CrossFireArabia
Ofer Cassif writes
Hours after No Other Land won the academy awards, Israel occupation forces handed a demolition order for a school in Masafer Yatta.
Even Shakespeare couldn’t have written such a travesty of justice. Palestinians in Masafer Yatta, and elsewhere, deserve liberation, they deserve to live free from occupation in their own sovereign state.
CrossFireArabia
Bahrain, with its shallow waters and rich oyster beds, has long been synonymous with pearls, which formed the backbone of the island nation’s economy for thousands of years. Diving for pearls, otherwise known as pearling, remains part of the country’s cultural DNA.
“I always say that all Bahrainis have pearl diving in their blood,” Mohamed Alslaise, a pearl diver and field researcher for the Bahrain Institute for Pearls and Gemstones (DANAT) tells UN News. “Almost all the families that moved from the Arabian Gulf or Iranian coast to Bahrain were divers.”
Mr. Alslaise is passionate about preserving and reviving this age-old tradition, notes that many families in the Gulf nation have a member who was either a pearl diver or contributed in some way to the pearl diving industry.
Pearling in the Persian Gulf shaped Bahrain’s economy for thousands of years but, following a peak around the turn of the 20th century, the perfection of cultured pearls by Japan in the 1930s caused a sharp and devastating decline in the industry.
Khaled Salman, a diver since the 1970s, explains that while diving continues, it’s no longer done in the old way.
UN Video/Hisae Kawamori
Bahraini diver, Mohamed Alslaise extracting pearls from oysters.
“Nowadays, larger quantities are extracted due to advancements in technology, allowing divers to stay underwater for longer periods. In the past, a diver would stay underwater for four minutes, but now scuba divers can remain underwater for an hour or more.”
Due to lower pearl prices, Salman notes, “Many people don’t sell the pearls they extract; they store them until prices rise and then sell them to traders in Bahrain.”
Some pearls are used in local industries, while others are marketed outside Bahrain. He also highlights three types of pearls: synthetic, cultured, and natural, adding that “distinguishing between these types requires experience and modern equipment.”
The decline in pearling also affected Bahrain’s shipbuilding industry. Abdulla, a designer of wooden ships and boats for over 35 years, shares his perspective: “Bahrain is famous for its shipbuilding industry, which was integral to pearling. There are several types of ships, varying by design, but now smaller ships are used for pearling due to decreased demand.”
The wood for shipbuilding is imported from Africa and Singapore, and, says Abdulla, the lifespan of a ship can extends beyond 100 years.
UN Video/Hisae Kawamori
Abdulla, a designer of wooden ships and boats for over 35 years.
“Most Bahraini traditions are connected to the pearl diving industry. For instance, the pearl diving songs,” says Mr. Alslaise. “The folklore of pearl diving has been passed down for generations. We still sing the same songs, which were originally sung to boost morale on the boats.”
Bahrain’s historic pearling site, known as the Pearling Path, has been inscribed as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The site testifies to the pearling tradition and the wealth it generated in the Gulf region for millennia.
According to UNESCO, the area consists of 17 buildings in Murharraq city, three offshore oyster beds, part of the seashore and the Qal’at Bu Mahir fortress on the southern tip of Muharraq Island, from where boats used to set off for the oyster beds.
There are shops, storehouses, a mosque, and the homes of wealthy merchants in the area. According to UNESCO, the location is the only complete example of the pearling cultural tradition and the wealth it produced during the period when the Gulf economy was dominated by trade from the second century until Japan developed cultured pearls.
It also constitutes an outstanding example of traditional utilization of the sea’s resources and human interaction with the environment, which shaped both the economy and cultural identity of the island’s society.
UN News/ Abdelmonem Makki
A band performing a pearl diving song in Bahrain. The folklore of pearl diving has been passed down for generations.
“I am one of the people who fell in love with pearl diving without any guidance from my parents or family,” Mr. Alslaise. “The generation before us was not allowed to dive when they were young because, after oil was discovered, all the jobs shifted to the oil industry.”
According to Mr. Alslaise, since 2017, when Bahraini authorities introduced pearl diving licenses, many people who signed up had no prior knowledge of pearl diving.
