tourist areas were reconstructed and renovated, characterized by its clean and beautiful streets and its infra-structure, which mostly mimics European architectural grace.

Among the landmarks in the Baku also is The Flame Towers which are a trio of skyscrapers that dominates the skyline of Baku. The Flame Towers sym-bolize the long historic logo of the capital. They are completely covered with LED screens, and at night they light up with a display of fire that can seen from anywhere in the city.

Kanan Guluzada, Head of Media and Public Relations Services at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan.

Heydar Aliyev Centre and ancient musical instruments (below) at the centre.

Pakistan announces massive social media crackdownAFP ISLAMABAD

Pakistani authorities yesterday vowed to carry out a “massive” crackdown targeting hate speech and extremism on social media, as a minister boasted arrests have already been made.

Officials in Pakistan are fre-quently accused of muzzling the media and targeting individuals critical of the country’s powerful

military establishment and have blocked hundreds of websites and social media accounts over the years. Information minister Fawad Chaudhry announced the government was setting up a new enforcement arm to reg-ulate social media during a speech in the capital Islamabad.

“We made some arrests last week and by the will of Allah we are launching a massive crackdown against social media

users spreading hate speech and violence,” he said.

Self censorship in the South Asia nation is widely believed to be rife at traditional news outlets.

“Our problem is that digital media is over taking formal media so it is important for us to regulate this,” Chaudhry added, saying: “Informal media is a greater problem than formal media.”

The announcement comes days after authorities arrested a

journalist for allegedly posting defamatory content on social media. And on Tuesday an opinion piece in the Interna-tional New York Times criticising Pakistan’s powerful army was censored by its local publisher and replaced by a blank space.

Activists and bloggers fre-quently report receiving warnings from Facebook and Twitter for posting unlawful content.

Manila arrests journalist critical of PresidentAP MANILA

The award-winning head of a Phil-ippine online news site that has aggressively covered President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration was arrested yesterday by government agents in a libel case.

Maria Ressa, who was selected by Time magazine as one of its Persons of the Year last year, was arrested over a libel complaint from a businessman which Amnesty International condemned as “brazenly politically motivated.” Duterte’s government said the arrest was a normal step in response to the complaint.

Duterte has openly lambasted journalists who write unfavorable stories about him, including his

anti-drug campaign that has left thousands of mostly poor suspects dead.

Rappler Inc., the news site which Ressa heads, said National Bureau of Investigation agents served the warrant yesterday afternoon, making it difficult for Ressa to apply for bail, and escorted her from the Rappler office to NBI headquarters.

“We are not intimidated. No amount of legal cases, black prop-aganda, and lies can silence Fil-ipino journalists who continue to hold the line,” Ressa said in a statement. “These legal acrobatics show how far the government will go to silence journalists, including the pettiness of forcing me to spend the night in jail.”

Ressa and a former Rappler

researcher, Reynaldo Santos Jr., were indicted recently, the Department of Justice said.

Rappler said the busi-nessman filed the libel com-plaint five years after the article appeared in 2012, and the law under which Ressa was charged by the gov-ernment, the Cybercrime

Prevention Act, did not go into effect until months after the article’s publication.

The article included alle-gations that the businessman was linked to illegal drugs and human trafficking, and that a car registered in his name had been used by the country’s chief justice.

Rappler’s CEO Maria Ressa (right) and Managing Editor Glenda Gloria wait inside the National Bureau of Investigation in Manila, yesterday.

Thai party fighting for survival after gaffe with princessAP/BANGKOK

The Thai political party that took the unprecedented and ultimately unsuc-cessful step of nominating a member of the royal family as its candidate for prime minister was fighting for its political life yesterday, while the princess herself appeared to criticise the fallout.

The country’s Election Commission said yesterday that it recommended the

Thai Raksa Chart Party be dissolved because its prime minister candidate was “in conflict with the system of rule of democracy with king as head of state.” The recommendation was forwarded to the Constitutional Court, which said it would consider today whether to accept the case.

The party on Feb. 8 named Princess Ubolratana Mahidol its candidate for prime minister for a general election next month. But King Maha

Vajiralongkorn just hours later issued an edict effectively banning the action because it was inappropriate and unconstitutional.

What made Ubolratana’s bid partic-ularly notable was her allying herself with a party that is part of the political machine of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup and is loathed by many roy-alists and others in the country’s tradi-tional establishment.

“Citizens of Qatar can get visa for 30 days upon arrival and we are planning it for Qatar’s residents as well. We will send recommendation to the authorities concerned in this regard,” said Kanan Guluzada, Head of Media and Public Relations Services at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan.

Australia to reopen island detention campAP/CANBERRA

The Australian government said yesterday it would reopen a moth-balled island detention camp in antic-ipation of a new wave of asylum seekers arriving by boat after Parliament passed legislation that would give sick asylum seekers easier access to mainland hospitals.

The Christmas Island immi-gration detention camp, south of

Jakarta, Indonesia, was a favourite target of people smugglers who brought asylum seekers from Asia, Africa and the Middle East in rickety boats from Indonesian ports before the trade virtually stopped in recent years.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said a security committee of his cabinet agreed to reopen the camp on the advice of senior security officials.

Taliban announce talks with US in IslamabadAFP/KABUL

The Taliban said yesterday that its negotiators would meet US envoys for talks this month in Islamabad, and also sit down with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan to discuss Afghan-istan.

The announcement, not immediately confirmed by Washington or Islamabad, comes as America’s chief nego-tiator tours the globe shoring up support for a peace process to end its longest war.

Zalmay Khalilzad, a former ambassador to Afghanistan, held extensive talks with the militants last month in Qatar, where the Taliban have an office. More talks are slated for later in February.

But a Taliban statement issued yesterday said separate meetings would be held first on February 18 in Islamabad “by the formal invitation of the government of Pakistan”. Talks in Doha would follow a week later on February 25, the statement said.

Khalilzad is heading a large delegation on a tour of Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan to boost the peace process and bring all Afghan parties to the table.

He has expressed cautious hope for a deal before Afghan presidential elections slated for July, but says the Taliban must come to the table with the Kabul government, which the insurgents consider a US puppet. President Ashraf Ghani — who has expressed frus-tration at being sidelined from recent talks — flew to Munich yesterday to attend an interna-tional security conference, his office said.

15THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 EUROPE

UK govt downplays report it will seek Brexit delayAP LONDON

On the eve of more divisive votes in Parliament over Brexit, the British government yesterday downplayed a report that it plans to offer lawmakers a choice between backing Prime Minister Theresa May’s unpopular divorce deal and a delay to the UK’s exit from the European Union.

An ITV News correspondent, Angus Walker, said he overheard negotiator Olly Robbins in a Brussels bar saying the gov-ernment would ask Parliament in late March to back her agreement, rejected by law-makers last month, or seek an extension to the Brexit deadline.

May told lawmakers that Parliament had approved a two-year countdown to Brexit, and “that ends on March 29. We want to leave with a deal, and that’s what we’re working for.”

She told parliamentarians not to set much store in “what someone said to someone else as overheard by someone else in a bar.” Lawmakers overwhelm-ingly rejected May’s Brexit deal with the EU last month, and she

is now trying to secure changes before bringing it back for another vote.

