UAE reiterates condemnation of Israeli attack on Iran, stresses need for diplomacy to avert war: Gargash
On Friday, the UAE has condemned in the strongest terms Israel's military targeting of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and expressed its deep concern over the ongoing escalation and its repercussions on regional security and stability.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) stressed the importance of exercising the utmost self-restraint and judgment to mitigate risks and prevent the expansion of the conflict.
The Ministry reaffirmed the UAE's position that enhancing dialogue, adhering to international law, and respecting the sovereignty of states constitute essential principles for resolving the current crises.
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Middle East Eye
11 minutes ago
- Middle East Eye
World Central Kitchen founder faces backlash for handshake with Israeli president
World Central Kitchen (WCK) founder Chef Jose Andres is facing mounting criticism after meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog to discuss Israel's seven-month blockade that has cut off aid to Gaza. Andres visited Gaza for the first time since the Israel's genocide began, sharing pictures and videos of the decimation and WCK's work along the way. After leaving the Strip, Andres posted that he met with Herzog on Sunday to discuss Israel's aid blockade, which Amnesty International has recently described as a deliberate campaign of starvation. "We talked in detail about how to flood Gaza with food and medicine so there is no hunger and no looting, so we can start rebuilding with hope and humanity," Andres wrote on X. "That means full permits and access for all NGOs who can help end the despair and suffering of Palestinians... they were committed to help all they can with the release of the hostages, end of the war, providing all humanitarian aid necessary and the reconstruction for Gaza." New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Herzog's X post about the meeting, praising WCK and featuring photos with Andres, became the flashpoint of the backlash. I was pleased to meet today with @ChefJoseAndres, founder and head of the world renowned aid organisation, @WCKitchen which has worked with dedication to help provide food to those in need in Israel and in Gaza - and indeed all over the world. True humanitarian assistance comes… — יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) August 17, 2025 Critics slammed Andres after seeing the post, saying the meeting amounted to condoning Israel's actions, including the targeting and killing of seven WCK international aid workers in April 2024. An Israeli air strike killed an additional three workers from the international NGO in November. Middle East Eye reached out to WCK for a response to the criticism they're facing, but did not receive a reply in time for publication. "He accepted a medal from the man who supplied the bombs that killed his @WCKitchen workers," one X user wrote, referencing President Biden awarding Andres the Medal of Freedom earlier this year. "Now he shakes hands with the man directing their murders." Israel murdered 7 of his employees and now he's doing photo ops with them. @chefjoseandres disgraceful. — B L A K E L E Y™℠©® LLC (@_iamblakeley) August 18, 2025 "The people you're shaking hands with have the blood of tens of thousands of Palestinians on their hands, the very people you claim to be helping," journalist Leyla Hamed posted on X. "And let's not forget: they also killed 7 members of your own NGO. Yet you still shake their hands. Disgraceful @chefjoseandres." Greater good? Others countered these criticisms by arguing that meetings like this are a part of Andres's role, and that it is necessary to help the humanitarian crisis Israel has manufactured in the Gaza Strip. "I hate that Herzog gets a photo-op with him (at least it's not you know who), I hate that this can be seen as disrespectful to the murdered WCK members, but if it gets food to the Gazan people, I can see why he would make the sacrifice," one user argued on a Reddit thread. "He's done far more for the Palestinian people, and suffering people worldwide, than I ever have, and I'm not going to hold him in judgement over this." Another user replied to this post, arguing that after two years of Israel's genocide in Gaza, it is natural for people to be sceptical of organisations or figures that Israeli officials publicly support. People are criticizing Chef José Andrés for visiting the Israeli President, etc. I'm obviously not in his head, but I think it's admirable that he is keeping his eye on *one* ball: to feed as many people in Gaza as possible. If it takes an annoying meeting, so be it. Life first. — Ami Dar (@AmiDar) August 18, 2025 "If this does lead to more food getting into Gaza without any conditionals, then fine. I'm willing to live with this compromise even if I think it's still fair to call out the hypocrisy," the user wrote. "However, we've also seen the past few months what it looks like when Israel coordinates efforts to let aid into Gaza between the GHF [Gaza Humanitarian Foundation] and the air drops leading to more deaths. I think it's more than a little right to be skeptical about an Israeli official suddenly being fine with aid given how they've weaponized it the past 4 months." Scrutiny over WCK's ties to Israel, which has publicly lauded the group's work, deepened after Israel banned the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa) – which is the primary source of humanitarian support for Palestinians across the Middle East – from operating in all of occupied Palestine in January. "No one other than World Central Kitchen has been allowed by Israel to bring aid in by sea, and in the past Israel has attacked and massacred civilian groups attempting to do so," Palestinian journalist Ali Abunimah wrote in the Electronic Intifada last year. "And such a 'venture' or 'pilot project' only makes sense in a context where Unrwa is being eliminated." Israel's inconsistent treatment of WCK compared to other international NGOs, along with Herzog's public praise for Andres, has led to the current backlash. The consistent message in the critics' posts of the meeting between the chef and the president is about the concern that Israel, and the US, are potentially using influential figures like him to "'whitewash" their image. "Israel murdered the workers of his NGO, but the chef forgives: he whitewashes the US and places the 'charity of the sandwich' wherever it benefits his business," one angered user posted on X. "May this photo haunt him wherever he goes."
