For millions of people whose only assets are the lands they tend, land degradation represents their economic downfall. (AFP)
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No matter what country you live in, your background or your beliefs, whether you are wealthy or poor, whether you live in the city or the country, we, fellow human beings, share the same umbilical cord: land.
This statement, so obvious as to be trite, came to light recently in Riyadh at COP16 of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification — the only global treaty addressing the existential challenges of land degradation and drought.
Land provides us with everything: the air we breathe, the water that keeps us hydrated, the clothes that cover us and protect us from the rigours of the seasons, and of course the food that sustains us.
Everything links us to the land, even though we take it for granted or assume, mistakenly, that it has unlimited resources.
At COP16, scientists sounded an alarm: we are exceeding the limits beyond which we are jeopardizing our own security. Relayed by local authorities and appeals from the indigenous peoples who have turned out en masse, the messages could not be clearer.
With up to 40 percent of productive land already degraded while the needs of a growing population increase, we are heading for a precipice. The land is suffocating under the cumulative weight of more frequent droughts and growing aridity.
The loss of fertile land not only has consequences for ecosystems and nature: the decline in agricultural productivity is leading to food insecurity, forced migration, and conflict, exacerbated by the scarcity of water.
The loss of fertile land not only has consequences for ecosystems and nature: the decline in agricultural productivity is leading to food insecurity, forced migration, and conflict.
Ibrahim Thiaw
For millions of people, particularly indigenous peoples, whose only assets are the lands they tend year after year, land degradation represents their economic downfall.
Loss of soil fertility is a source of concern for human health. We now know that good quality food is the best medicine. Beyond the notions of food security and food sovereignty, we now have to worry about the quality of nutrition. It is not just about eating enough, but eating well.
With the onset of climate change, the world is experiencing an increase in the frequency and severity of droughts, jeopardizing harvests and undermining the social structures of the most vulnerable communities. Indeed, the least well-off countries suffer appalling economic losses every time a drought hits.
The time has come for humanity to better anticipate, better prepare, and shield itself against these phenomena.
This is the essence of the Riyadh Global Partnership on Drought Resilience, launched on the first day of COP16 to provide substantial support to the 80 countries most vulnerable to drought.
We must take stock of the planet’s health and reduce our vulnerability, so that future generations can enjoy a prosperous and peaceful future.
• Ibrahim Thiaw is under-secretary-general of the UN and executive secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.
Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect Arab News' point of view
Leao and Pulisic inspire AC Milan comeback in 3-2 win over Inter in Italian Super Cup final/node/2585489/sport
Leao and Pulisic inspire AC Milan comeback in 3-2 win over Inter in Italian Super Cup final
Updated 4 min 48 sec ago
RIYADH: It took exactly one week on the job for Sergio Conceicao to earn his first trophy as AC Milan’s coach — with two comeback wins no less. Milan came back from two goals down to beat city rivals Inter Milan 3-2 and win the Italian Super Cup on Monday. Rafael Leao came off the bench and played a part in all three of Milan’s goals from Theo Hernandez, Christian Pulisic and Tammy Abraham. Conceicao was hired to replace the fired Paulo Fonseca last Monday and also led the Rossoneri to a comeback win over Juventus in the semifinals. This time, Lautaro Martinez and Mehdi Taremi put Inter ahead with goals on either side of halftime. Leao then earned a foul that resulted in a free kick which Hernandez curled in around Inter’s wall. Then Pulisic finished off a counterattack by shooting through Augusto’s legs on a play that began with Leao. For the third goal, Leao provided a through ball for Pulisic, who crossed to Abraham, who tapped into an empty net in stoppage time. It was the fifth time in the last seven years that the competition was played in Ƶ, and the second year of an expanded four-team format. A throw-in led to Inter’s opener as Taremi fed the ball inside the area to Lautaro, who cut back before shooting through Hernandez’s legs on Inter’s only real chance of the half. Taremi, who was playing in place of the injured Marcus Thuram, finished off a counterattack right after the break. Milan play their first Serie A match under Conceicao against Cagliari on Saturday. The Rossoneri are in eighth place but will return to league action with much more confidence.