The EU insists it won’t rene-gotiate the legally binding with-drawal agreement, though it is still holding talks with Britain about potential tweaks to a non-binding political declaration that accompanies it. German Chan-cellor Angela Merkel said yes-terday that the EU wanted to “do everything for a deal, but it cer-tainly it has to be a fair deal... and there we unfortunately still have a bit of work ahead of us.”

If a deal is not approved by the British and European

parliaments before March 29, the UK faces a messy sudden Brexit that could cause severe eco-nomic disruption.

Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said the government wants to secure a deal, but is also preparing for a “no-deal” Brexit.

Opposition politicians have accused May of trying to fritter away time as the clock ticks down, in order to leave law-makers with a last-minute choice between her deal and no deal.

Britain’s Parliament on Thursday will hold the latest in a series of debates and votes, in which pro-EU lawmakers will try to change the government’s course, ruling out a “no-deal” Brexit and aiming for close post-Brexit ties with the EU.

The votes are not legally binding, and a House of Commons split between Brexit-backers and EU supporters has so far sent contradictory mes-sages. In previous votes on January 29, lawmakers voted to rule out a “no-deal” exit — without signalling how that should happen — and also told May to seek changes to her Brexit agreement from the EU.

On Tuesday, May urged law-makers to give her more time, promising Parliament yet another series of votes on the next steps in the Brexit process on February 27 if she has not secured changes to the Brexit

deal by then. “What the prime minister is up to is obvious,” Labour Party Brexit spokesman Keir Starmer said yesterday. She’s coming to Parliament every other week, pretending there’s progress and trying to buy

another two weeks, edging her way toward March 21, when the next EU summit is, to try to put her deal up against no-deal in those final few weeks.

“Parliament needs to say ‘That’s not on.’”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said yesterday that the EU wanted to “do everything for a deal, but it certainly it has to be a fair deal... and there we unfortunately still have a bit of work ahead of us.”

Anti-Brexit demonstrators protest outside the Houses of Parliament, in Westminster, London, yesterday.

Austria plans tougher sentences for crimes against womenREUTERS VIENNA

A u s t r i a ’ s r i g h t - w i n g government announced yesterday tougher sentences for violent crimes, particularly against female victims, while pointing to a recent spate of cases in which foreigners are suspected of murdering women.

Austria’s ruling coalition of conservatives and the far right came to power on the back of Europe’s migration crisis, pledging to prevent a repeat of that influx in which the country took in about 1 percent of its population in asylum seekers in 2015 alone, many from the Middle East and Afghanistan.

The latest crime statistics available, those for 2017, show the number of crimes overall and violent crimes falling in the Alpine republic, which also has one of the lowest murder rates in the European Union.

But the tabloid press and the government have seized on eight unrelated killings of women this year, most believed by police to have been com-mitted by foreigners, as an unacceptable spike.

“We have seen at the beginning of this year that an almost eerie series of murders has struck this country,” Interior Minister Herbert Kickl

of the far-right Freedom Party told a news conference out-lining the planned measures.

“We observe that very, very often people involved in these violent crimes are not Austrian and are from other countries and other cultures,” Kickl told the joint news conference with conservative Chancellor Sebastian Kurz and other ministers.

The package of measures itself, which includes raising the minimum sentence for physical abuse and putting female genital mutilation on the statute book, does not specifically target for-eigners. It has also been months in the making, following up on a coalition pledge to toughen sentences for physical abuse offences and violent crimes.

Kickl’s comments, however, are the latest by this gov-ernment juxtaposing immi-gration and crime but stopping short of saying one causes the other. The main suspect in the latest murder, committed in Vienna on Tuesday night, is a Bosnian citizen. Kickl and Kurz said they are examining whether they can legally increase the number of offenses for which refugees can be stripped of their status and deported, beyond the current list of severe crimes such as murder.

Gorbachev slams Washington over arms treaty exitAFP MOSCOW

The last Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev issued a stinging crit-icism of Washington yesterday, accusing it of misleading the world over its exit from a key arms treaty and seeking to gain military superiority at the expense of international security.

This month US President Donald Trump ripped up a key arms control agreement, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, that Gor-

bachev and Ronald Reagan bro-kered in 1987.

Russian President Vladimir Putin quickly followed suit, tasking his government with developing new ground-based missiles and banning his min-isters from initiating any future talks to salvage the agreement.

Gorbachev said that according to the treaty the country exiting it should notify the global community of “excep-tional circumstances” that prompted it to do so. In a column published by Vedomosti liberal

daily, Gorbachev asked if Wash-ington, the world’s biggest mil-itary spender, had been able to “explain itself to the interna-tional community” and the UN Security Council.

“No, this has not been done,” Gorbachev said, adding that instead the United States pre-ferred to accuse Russia of vio-lating the agreement.

The 87-year-old also claimed Washington misled the world when it said it needed to abandon the treaty also because China and other countries not

bound by the INF pact were stockpiling missiles.

“This is not convincing either,” he said, adding that Russia and the United States still controlled 90 percent of all nuclear weapons.

“Behind the US decision to exit the treaty are not the reasons the US leaders are citing but something completely different,” said Gorbachev. It is, he said, “a desire by the United States to free itself of any constraints in the arms sphere (and) gain absolute military superiority.”

Spanish prosecutor accuses Catalan separatists of using ‘human shields’AFP MADRID

A Spanish public prosecutor accused Catalan separatist leaders yesterday on the second day of their trial of having tried to use “human shields” to block police during their failed secession bid in 2017.

Supreme Court prosecutor Fidel Cadena rejected arguments by defence lawyers who said the trial is politically motivated, saying “anyone can have the ideas they want”. “What is penalised...is behaviour carried out over time which aimed... at the subversion and rupture of the constitutional order, calling for violent methods through the use of the masses as human shields” against police, he said.

Twelve Catalan separatist politicians and activists face years behind bars if they are

convicted of rebellion or other charges for pushing an inde-pendence referendum in October 2017, in defiance of a court ban, and a brief declaration of independence.

Under Spanish law, rebellion is defined as “rising up in a violent and public manner”. But the key, divisive question is whether there actually was any violence. Prosecutors point to “violent incidents” during pro-tests orchestrated by two grass-roots groups in the lead up to the referendum. Activists sur-rounded a Catalan ministry building on September 20, 2017 while national police carried out a search inside to try to stop the vote from going ahead.

At least three police vehicles were vandalised and their occu-pants forced to flee into the building, where for hours a group of agents remained

trapped by the crowds outside.Prosecutors also accuse the

separatists of fostering “acts of violence and aggression against police officers” on the day of the referendum.

Supporters of independence deny the accusation of violence. They instead condemn a police operation to shut down the ref-erendum, which saw voters beaten with batons and dragged away from polling stations, images of which were seen in media around the world.

“It is not separatism which is being tried... but the series of events which took place in Sep-tember and October 2017,” pros-ecutor Javier Zaragoza said.

“Political activity is not a licence which justifies carrying out criminal actions,” like ignoring the ban of the refer-endum by the Constitutional court, he said.

Nato chief to meet Lavrov on missile pact crisisAFP BRUSSELS

Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced yesterday that he will hold talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov this week, as part of efforts to save a key arms control treaty that is on the point of collapse.

The pair will meet at the Munich Security Conference, which starts tomorrow, as Nato tries to persuade Moscow to abandon a new missile system the alliance says breaches the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

The US began the process of exiting the treaty earlier this month in response to Moscow’s deployment of the 9M729 missile, prompting Russia to announce its own withdrawal. “I expect to meet minister Lavrov in Munich, and I think it is important to have dialogue with Russia especially when we face so many difficult issues as we face today,” Stoltenberg said as he arrived for a meeting of Nato defence ministers.