Sharjah 24
37 minutes ago
- Sharjah 24
MoE announces full readiness for academic year 2025-2026
The briefing was also attended by Mohammed Al Qassim, Under-Secretary of MoE; Sulaiman Al Kaabi, Assistant Under-Secretary for the Professional Development Sector; and Amna Al Saleh, Acting Assistant Under-Secretary for the Curriculum and Assessment Sector, along with representatives of local media outlets. Sarah Al Amiri confirmed that since January, the MoE has been developing proactive plans to ensure public schools' readiness for the academic year 2025–2026, covering all aspects from facilities to advanced curricula. She noted that this year will introduce qualitative updates to boost the competitiveness of national education, including fundamental changes to the assessment policy. Centralised tests at the end of the second semester have been removed and replaced with school-based summative assessments, with centralised tests remaining only in the first and third semesters. The new system optimises school days, diversifies student performance assessment tools, enhances learning quality and teaching methods, promotes student wellbeing and adjusts semester weights in line with the updated policy. Al Amiri highlighted the approval of the second phase of the project-based learning and assessment (PBLA) system, now covering all Cycle 2 students in public and private schools applying the MoE curriculum. This follows the success of phase one, which engaged 127,500 students across 350 schools. She also noted the development of the national testing system through a new standardised proficiency test to measure Arabic, English and mathematics skills for grades 4–11 in public schools, with the first phase expected to include 26,000 students. Al Amiri reiterated the Ministry's focus on strengthening national identity through Arabic language and Islamic education as the foundation of student character. The new plan increases teaching time for both subjects in kindergarten and dedicates daily hours for Cycle-1 students to reinforce Arabic reading and writing, achieved by redistributing class periods without extending school hours. An Arabic baseline assessment will also be introduced in Grade 1 across 100 public and private schools to establish standard levels, enabling tailored support programmes to enhance linguistic skills and steadily raise proficiency, reflecting the Ministry's commitment to placing national identity at the core of education. On operational readiness, Al Amiri announced the opening of 9 new schools across several emirates which will welcome over 25,000 students, supported by more than 800 new teachers. More than 460 schools have been maintained and equipped, 5,500 buses allocated, more than 10 million textbooks printed and 47,000 laptops distributed. Mohammed Al Qasim highlighted the Ministry's efforts to enhance students' quality of life through the new Physical Education, Sports and Health Programme in public schools. The first phase of the initiative promotes a healthy, sustainable lifestyle by improving school health environments, organising sports tournaments, restructuring PE classes and introducing healthy meals. Al Qasim reiterated the Ministry's continued commitment to partnership with parents and educational cadres, emphasising their important role in shaping the national education system. This year, a participatory educational vision was developed to enhance their involvement in decision-making. As part of this, Ta'aleem Councils are being restructured: the School Leadership Council will have 14 members, the Teachers Council 14 members, and the Young Teachers Council seven members. Additionally, 520 Parents' Councils, representing 6,140 members nationwide, will be activated to contribute to MoE decisions and projects. He announced the MoE's educational campaign, 'From Skill to Leadership', engaging educators, parents and the community. The campaign aims to develop students' skills and transform them into achievements through three pillars: exploration, creating inspiring school environments to discover talent; development, enhancing skills via strategic partnerships and advanced training; and excellence, encouraging participation in local and international competitions. Two programmes will launch in the first month: 'My Inspiring Family' involving parents, and 'Inspiring People in the Field', both designed to motivate students on their educational journey. The MoE confirmed that the coming academic year will see the introduction of its nationally developed Artificial Intelligence (AI) curriculum – the first of its kind in the UAE – providing lessons from both local and international communities on integrating AI into education. Approximately 1,000 teachers will implement the curriculum across all grades, aiming to prepare students to use AI responsibly and effectively in daily and future life. The initiative will offer practical insights on harnessing AI in education, helping to shape local educational policies and contribute to the global discussion on the future of education. The Ministry of Education continues to enhance the capabilities of its educational cadres through advanced training programmes. More than 23,000 educators participated in a specialised training week, totalling around 170 hours across 40 workshops for leaders and teachers and 20 workshops for support positions. In the next academic year, the Educational Competency Assessment Project will target more than 12,000 cadres across kindergarten and Cycle 1 levels and 11,000 cadres across Cycle 2 and Cycle 3 in order to define clear career paths and empower staff in line with national education system requirements.
Dubai Eye
an hour ago
- Dubai Eye
Israel demands release of all 50 Gaza hostages, Israeli broadcaster says
Israel is demanding the release of all 50 hostages held in Gaza, Israeli public broadcaster Kan cited the prime minister's office as saying on Tuesday, as talks on a proposed deal envisaging a 60-day truce and release of half the hostages continue. Efforts to pause the fighting gained new momentum over the past week after Israel announced plans for a new offensive to seize control of Gaza City, and Egypt and Qatar have been pushing to restart indirect talks between the sides on a US-backed ceasefire plan. The deal is nearly identical to a proposal Washington put forward earlier this year, a spokesperson for mediator Qatar said on Tuesday. Hamas rejected that deal in July. Under the deal, ten Israeli hostages held in Gaza will be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. Israel says that of 50 hostages held by Hamas and its allies, 20 are believed to be alive. In exchange, Israel will release 150 detained Palestinians it sentenced to life in prison and 50 Palestinians it sentenced to more than 15 years. For each body Hamas returns, Israel will return the bodies of 10 Palestinian militants. Israel will permit aid to enter Gaza with the involvement of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross. The proposal includes the release of 200 Palestinian convicts jailed in Israel and an unspecified number of imprisoned women and minors, in return for 10 living and 18 deceased hostages from Gaza, according to a Hamas official. Two Egyptian security sources confirmed the details, and added that Hamas has requested the release of hundreds of Gaza detainees as well. The proposal includes a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces, which presently control 75 per cent of Gaza and the entry of more humanitarian aid into the enclave, where a population of 2.2 million people is increasingly facing famine. The last round of indirect talks between the sides ended in deadlock in July, with the sides trading blame for the collapse. Israel had previously agreed to the outline, advanced by US special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, but negotiations faltered over some of its details.