US says anti-Daesh operation in Iraq kills coalition soldier/node/2585488/middle-east
US army soldiers stand on duty at the K1 airbase northwest of Kirkuk in northern Iraq on March 29, 2020. (AFP)
Updated 9 min 16 sec ago
Reuters
US says anti-Daesh operation in Iraq kills coalition soldier
US officials have said Daesh is hoping to stage a comeback in Syria following the fall in December of Syrian President Bashar Assad
Updated 9 min 16 sec ago
Reuters
WASHINGTON: The US military said on Monday operations against Daesh in Iraq over the past week led to the death of a non-US coalition soldier and wounded two other non-US personnel.
It also detailed operations in Syria against Daesh militants led by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, including one that resulted in the capture of what the US military’s Central Command said was an Daesh attack cell leader.
US officials have said Daesh is hoping to stage a comeback in Syria following the fall in December of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Saudi Interior Ministry confirms ban on transferring or publishing security surveillance camera recordings
Anyone who violates the rule will be punished with a fine of SR20,000 ($5,327), interior ministry says
Updated 33 min 4 sec ago
Arab News
RIYADH: Ƶ’s Interior Ministry confirmed that the provisions of the “Use of Security Surveillance Cameras” law prohibit the transfer or publication of security surveillance camera recordings.
Security surveillance camera recordings can only be transferred or published with the approval of the ministry or the Presidency of State Security, based on a judicial order, or at the request of an investigating authority.
The ministry explained that anyone who violates this rule will be punished with a fine of SR20,000 ($5,327).
This includes anyone who transfers or publishes recordings in violation of the law or damages or vandalizes security surveillance camera systems or recordings.
How Israeli raids on northern Gaza hospitals compound the enclave’s healthcare emergency
Kamal Adwan Hospital was raided by Israeli forces on Dec. 27, dealing a fresh blow to Gaza’s already devastated health system
Israel alleged the facility was a “Hamas terrorist stronghold,” detaining its director Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, patients, and other staff
Updated 33 min 23 sec ago
Sherouk Zakaria
DUBAI: For months, prominent Palestinian pediatrician Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya had been pleading with the international community to protect medical staff and patients at the Kamal Adwan Hospital amid repeated Israeli assaults.
As one of just two functioning hospitals in northern Gaza, Kamal Adwan served as a lifeline for thousands in need of medical assistance under an Israeli siege that has blocked the delivery of food, shelter materials, and medical supplies since Oct. 5.
However, the pleas of Dr. Abu Safiya, the hospital’s director, fell silent on Dec. 27 when Israeli forces stormed the facility and detained him along with patients and other medical staff, alleging it was a “Hamas terrorist stronghold.”
Since early October 2024, Israel has intensified its siege on northern Gaza, mounting a series of operations intended to root out Hamas fighters. The raid on Kamal Adwan knocked the hospital out of action, dealing a fresh blow to northern Gaza’s already devastated healthcare system.
Since early October 2024, Israel has intensified its siege on northern Gaza. (AFP)
The following day, health officials said Israeli forces targeted Al-Awda Hospital, severely damaging the last functioning facility in northern Gaza. The hospital had been overflowing with patients after the Indonesian Hospital was reportedly put out of service earlier in the month.
On Dec. 29, the Palestinian health ministry said Israeli strikes had left two facilities in Gaza City — Al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital and Al-Wafaa Hospital — with significant damage.
“Hospitals have once again become battlegrounds, reminiscent of the destruction of the health system in Gaza City earlier this year,” the World Health Organization said in a statement.
Israel has long accused Hamas of using civilian hospitals for military purposes, employing patients and medical staff as human shields — a claim that the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza has consistently denied.