The future of the INF treaty — and what steps Nato will take to bolster its defence against new Russian medium-range missiles -- are top of the agenda for the defence ministers’ two-day meeting. The collapse of the 1987 treaty, which banned ground-launched missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometres, has sparked fears of a new arms race in Europe. But Stoltenberg said Nato had no intention of deploying “new nuclear land-based weapons systems in Europe”.Moscow denies the missile breaches the terms of the INF treaty and has made various counter-allegations against the US.

Germany arrests two alleged Syrian ex-secret service officersAFP BERLIN

Germany has arrested two alleged former Syrian secret service officers accused of torture and crimes against humanity, prosecutors said yesterday.

The men, 56-year-old Anwar R and Eyad A, 42, were arrested on Tuesday in Berlin and Rhineland-Palatinate state. Both left Syria in 2012.

Also on Tuesday, another Syrian believed to have worked for the secret service was arrested in France in what was a “coordinated” operation, the federal prosecution in Karlsruhe said. “From April 2011 at the latest, the Syrian regime started to suppress with brutal force all anti-government activities of the opposition nationwide,” a pros-ecution statement said.

“The Syrian secret services played an essential role in this.

The aim was to use the intelli-gence services to stop the protest movement as early as possible.” Anwar R had allegedly led a secret service division that operated a prison in the Damascus area, and had partic-ipated in the torture and abuse of prisoners from April 2011 to September 2012.

“As head of the Investigative Department, Anwar R directed and commanded prison opera-tions, including the use of sys-tematic and brutal torture,” it said. Eyad A, a former officer who had manned checkpoints and hunted protesters, had allegedly aided and abetted two killings and the physical abuse of some 2,000 people between July 2011 and January 2012.

In the summer of 2011, he manned a checkpoint near Damascus where around 100 people per day were arrested then jailed and tortured in the prison headed by Anwar R.

Workers clear snow from the “Brockenbahnhof” train station of the Harzer Schmalspurbahn narrow gauge train on the Brocken mountain in Schierke, central Germany, yesterday.

Clearing snow

16 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019EUROPE

Early vote risk as Spain’s lawmakers reject budgetAFP MADRID

Right-wing and Catalan sepa-ratist lawmakers yesterday rejected Spain’s draft 2019 budget, a move that could force Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez into calling early elections.

Sanchez, who came to power in June thanks in part to parlia-mentary support from 17 Catalan lawmakers, was depending on their votes to push his first budget through but they withdrew their backing.

All eyes are now on whether the socialist premier, who leads a minority government, will call early elections with opinion polls showing one outcome could be a right-wing majority in par-liament, including a newly emerged far-right.

Sanchez’s socialists are already adopting a campaign-like tone, accusing conservatives and Catalonia separatists of blocking a budget that included many social spending measures.

“The right-wing in this country is trying to put a brake

on the social progress of this budget and this government,” Budget Minister Maria Jesus Montero said after the rejection.

“It’s trying to stop this country from moving forward,” she said, adding it was likely early elections would be called but refusing to comment further.

Conservatives are furious with the socialist government for negotiating with Catalonia’s sep-aratist executive as Madrid tries to ease tensions with the north-eastern region after a secession attempt in October 2017.

While Madrid says it initiated talks to try and find a way out of an ongoing crisis as Catalonia’s government continues to want independence, the opposition has accused it of yielding to sep-aratist demands merely to stay in power.

Pablo Casado, leader of the conservative Popular Party (PP), said the budget rejection marked “the end of the road for Pedro Sanchez as prime minister.” “It’s now really pressing to call general elections.” Apart from social measures, the budget also contained an increase in investment in Catalonia.

But with pro-secession leaders in the dock for their role in the 2017 attempt to break Catalonia from Spain — a trial labelled a “farce” by separatists — Catalan lawmakers whom Sanchez depends on filed amendments to block the budget last week. So it was that the par-liament approved their amend-ments on Wednesday with 191 votes in favour in the 350-member assembly, defeating the budget.

Sanchez’ government would now in theory have to present a new, revised version of its budget.

In the current climate, though, with Sanchez left with so little parliamentary support, analysts predict he will call early general elections. “Legally he is not obliged to do so,” said Antonio Barroso, Deputy Research Director at the Teneo

analysis group.Various opinion polls — the

latest published yesterday in online daily eldiario.es — point to a right-wing majority in par-liament post-elections formed by the PP, centre-right Ciu-dadanos and far-right Vox party.

Even before the vote, the socialist government was accusing right-wing and sepa-ratist parties of opposing a social

budget that contrasts with the austerity of Mariano Rajoy’s pre-vious conservative executive.

“After seven years of social injustice, right-wing forces and the independence movement will vote against a social budget,” Sanchez tweeted on Tuesday.

“Both want the same thing: that Catalonia be at war with itself and that Spain be at war with itself.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Equality, Carmen Calvo, attend a debate on the government’s 2019 budget during a parliament session in Madrid, yesterday.

All eyes are now on whether the socialist premier, who leads a minority government, will call early elections with opinion polls showing one outcome could be a right-wing majority in parliament, including a newly emerged far-right.

Bulgaria freezes suspicious payments from VenezuelaAFP SOFIA

Bulgaria and the United States have halted what they believe could be a scheme to illegally channel money out of Venezuela, which is under sanctions from Washington amid the ongoing political crisis in the South American country, officials said.

Bulgarian officials and US ambassador Eric Rubin told a news briefing that “millions of euros” in payments from Vene-zuela’s state oil company PVDSA

had been seized in bank accounts in Bulgaria.

The funds — ostensibly ear-marked for the purchase of food and to finance a Venezuelan sports federation — had been paid into a number of accounts held by a lawyer with dual Bul-garian and foreign nationality, who had now left the country.

Some of the money had already been transferred out of the accounts to other countries, Bulgarian chief prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov said.

The Bulgarian and US

authorities suspect that the reasons given for the money transfers “have nothing to do with reality,” he said.

“We will most probably open a probe for money laundering,” Tsatsarov continued, adding that the authorities refused to confirm at this stage whether the transfers were related to the current political crisis in Venezuela.

“We have undertaken measures to place the remaining funds, which are quite sub-stantial, under control in order

to prevent them being taken out of the country,” Tsatsarov said.

Bulgaria’s central bank and its national security agency, DANS, were checking whether similar transfers had been made into other accounts in the country, said DANS chief Dimitar Georgiev.

US ambassador Rubin said it was “critical” to “stop the illegal transfer of funds to support the illegal authorities in Venezuela.” The US was working with its European partners “to ensure the wealth of the people in

Venezuela is not stolen,” he said.Oil makes up 96 percent of

the revenue of crisis-hit Vene-zuela and Washington is using sanctions to try to starve the regime of Nicolas Maduro, while backing opposition leader and self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido.

In a tweet on Sunday, Guaido’s aide and commissioner of finance Carlos Paparoni warned that the state-owned PDVSA oil company had been illegally wiring funds through Bulgarian accounts.

People protest against Netflix before the premiere of the film “Elisa and Marcela” at the 69th Berlinale film festival in Berlin yesterday.