“Now, seven years down the line, many Bahrainis have reconnected with this heritage. Over 1,000 divers are now registered and dive regularly to create an income for themselves.”
CrossFireArabia
The Glasgow Film Theatre (GFT) has announced that Coca-Cola products will no longer be served at the venue after staff initiated a boycott due to the brand’s support for Israel. The move comes after a protest led by front-of-house and cleaning staff, who refused to handle goods linked to the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Their demands, backed by Unite Hospitality, were officially met on Monday, leading to the removal of Coca-Cola products from the cinema’s offerings.
CrossFireArabia
Palestinian detainee Khaled Mahmoud Abdullah was announced dead yesterday in the Israeli Megiddo prison, according to the Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs and the Palestinian Prisoners Society. He is the third Palestinian to be reported dead within a week, bringing the total number of deaths among the detainees since the beginning of the Israeli genocide to 61, with their identities known, including at least 40 from Gaza.
CrossFireArabia
Israel’s move to prevent all aid from entering the Gaza Strip after Hamas reportedly refused to accept a plan to continue with phase one of the fragile ceasefire has had an immediate impact, including a 100-fold increase in the price of flour and vegetables.
That’s according to the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, which said on Monday that the Kerem Shalom, Erez and Zikim crossing closures means that vital humanitarian assistance, including thousands of tents, can’t be delivered to civilians in need.
Phase one of the ceasefire mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the US expired on Saturday, with Hamas calling on Israel to move on to the next agreed phase – but Israel is calling instead for a continuation of phase one through the end of the Holy Month of Ramadan in line with a proposal from the top US envoy to the region.
January’s ceasefire deal has seen the release of 33 Israeli hostages who’ve been held captive since the 7 October terror attacks, with around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners exchanged.
“The ceasefire has provided the opportunity to distribute food, to distribute water, as well as shelter assistance and medical aid, allowing nearly everyone in Gaza to receive food parcels,” said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, briefing reporters in New York.
“Our humanitarian partners tell us that following the closure of the crossings into Gaza yesterday, flour and vegetable prices increased more than 100-fold. Partners are currently assessing the stocks that are currently available,” he added.
The UN children’s agency, UNICEF, warned that the stoppage of aid deliveries into Gaza will quickly lead to devastating consequences for children and families who are simply struggling to survive.
“The aid restrictions announced yesterday will severely compromise lifesaving operations for civilians,” said Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East. “It is imperative that the ceasefire – a critical lifeline for children – remains in place, and that aid is allowed to flow freely so we can continue to scale up the humanitarian response.”
The agency said that between 19 January and last Friday, almost 1,000 UNICEF trucks had crossed into the enclave carrying clean water, medical supplies, vaccines, therapeutic food and other materials.
Since the start of the ceasefire on 19 January, UNICEF and partners have provided warm clothing to 150,000 children in Gaza and increased daily water distribution for nearly half a million people living in more remote areas, Mr. Dujarric said.
Nearly 250,000 children and thousands of pregnant and breast-feeding mothers have received nutritional supplements since the ceasefire took effect.
Over the past two weeks, in Rafah, Khan Younis and Deir al Balah, aid partners have distributed vegetable seed kits for gardening to try and encourage more diverse diets.
Around 1,500 water distribution points are now operating across Gaza – double the number operational at the start of the ceasefire. “However, partners tell us that pipes and spare parts for maintenance are urgently needed,” said Mr. Dujarric.
Across Gaza, more than 100 public schools have reopened, allowing around 100,000 students back into the classroom.
In Gaza City and North Gaza, UN partners will use tents to ensure children can continue learning, with some wood pallets recycled into school furniture.
OCHA teams visited a displacement site in Khan Younis on Monday where around 1,200 people are staying. These communities have not been allowed to return to their homes, which are located in the buffer zone.
OCHA is working to mobilise assistance to meet their needs.
Meanwhile in the occupied West Bank, OCHA reports that ongoing operation by Israeli forces continues to drive humanitarian needs in northern areas. Humanitarian partners continue to face movement restrictions.