In its latest raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital, the Israeli military said its troops had killed 20 “terrorists” and detained 240 others, including Dr. Abu Safiya on suspicion of being “a Hamas terrorist operative.”
Israel has long accused Hamas of using civilian hospitals for military purposes. (AFP)
On Friday, Israel confirmed it was holding Dr. Abu Safiya, but did not specify where. In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces said he was “currently being investigated by Israeli security forces” as he was suspected of being a “terrorist” and for “holding a rank” in Hamas.
Israel launched its military operation in Gaza in retaliation for the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that killed some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and saw around 250 taken hostage, including many foreign nationals.
The air and ground campaign in Gaza has caused the death of some 45,400 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, and left 108,000 wounded, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Around 100 Israelis remain captive in Gaza, but a third are believed to be dead.
Kamal Adwan Hospital has been the target of around 50 recorded attacks on or near the facility since early October 2024, according to the WHO.
The latest raid left the hospital’s laboratory, surgical unit, engineering and maintenance department, operating theater, and medical store severely damaged by fire.
Healthcare workers around the world joined an online solidarity campaign. (AFP)
Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesperson, denied troops had entered the facility or started the fire.
“While IDF troops were not in the hospital, a small fire broke out in an empty building inside the hospital that is under control,” he said. A preliminary investigation had found “no connection” between the military operation and the fire, he added.
Dr. Abu Safiya’s detention has sparked global outcry as UN agencies, rights groups, and non-governmental organizations demanded his immediate release.
Opinion
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A viral image of Dr. Abu Safiya, believed to depict his final moments before his arrest, shows him walking alone, dressed in his white lab coat, among the rubble of a devastated street towards Israeli tanks.
Healthcare workers around the world joined an online solidarity campaign, prompting the launch of a petition calling on the US to pressure Israel to release Dr. Abu Safiya and stop targeting hospitals, medical staff, and patients.
Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, urged global medical professionals to cut ties with Israel in protest at the arrest.
“For each Palestinian life that should and could have been saved in Gaza, we have been put to the test. And we have failed, over and over,” she posted on X. “We must not fail again. All of us must do all we can to save Dr. Abu Safiya.”
According to the Palestinian health ministry, more than 1,000 medical workers have been killed and more than 300 detained since the war between Israel and Hamas began on Oct. 7, 2023, while some 130 ambulances have been knocked out of action.
Israel launched its military operation in Gaza in retaliation for the Oct. 7, 2023. (AFP)
The whereabouts of Dr. Abu Safiya and his staff remains unknown, although several released detainees told CNN he was being held at the Sde Teiman military base — a facility close to the Gaza border notorious for allegations of abuse, which Israel denies.
Dr. Abu Safiya rose to prominence for documenting the challenges facing healthcare professionals in Gaza since the war began, including shortages of staff and medical supplies.
In an earlier raid on Oct. 25, he was briefly detained and questioned after refusing multiple orders to leave Kamal Adwan Hospital. The Israeli army had stormed the facility, detained many patients and 57 hospital staff, according to Gaza health authorities.
During that Israeli operation, Dr. Abu Safiya’s 15-year-old son was reportedly killed in a drone strike at the hospital gate. Dr. Abu Safiya insisted on continuing to tend to his patients, and continued to do so even after he was wounded in an attack on Nov. 23.
“We are suffering from a severe shortage of doctors, especially surgeons,” he said at the time. “Right now, we only have pediatricians — it is a huge challenge to work under these circumstances.”
On Dec. 31, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights published a report detailing the destruction of Gaza’s healthcare facilities. The report found that 27 hospitals and 12 other medical facilities had suffered 136 strikes between Oct. 7, 2023 and June 30, 2024.
The UN warned that the strikes caused “significant damage to, if not the complete destruction of, civilian infrastructure,” and pushed the healthcare system in the Palestinian territory to the “brink of total collapse.”
In its report, the UN labeled Israel’s claim that Gaza’s hospitals are being used by Hamas for military purposes as “vague” and “insufficient.” (AFP)
Just 17 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain partially functional, according to the WHO’s latest figures.