Up in arms

EU adds Saudi Arabia to dirty-money blacklistREUTERS STRASBOURG

The European Commission added Saudi Arabia, Panama, Nigeria and other jurisdictions to a blacklist of nations seen as posing a threat because of lax controls on terrorism financing and money laundering, the EU executive said yesterday.

The move is part of a crackdown on money laun-dering after several scandals at EU banks but has been criticised by several EU countries including Britain worried about their economic relations with the listed states, notably Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi government media office did not immedi-ately respond to a request for comment. Panama said it should

be removed from the list because it recently adopted stronger rules against money laundering.

Despite pressure to exclude Riyadh from the list, the com-mission decided to list the kingdom, confirming a report in January.

Apart from reputational damage, inclusion on the list complicates financial relations with the EU. The bloc’s banks will have to carry out additional checks on payments involving e n t i t i e s f r o m l i s t e d jurisdictions.

The list now includes 23 jurisdictions, up from 16. The commission said it added juris-dictions with “strategic defi-ciencies in their anti-money laundering and countering ter-rorist financing regimes”.

German anti-Semitic offences rise in 2018AFP BERLIN

Anti-Semitic offences rose almost 10 percent in Germany last year, and violent attacks were up more than 60 percent, crime statistics showed yesterday.

Police recorded 1,646 offences motivated by hatred against Jews, said a government answer to a request by far-left Die Linke party lawmaker Petra Pau.

Among these were 62 violent offences that left 43 people injured, up from 37 physical attacks the previous year.

Germany, like other western countries, has watched with alarm as anti-Semitic and other racist hate speech and violence have increased in recent years as the political climate has

coarsened and grown more polarised.

A mass influx of mostly Muslim refugees and migrants to Germany from 2015 drove the rise of the far-right and anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which since late 2017 is the biggest opposition group in parliament.

Party co-leader Alexander Gauland described Nazi Ger-many’s industrial-scale murder of Jews and other minorities as a mere “speck of bird poo in over 1,000 years of successful German history”.

Another leading AfD poli-tician, Bjoern Hoecke, has criti-cised the sprawling Holocaust memorial in Berlin as a “mon-ument of shame”. The president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, and

other Jewish community leaders have accused the AfD of fomenting hate against refugees, Muslims and Jews. Germany has also witnessed a rise in anti-Semitic attacks committed by migrants from Arab states.

In one prominent case last year a 19-year-old Syrian man was convicted for assault after lashing out with his belt at an Israeli man”. A video of the street assault, filmed by the victim on his smartphone, had sparked widespread public revulsion as it spread on social media, and triggered street rallies in soli-darity with Jews.

News of the belt attack coin-cided with another public outcry, over a rap duo who made light of Nazi death camp prisoners but went on to win the music indus-try’s sales-based Echo award,

which was subsequently axed.Days after the belt assault,

some 2,000 people rallied at a “Berlin Wears Kippa” solidarity demonstration, matched by smaller events in several other German cities.

Most anti-Semitic offences were however committed by far-right perpetrators, reported the Berlin daily Tagesspiegel in an article on the new crime statistics. Pau in her statement charged that “we are seeing that militant right-wing extremists can openly call for the desecration of Jewish institutions and attacks against Jewish people”.

A rising number of people and groups in the “grey zone between conservatism and right-wing extremism are denying the Holocaust and engaging in anti-Semitic agitation,” she said.

Pence hails $414m deal on US rockets for PolandAFP WARSAW

The US and Poland finalised a deal yesterday for Warsaw to buy American mobile rocket launchers worth $414m as it lobbies Washington to boost troops on Polish soil.

“We are pleased to partner with you in Poland’s national defence,” US Vice-President Mike Pence said in Warsaw as the deal was inked in an air hangar filled with Polish and US troops.

It means that “Poland is taking its place among the most capable and formidable nations in the world,” he added, under-scoring that US will “always” stand with Nato ally Poland.

His comments were echoed by Polish President Andrzej Duda, who has lobbied Wash-ington hard for a permanent US military presence in Poland.

The purchase will have “a huge impact not only on strengthening the defence potential of Poland and the Polish army but will also increase security in our part of Europe, on the eastern flank of the Atlantic Alliance,” Duda said.

The first stage of the acqui-sition of “20 HIMARS systems” will go ahead in 2023, he added.

Pence and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are head-lining a conference in Warsaw on security issues in the Middle East that the US is co-hosting with Poland.

Bulgaria asks Britain for help in poisoning caseAFP SOFIA

Bulgaria has asked Britain to help determine whether a chemical agent used in the 2015 poisoning of a local busi-nessman was Novichok or a related substance, Chief Pros-ecutor Sotir Tsatsarov said yesterday.

Bulgarian arms manufac-turer Emiliyan Gebrev, his son and a company executive were hospitalised in 2015 and treated for symptoms of severe poisoning.

Gebrev fell into a coma but survived and all three later recovered. But the perpetrator of the poisoning attempt was never found and the investi-gation was closed.

However, it was re-opened at Gebrev’s request following last year’s attack in the English city of Salisbury on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter. Gebrev said he believed he was targeted with a N o v i c h o k - r e l a t e d substance.

According to an analysis Gebrev obtained from a labo-ratory in Finland — the results of which appeared in Bulgarian Capital weekly — a pesticide and another unidentified sub-stance were found in his urine sample.

The Salisbury attack is con-sidered to be the first offensive use of chemical weapons in Europe since World War II.

Trump and his aides have also signalled that he is preparing to use executive action to try to secure additional funding for the wall by shifting federal dollars without congressional sign-off.

17THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019 AMERICAS

Diplomacy with ColombiaUS President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump greet Colombian President Ivan Duque (second right) and his wife Maria Ruiz (right) at the White House in Washington, DC, yesterday. The US President hosted his Colombian counterpart to discuss their campaign to pressure Venezuela’s far left President, Nicolas Maduro, to give up his power.

Trump still coy on border

deal, but expected to signAP WASHINGTON

US President Donald Trump isn’t showing his hand yet. But with little Washington appetite for another shutdown, he’s expected to grudgingly accept an agreement that would keep the government open but provide just a fraction of the money he’s been demanding for his Mexican border wall.

Addressing the deal at the White House yesterday, Trump said he would be taking “a very serious look” at the text when the White House receives it from Congress. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill were still haggling over final details, but they appeared on track to finish soon.

“We’re going to look at the legislation when it comes and I’ll make a determination,” Trump said, telling reporters he’d be looking out for any “land mines”.

Still, he reiterated his aversion to another shutdown, the likely result if he rejects the agreement, saying one would be “a terrible thing”. White House officials cautioned that they have yet to receive full legislative lan-guage. And Trump has a history of suddenly balking at deals after signaling he would sign them. But barring any major changes, he is nonetheless expected to acquiesce, according to two White House officials.

Trump and his aides have also signalled that he is pre-paring to use executive action to try to secure additional funding for the wall by shifting federal

dollars without congressional sign-off.

Accepting the deal, worked out by congressional negotiators from both parties, would be a disappointment for a president who has repeatedly insisted he needs $5.7bn for a barrier along the US-Mexico border and painted the project as para-mount for national security. Trump turned down a similar deal in December, forcing the 35-day partial shutdown that left hundreds of thousands of federal workers without paychecks and Republicans reeling.

Lawmakers tentatively agreed to a deal that would provide nearly $1.4bn for border barriers and keep the gov-ernment funded for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends on September 30. Filling in the details has taken some time, as is typical, and aides reported Wednesday that the measure had hit some snags, though they doubted they would prove fatal.

Last-minute hang-ups include whether to include a simple extension of the Violence Against Women Act as Senate Republicans want or move a

new, longer-term bill separately, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, is pushing.

Democrats are also pressing to try to make sure employees of federal contractors receive back pay for wages lost during the last shutdown. The continued haggling means that a House vote can’t come before Thursday night, at the earliest.

Given the back-and-forth, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters the President was awaiting a final version before making a final call. “We want to see the final piece of legislation, and we’ll make a determination at that point,” she said.

Trump added that, no matter what, “The wall is being built as we speak.” “We’re going to have a great wall. It’s going to be a great, powerful wall,” he said.

In conversations with allies, however, Trump has complained about the deal, calling the com-mittee members poor negoti-ators, said a person familiar with the conversations. Trump has also made clear that he’d wanted more money for the wall and has expressed concern the plan is being spun as a defeat for him in the media.

Still, allies believe the pres-ident has little choice but to sign and move on. The agreement would allow 88km of new fencing — constructed using existing designs such as metal slats — but far less than the 345km the White House demanded in December. The fencing would be built in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley.

Former US Air Force officer faces spy charges after defecting to IranREUTERS WASHINGTON

US authorities yesterday charged former Air Force intelligence officer Monica Witt (pictured)with helping Iran launch a cyber-spying operation that targeted her former colleagues after she defected from the United States.

The US Justice Department said Witt, 39, assembled dossiers on eight US military intelligence agents she had worked with for Iranian hackers, who then used Facebook and e-mail to try to install spyware on their computers.

She defected to Iran in 2013 and presumably still lives there, US officials said.

“She decided to turn against the United States and shift her loyalty to Iran,” said Jay Tabb, the FBI’s executive assistant director for national security. “Her primary motivation appears to be ideological.” Washington also charged four Iranian nationals who it said were involved in the cyberattacks. US officials also imposed sanctions on an Iran firm, Net Peygard Samavat Company, that it said conducted the hacking operation, and Iranian events company, New

Horizon Organisation, that it said works to recruit foreign attendees.

Witt faces two counts of delivering military information to a foreign government and one count of conspiracy.

According to an indictment unsealed yesterday, Witt served as a counterintelligence officer in the Air Force from 1997 until 2008 and worked as contractor for two years after that.

During that time, she was granted high-level security clearances, learned Farsi at a U.S. military language school, and was deployed overseas for

counterintelligence missions in the Middle East.

Witt appears to have turned against the United States some time before February 2012, when she traveled to Iran to attend a New Horizon conference that featured anti-US propaganda.

When warned by the FBI that trip that Iranian intelligence services were trying to recruit her, Witt allegedly promised that she would not talk about her counterintelligence work if she returned to Iran.

But later that year, she helped an unnamed Iranian-American official produce an

anti-American propaganda film. “I am endeavoring to put the training I received to good use instead of evil,” she told that person in an email.

Brazil President leaves hospital AFP SAO PAULO

Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro left hospital Wednesday, ending a 17-day hiatus at the helm of Latin America’s biggest economy during which several high-profile political issues were put on the backburner.

Bolsonaro, 63, underwent surgery on January 28 to remove a colostomy bag and seal intes-tines perforated when he was stabbed by a lone assailant last September while campaigning to be president.

His discharge date was

repeatedly pushed back over the past couple of weeks as he was treated for post-op complica-tions including vomiting, fluid buildup and a bout of pneumonia.

A convoy took him from the Sao Paulo hospital where he was treated to the airport. He then took an air force plane to fly to the capital Brasilia. A photo posted by his office showed Bol-sonaro smiling as he walked down a corridor with officials in tow.

The far-right leader, a former paratrooper, had sought to project an image of still being

in charge from his hospital bed.But jockeying within the

government during his absence led some observers to say he had left Brazil rudderless shortly after taking office at the beginning of January.

There was “a kind of power vacuum,” Thomaz Favaro of the political risk consultancy Control Risks told AFP.

He said there was “a bit of worry” among hundreds of offi-cials appointed to run gov-ernment ministries, agencies and state-run companies on how to implement Bolsonaro’s agenda while he was in hospital.

Canadian woman charged for throwing chairs off balcony

AFP OTTAWA

A Canadian woman captured in a video posted on social media throwing chairs from a high-rise condo onto a major Toronto thoroughfare below was charged yesterday with mischief and endangering lives.

Marcella Zoia, 19, surren-dered to police following a public outcry, and now faces a possible jail sentence if con-victed on all three counts. She was due to appear in court.

It’s unclear what motivated her to throw two chairs and other items off the balcony from what police said was a “very high floor” early Saturday.

Police said the items could have maimed or killed a pedes-trian or caused a major traffic accident on the city’s Gardiner Expressway — one of the busiest streets in Canada.

Instead, the chairs smashed onto the sidewalk at the con-dominium building’s entrance. Nobody was injured.

78 detainees escape Haiti jailAFP PORT-AU-PRINCE

At least six people have died in nearly weeklong protests demanding that President Jovenel Moise resign in Haiti, which saw fresh tensions and a major prison break Tuesday.

All 78 detainees at the prison in Aquin, a city of around 100,000 on the south coast of the country’s Tiburon Peninsula, escaped around midday, a national police spokesman said.

The exact circumstances of the prison break are unclear, but witnesses said it took place during an anti-Moise demon-stration in front of the police station adjoining the penitentiary.

A man pulls a child in a sled during a winter snowstorm in Ottawa, Ontario, yesterday.

Eastern Canada digs out from snowstormAFP OTTAWA

A huge snowstorm blanketed eastern Canada yesterday, closing schools, grounding hundreds of flights and forcing many workers to stay home as tens of thousands of plows toiled to clear roads.

Big white fluffy snowflakes began falling Tuesday afternoon, with more than 30 centimeters (12 inches) accumulated on the ground by the next morning and more on the way, according to weather forecasts.

Wind gusts up to 70km per

hour were also expected in the evening, blowing snow and severely reducing visibility from Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal to the Atlantic coast provinces.

A winter storm warning was in place for much of the region and travel was not advised.

Nearly 250 flights were can-celled in Montreal since Tuesday, while travellers described disruptions at the country’s biggest airport in Toronto, where flight cancella-tions topped 400, as a nightmare.

In Ottawa, residents sweated under toques and

heavy parkas trying to dig out. The odd commuter on skis was spotted headed to work. Others wore snowshoes.

Public broadcaster CBC Radio started reporting the near-record dump in height of dog breeds - from a Beagle to a Great Dane, and invited kids to call in to share their “snow day” stories after scheduled guests cancelled.

Ice sculptures for the city’s annual Winterlude festival, meanwhile, were wrapped to protect them from snow, ice pellets, possible freezing rain and strong winds.

FBI releases drawings by US serial killer to identify victimsAFP WASHINGTON

The FBI has released 16 chilling portraits drawn by a man who may be the most prolific serial killer in US history in an attempt to identify some of his victims.

Samuel Little, a 78-year-old drifter, has confessed to 90 murders committed between 1970 and 2005 and law enforcement authorities have corroborated more than 40 of them so far.