In its report, the UN labeled Israel’s claim that Gaza’s hospitals are being used by Hamas for military purposes as “vague” and “insufficient.”
A day earlier, UN human rights experts said the backing of allies has enabled Israel to continue committing “genocidal acts” and defying international law. They stressed that Israel needed to be held accountable for “inflicting maximum suffering” on Palestinian civilians, particularly in northern Gaza.
They noted the siege, “coupled with expanding evacuation orders, appears intended to permanently displace the local population as a precursor to Gaza’s annexation.”
Israel said the siege was aimed at preventing Hamas from regrouping.
As ceasefire talks continue, the Palestinian health ministry has called on the international community to intervene to protect healthcare professionals, secure the release of detainees, and facilitate a safe environment in which the sick and injured can receive treatment.
The closure of Kamal Adwan Hospital leaves a population of some 75,000 Palestinians in the north without access to medical care — a crisis exacerbated by bitter winter conditions and shortages of food, medicine, and shelter.
More than 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians have been repeatedly displaced, according to aid agencies, with many now enduring winter temperatures in squalid tent camps, often flooded by heavy rain, in south and central Gaza.
For those who have remained in northern Gaza, hospitals are no longer an option for shelter.
“As if the relentless bombing and the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza were not enough, the one sanctuary where Palestinians should have felt safe in fact became a death trap,” Volker Turk, the UN human rights chief, said in a statement.
The closure of Kamal Adwan Hospital leaves a population of some 75,000 Palestinians in the north without access to medical care. (AFP)
Health officials say the loss of Kamal Adwan Hospital, in particular, will leave civilians in northern Gaza without treatment at the very moment they are most vulnerable.
In a post on X, Palestinian surgeon Dr. Ghassan Abu Sitta said hypothermia, malnutrition, and injury had become the triad of death.
“This means that people will die of hypothermia at higher temperatures, will starve to death much quicker, and will succumb to less severe wounds.”
Women carry bread as they cross a street after the ousting of Syria's Bashar Al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, January 6, 2025.
Updated 06 January 2025
AFP
US temporarily eases some Syria sanctions
Transitional government in Damascus has been lobbying to have sanctions lifted
International community has been hesitant to roll back restrictions, many countries have said they are waiting to see how the new authorities exercise their power
Updated 06 January 2025
AFP
WASHINGTON: The United States announced Monday that it was providing additional sanctions relief on some activities in Syria for the next six months to ease access to basic services following the fall of strongman Bashar Assad.
The US Treasury said it had issued a new general license to expand the allowed activities and transactions with Syria while Washington continues to monitor developments under the militants who overthrew Assad last month.
The move was made “to help ensure that sanctions do not impede essential services and continuity of governance functions across Syria, including the provision of electricity, energy, water, and sanitation,” the Treasury said in a statement.
Monday’s actions build on existing authorizations that support the work of international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and humanitarian and “stabilization efforts” in the region, it said.
“The end of Bashar Assad’s brutal and repressive rule, backed by Russia and Iran, provides a unique opportunity for Syria and its people to rebuild,” said deputy Treasury secretary Wally Adeyemo.
“During this period of transition, Treasury will continue to support humanitarian assistance and responsible governance in Syria,” he added.
The transitional government in Damascus has been lobbying to have sanctions lifted.
But the international community has been hesitant to roll back restrictions, and many countries — including the United States — have said they are waiting to see how the new authorities exercise their power before doing so.
The Treasury Department emphasized that it had not unblocked any property or other interests of people or entities currently on its sanctions blacklist.
This includes Assad and his supporters, the Syrian central bank and Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, a former Al-Qaeda offshoot that played a key role in toppling the former government.
It also does not authorize “any financial transfers to any blocked person other than for the purpose of effecting certain authorized payments to governing institutions or associated service providers in Syria,” the Treasury said.