Little, a 6ft 3in (1.9m) former boxer also known as Samuel McDowell, is serving a life sen-tence for murder in a Texas prison.

Little mainly targeted drug addicts and prostitutes during his decades-long coast-to-coast murder spree and many of his victims were never identified.

Little usually strangled his victims, the FBI said, and many of the deaths were not investi-gated as homicides but were attributed to drug overdoses, accidents or natural causes.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday pub-lished the 16 portraits drawn by Little from memory in his prison cell and asked the public for help

in identifying them.The drawings include details

such as the color of a victim’s eyes or hair or the blue head-scarf she was wearing when she was abducted.

One picture, for example, depicts a white woman with green eyes and brown hair aged between 20 and 25 years old who was killed in Maryland in 1972.

Another is of a black woman between 23 and 25 years old with bright red lipstick and red earrings. She was killed in 1984 in Georgia and may have been a college student.

Another is of a black woman with purple hair aged between 25 and 28 years old who was killed in Houston, Texas, decades ago.

- Nomadic life - Bobby Bland, the district attorney in Ector County, Texas, told AFP in December that the total number of confirmed killings attributed to Little is now more than 40.

“He’s talking about things, cases that happened up to 50 years ago, and he’s giving details on all these different murders, and none of the statements he’s made have proven to be false,” Bland said.


Admissions in private school streamlined

SANAULLAH ATAULLAH THE PENINSULA

The linking private schools’ enrolment process with online registration mechanism of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education has brought more transparency in school admissions within a spec-ified period of time under different curriculum.

The system is part of a number of measures taken by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education in cooperation with private schools to solve the problems of parents seeking admission of their children in a suitable private school.

The registration system of the Ministry also made some schools set priority to the students of their respective nationalities as the system requires approval from the Ministry to enrol stu-dents from other nationalities.

Following the instructions of the Ministry, private schools upgraded their systems and they launched portals offering online regis-tration and posting details about the admission including deadline, admission criteria and other latest information in this regard.

The move also helped reduce the suffering of parents who would run

from pillar to post for admission of their children earlier. Differences in admission schedule from one school to another also used to create problems for parents that could eventually lead missing one aca-demic year in some cases.

Since private schools operating in Qatar are fol-lowing different curricula like Indian, British, Paki-stani, Sri Lankan etc. which require the schools to abide by the academic years of respective curricula.

The guidelines from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and portals run by the schools are helpful in providing enough and accurate infor-mation to parents regarding admissions deadline.

Detailed answers about the admission process in private schools and existing confusions about it were by the representatives of private schools in a

meeting with The Peninsula recently.The meeting, chaired by Deputy Man-

aging Editor of The Peninsula, Mohammed Osman Ali, was attended by Samir Rai, Administrative Officer at Olive Interna-tional School; Uzma Ansari, Executive Administrator at The Next Generation (TNG) School; Amna Inam, Executive

Administrator at TNG School; Mariam Khan, Registrar at TNG School; Sivapragasam

Sivam, Principal and Edward S. Fernando,

Administrator at Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha.

“Last time, the Ministry instructed us to begin registration from March 1 onward,” said Mariam Khan, Registrar at The Next Generation School during the meeting. She said that the school had started taking applications and admission tests earlier but the registration started

from March 1 as per the instruction of the

Ministry.“The Ministry

has provided an online system for registration which did not allow to

enter any data regarding admission

before the registration

date given by the Ministry,” said Sivapragasam Sivam, Principal of Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha. “Our admission system requires parents to apply online through our portal which has detailed information about registration process,” said Uzma Ansari, Exec-utive Administrator at The Next Generation School.

She said that as soon as school get confirmation from the Ministry about the deadline,

the parents are called to bring their children for

test.“In Qatar, Indian

schools’ session begins in April. We run an academic year from April to March,”

said Samir Rai, Admin-istrative Officer at Olive

International School.


To maintain and continuously upgrade quality standards in private schools, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education has implemented strict rules for hiring teaching staff.

Though some schools faced some difficulties in finding teachers meeting set standards initially but private schools’ rep-resentatives in a meeting with The Peninsula said that the move will help improve the education quality in the country.

“There are very qualified and specialist teachers in the schools operating in Qatar because of the requirements of the Ministry regarding the qualification of teachers,” said Uzma Ansari from The Next Generation School.

For example, she said, a teacher with a educational degree like Bachelors in Islamic studies cannot be a class teacher or teach other subject beyond their specialization. “A teacher holding a Bachelor’s degree in Islamic studies is allowed only to teach Islamic studies even if they hold diploma in computer or Master’s degree in economics,” said Ansari.

She said that as per the Min-istry’s rules and regulations, schools should hire specialist teachers of bachelor degree in education and take approval from the Ministry before recruitment. Sivapragasam Sivam from from Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha said that there were some practical

problems in hiring teachers. “For example, graduates from teachers’ training schools like Colleges of Education in Sri Lanka offer diploma programme in teachers’ education. It is three years course running in Sri Lnaka,” said Sivam.

He said that the graduates of this college are qualified teachers in Sri Lanka. “But we cannot recruit them here in Qatar because they are not holding a Bachelor’s degree according to the regulation of the Ministry,” he added. According to repre-sentatives of the schools, spouses on the sponsorship of their hus-bands can teach if they have Bachelor’s degrees in education after issuance of work permit.

Two shifts in schools to create new jobsSACHIN KUMAR THE PENINSULA

The decision by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to allow schools to operate two shifts will create new job oppor-tunities in country’ education sector. Experts believe that new system will also solve the problem of shortage of seats for new students.

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education recently

gave green signal to three Indian schools to run a two-shift system from the new academic year (2019-20), starting from April this year.

The MES Indian School, Ideal Indian School and Shantiniketan Indian School have been given permission by the Ministry of run classes in morning and afternoon shifts.

“The decision to allow two shifts in schools is a step in the right direction as it will have

many positive impact in general. The first direct impact will be on the demand of new teachers. Two- shifts mean schools will need more teachers because existing teachers will not be able to work in two shifts simultane-ously,” said Uzma Ansari from The Next Generation School.

When a school is planned, it creates demand for many other goods and services. Teacher is one important aspect of school but there are other associated services like administrative staff, security persons, school transport, stationary goods and other such related things. A school is an important element of country’s economy.

“The decision to allow schools to operate classes in two shifts will have significant pos-itive impact on the Qatar’s edu-cation sector because it will create new jobs,” said Samir Rai, Administrative Officer, Olive International School.

There will also be a positive impact on the country’s transport sector. A big part of students use bus transport provided by schools. It means that there will strong demand for new buses, drivers and attendants who ensure safety of students in the bus.

Encouraged by this new ini-tiative, several other schools are planning to apply for two-shift

classes. “It is a great initiative and we

are planning to approach the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to seek their approval for running two shift in our schools. We always face high demand for admissions. This huge demand can be met by allowing more schools to run two shifts,” said a senior official of a private school.

Qatar is witnessing rapid economic growth which is attracting high number of skilled expatriates from across the globe. Qatar needs new schools and new initiatives such as two-shift system to create additional seats for new students.

Realising the growing demand for more schools and attract private sector investment in the education sector, the Min-istry of Education and Higher Education last month announced plans to build 45 schools in the coming years under public-private partnership.

According to the plan, the first phase consisting of eight schools whose plots of land were allocated, are expected to be offered during the summer of 2021 .

The approved project system will include design, construction, finance, operation, maintenance of buildings and transfer of own-ership of schools.

The Ministry has provided an online system for registration which did not allow to enter any data regarding ad-mission before the registration date given by the Ministry.

Sivapragasam Sivam, Principal of

Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha.

Our admission system requires parents to apply online through our portal which has detailed information about registration process.

Uzma Ansari, Executive

Administrator at The Next

Generation School.

The decision to allow schools to oper-ate classes in two shifts will have sig-nificant positive impact on the Qatar’s education sector because it will create new jobs.

Samir Rai, Administrative Officer

at Olive International School.

Quality education ensured through strict recruitment criteria

Students of Olive International School

Students of Stafford Sri Lankan School Doha with their trophies during an event.

Students of Stafford Sri Lankan School Doha

The Peninsula recently organised an interactive session with the representatives of private schools to discuss number of issues including availability of private school seats, admission process, fee structures, recently approved two shifts in some schools and the measures taken by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and private schools to improve system and quality of education in the country. A number of representatives from The Next Generation (TNG) School, Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha and Olive International School participated in the panel discussion.


through online registration, enrolment


The measures taken by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education to increase the avail-ability of seats in private schools has brought relief for some schools. However, some other schools plan to build new campuses and add more classes to meet the growing demand of seats.

Allotment of plots of land to community schools and a recent decision to allow some private schools to run afternoon shifts from next academic year are among major steps taken by the Ministry to maintain the supply of seats to private schools meeting the increasing demand.

Representatives of private schools in a meeting with The Peninsula have lauded the move of the Ministry which according to them ‘will solve the problems of schools and parents’ by sup-plying sufficient number of seats.

The Ministry has allowed Shantiniketan Indian School (SIS), MES Indian School, and Ideal Indian School to run

afternoon shifts as well. DPS MIS that already has a

school in Al Wakra will be opening its second campus in Al Wukair this year. Samir Rai said that the move will help to solve the problem of the shortage of seats in a big way in coming aca-demic year.

“The biggest challenge for our school is to provide seats,” said Mariam Khan, Registrar of The Next Generation (TNG) School, adding that the school is looking forward to have a new campus.

“We receive complaints from parents regarding admis-sions that is why we as Pakistani school (due to its Pakistani man-agement while TNG School offers only British curriculum) are also enrolling other nationalities’

students unlike Indian schools which allow only Indian stu-dents,” said Mariam Khan.

Uzma Ansari from the same school said: “We have some seats only at our new fifth campus.” She said that as per the policy of the Ministry, a classroom should not exceed 30 students for primary level and 25 for upper levels.

Sivapragasam Sivam, Prin-cipal of Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha said: “We, as the only Sri Lnankan school oper-ating in Qatar, are instructed by the Embassy of Sri Lanka to give admissions to all Sri Lankan stu-dents. So we cannot reject any a p p l i c a t i o n r e g a r d i n g admission.”

However, he said, this is a challenge to accommodate the

growing number of students as we are operating on full capacity. “Recently, we built 25 classrooms to increase the capacity during last summer vacations and hired more staff to meet the demand,” said Sivam. Edward S Fernadno from same school said that the government allocated a plat of land to Sri Lankan School in Al

Khor to build a new campus. “Now we are trying to build new campus,” he added.

Uzma Ansari said that fifth campus of The Next Generation School located close to Lusail area behind Lusial Stadium is a big villa comprising of 14 class-rooms but there is empty land so the school plans to construct

another campus. “Following the instruction

of Traffic Department, we are trying to accommodate the stu-dents as per their locations so that specific campuses we had built for the students coming from those areas,” said Mariam Khan from The Next Generation School.

He said generally registration for admission in Indian schools begins in December.

“Admissions in Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha normally start in March,” said Edward S. Fernando.

“Session timing of schools are different according to the curriculum. For example two Pakistani schools in Qatar which are simultaneously running British curriculum with Pakistani curriculum are following two different timing sessions; August for British cur-riculum and March for Pakistani curriculum,” said Mariam Khan.

“We checked with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education about possibility of having Sri Lankan curriculum with British one, they said that you could not have like that because of two calendars and two different methodologies,” said Edward S. Fernando, Administrator of the school. He said that if it is allowed, it will be better for the future of students.

“I believe the parents are confused when they come from other coun-tries they find dif-ferent types of cur-ricula especially when they see Pakistani schools following British and US curriculum,” said Uzma Ansari. She said that there will be

no confusion if the parents follow the guidelines of the Ministry.

“Few parents are facing diffi-culties due to the fact that usually back in their home countries they follow one curriculum whereas Qatar provides variety of curricula,” said Amna Inam from The Next Generation School. She said that the

admissions process had closed on October 31 for current session (2018-19) but the registration remained opened until January 31 for all curricula for those students who arrived in the country after passage of first deadline.

“The Ministry of Education and Higher Education has provided portal for admission which remains open for specific time. Even if we want to enrol any student beyond that given time, the system rejects the attempt,” said Sivapragasam Sivam, Principal of Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha.

He said that as per admissions rules set by the Ministry, schools cannot register students after October 31. “For example a student come from Sri Lanka in February so they will have to wait for next session to get the admission,” said Sivam.

Edward S. Fernando said that in Sri Lanka the school academic year ends in December. “So if they shift to Qatar in January expecting to get enrolled in January it is not possible as by that time we have covered quarter of an academic year,” said Fernando.

Samir Rai said that Olive Interna-tional School posted detailed infor-mation about the admissions on the portal of the school including date of registration and availability of seats.

Uzma Ansari said that schools require approval from the Ministry for exceptional cases of admission.

“We just got an application from a child who moved Qatar from Dubai. His younger sister got admission as it was approved by the Ministry upon the request of parents.”

She said that the child got admission in class 2 but the parents requested the school and the Min-istry to allow the student to repeat class 1. “So the Ministry asked the school to submit another request for this purpose. We submitted the request and are

expecting approval within a couple of days,” said Ansari.

Sivapragasam Sivam said that the Ministry asked the schools to follow rules strictly in cases like repeating classes and enrolling after the deadline of admis-sions. “In such cases, we approach the Ministry seeking

approval otherwise we get warning from the Ministry,” said Sivam.

The Ministry held a workshop to introduce an online system to schools for better communication with parents. The school received user names and passwords and the system partially started oper-ation. However, schools have their own online systems to receive the application from parents seeking admission and communicate with them.

Uzam Ansari said that as per regis-tration process of TNG School, the

candidate should apply online first as paper application forms

are no more acceptable. “We use OpenSees software for admission process and a mobile application to com-municate with parents and send homework through it if

student could not attend classes during leave.”

SPOTLIGHT ONEDUCATION

Few parents are facing difficulties due to the fact that usually back in their home countries they follow one curriculum whereas Qatar provides variety of curricula.

Amna Inam, Executive Administrator

at The Next Generation School.

Session timing of schools are different according to the curriculum. For example two Pakistani schools in Qatar which are simultaneously running British curriculum with Pakistani curriculum are following two different timing sessions

Mariam Khan, Registrar at The Next

Generation School.

In Sri Lanka the school academic year ends in December. “So if they shift to Qatar in January expecting to get enrolled in January it is not possible as by that time we have covered quarter of an academic year

Edward S. Fernando, Administrator at

Stafford Sri Lankan School-Doha.

Allotment of plots of land to community schools and a recent decision to allow some private schools to run afternoon shifts from next academic year are among major steps taken by the Ministry to maintain the supply of seats to private schools meeting the increasing demand.

Students of Olive International School during a function.

Staff and students of The Next Generation School celebrating an achievement.

Students of The Next Generation School during an exhibition.

More seats, two shifts bring relief for private schools

20 THURSDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2019MORNING BREAK

Dr. Khalid bin Mubarak Al-Shafi (right), Editor-in-Chief of The Peninsula, with Rashad Ismayilov (second right), Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the State of Qatar, during a visit of the Ambassador to The Peninsula office recently. PIC: BAHER AMIN / THE PENINSULA

Qatar-Russia Year of Culture made significant impact on bilateral tiesRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

The Qatar-Russia 2018 Year of Culture has made a significant impact on the relations between the two countries, said Fahad bin Mohammed Al Attiyah, Ambassador of Qatar to Russia.

In an interview with The Peninsula, Al Attiyah was upbeat of the long-term impact of the Year of Culture towards further strengthening the ties between the two countries with partnerships forged between various institutions which he termed legacy of the Year of Culture.

“We see that there is more awareness from people in Qatar of what Russia is and the culture that it presents, and we see that there is more eagerness with people wanting to go and visit Russia. We see the same thing in Russia as a lot of Russians now want to come visit Qatar,” he said.

Al Attiyah stressed that the impact of Year of Culture on both the coun-tries goes beyond cultural exchange towards other fields such as economy.

“The Year of Culture has an eco-nomic impact. It does not just give people the opportunity to watch ballet and other events but also have the desire to go and visit, perhaps invest or explore Russia and that is in itself part of the legacy of Year of Culture,”

he said.The envoy was positive of the long-

term impact of the Year to people of both countries.

“We have now partnerships between the institutions, partnerships which are the legacy of the Year of Culture. They will translate into perhaps greater agreements, joint ven-tures, collaborations, and it will just continue to go from strength to

strength,” he said.He underlined that the purpose of

the Year of Culture is to kick-start part-nerships and collaborations between nations - its different institutions, uni-versities and academic organisations, among others.

“I think the Year of Culture concept is one of the greatest ideas I have ever come across. I think we should put enormous amount of emphasis on it

and even pull more investments in making it a key pillar in presenting our culture to the rest of the world,” he said.

Al Attiyah was speaking on the sidelines of the opening performance of Anna Karenina by the highly acclaimed Boris Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg on Tuesday.

“We have developed over the last year more than 34 events spread between Qatar and Russia and we are very glad to see that we are nearing towards the very end. This per-formance comes just before the con-clusion of Qatar Russia Year of Culture which will culminate with the Love Ball by the end of March,” he said.

Fahad bin Mohammed Al Attiyah, Ambassador of Qatar to Russia. PIC: ABDUL BASIT / THE PENINSULA

Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg marks Doha debutRAYNALD C RIVERA THE PENINSULA

Critically acclaimed Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg marked its successful Doha debut with a deeply riveting interpretation of Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel Anna Karenina to capacity crowds on Tuesday and yesterday at Qatar National Convention Center’s Al Mayassa Theatre.

Dance fans who thronged the venue applauded the two-act version of the great novel by the Russian literary giant given a fresh take by multi-award winning choreographer Boris Eifman with music by revered Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky.

The performance centred on the love triangle of Anna, Karenin and Vronsky and the circumstances that led to the main protagonist’s path to self-destruction, as well as reflected Russian society during Tolstoy’s time.

The highly theatrical two-hour long show blending music, light and movement executed with exceptional skill by Eif-man’s virtuoso dancers enter-tained hundreds in the audience. It charmed the audience with its psychological energy character-istic of many of Eifman’s ballet

productions and captured the time with spectacular costumes and stage design.

The opening night cast was led by ballet laureates Daria Reznik in the titular role along with Oleg Markov as Karenin and Oleg Gabyshev as Vronsky while yesterday’s performance

featured Angela Turko (Anna), Sergey Volobuev (Karenin) and Igor Subbotin (Vronsky).

Speaking to The Peninsula at the opening night, H E Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Russian Federation, said Qatar Russia Year of Culture has

provided great opportunity to bring Eifaman Ballet to Doha for the first time.

“Eifman Ballet is one of the most renowned in the world and they are performing Anna Karenina based on the novel by Leo Tolstoy, one of Russia’s greatest writers. It comes within

the context of Qatar Russia 2018 Year of Culture and it is very vital that we expose both Qataris and residents in Qatar to the gems of Russian literature and theatre and ballet is one of them, and vice versa in Russia. We have a full house today and tomorrow which makes me very

happy and pleased,” said Al Attiyah.

H E Nurmakhmad Kholov, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Qatar, said: “As the Ambassador of the Russian Fed-eration, I’m happy to provide the friendly Qatari people and res-idents of the country with an opportunity to see this fantastic ballet performance for the first time.”

“As one of the main cultural bulwarks of Russia, ballet has a special place in the hearts of our people and in our history. We are pleased to share this experience with the people of Qatar, who continue to welcome cultural exchange and mutual under-standing. I am hopeful that Russia and Qatar continue their mutual cooperation in the field of culture as well as other important venues pertaining to our relationship,” said Kholov.

On the sidelines of the show, Eifman Ballet also held a tour for young ballet students, intro-ducing them to their per-formance onstage. The young attendees included both Qatar Foundation Ballet and Sophie McDonald Dance Company stu-dents, with movable ballet bars produced especially for the tour. The ballet bars will be left as a legacy to Qatar Foundation.

Critically acclaimed Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg makes its Doha debut with a deeply riveting interpretation of Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel Anna Karenina to capacity crowds on Tuesday and yesterday at Qatar National Convention Center’s Al Mayassa Theatre.PIC: ABDUL BASIT / THE PENINSULA

In an interview with The Peninsula, Al Attiyah was upbeat of the long-term impact of the Year of Culture towards further strengthening the ties between the two countries with partnerships forged between various institutions which he termed legacy of the Year of Culture.

Azerbaijan Ambassador visits The Peninsula

IANS NEW YORK

Do you think you could lead a happy married life? The answer is in your genes, a new study has said.

Although prior research has hinted that marital quality is, at least partially, impacted by genetic factors, and that oxytocin may be relevant to social support, according to recent studies, variation on specific genes related to oxytocin functioning impact overall marital quality, in part.

They are relevant to how partners provide and receive support from each other. The study eval-uated whether different genotypes — possible genetic combinations of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) — influenced how spouses support one another, which is a key determinant of overall marital quality. OXTR was targeted because it is related to the regulation and release of oxytocin.

“Genes matter when it comes to the quality of marriage, because genes are relevant to who we are as individuals, and characteristics of the indi-vidual can impact the marriage,” said Richard Mattson, Associate Professor from the Binghamton University in the US.

Your genes may determine how marriage will fare

FAJRSHOROOK

04. 53 AM

06. 10 AM

11. 48 AM

03. 02 PM

05. 29 PM

06. 59 PM

ZUHRASR

MAGHRIBISHA

PRAYER TIMINGS

HIGH TIDE 00:54 – 09:30 LOW TIDE 06:03 –17:51

Moderate temperature daytime with scat-

tered clouds, cold by night.

WEATHER TODAY

Courtesy: Qatar Meteorology Department

Minimum Maximum14oC 21oC

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