DUBAI: Wearing a blue space suit with a UAE flag on one sleeve and a spaceship on the other, the first Emirati astronaut said Tuesday his mission highlighted a crucial issue — climate change.
Witnessing Earth and its beauty from space made him realize the importance of preserving it, said Hazzaa Al-Mansoori, a 35-year-old former military pilot who reached the International Space Station in September.
“We have to appreciate the planet and make sure that we save it for the next generations,” said the father-of-four, urging efforts to address “the reasons behind climate change.”
Mansoori became the first Arab astronaut to visit the ISS and returned home to a hero’s welcome after an eight-day mission, during which he participated in scientific experiments including a time-perception study.
His space trip has become a source of great pride in the UAE, a newcomer with ambitions to send an unmanned probe to orbit Mars by 2021.
In a Dubai hall swarming with journalists, Mansoori recounted the magic of his trip.
“When you see our planet from space... it’s really something amazing and a spectacular view,” he said. “I spent a lot of time looking out that window, I didn’t even want to sleep.”
Mansoori said living in space showed him that life on Earth was “a blessing.”
“It is really difficult to live in space, we have to provide a lot of oxygen, air and food... and we have all of this here for free,” he said.
The five-year period ending 2019 is set to be the hottest ever, said a UN report published in September, scientists’ latest grim reminder that climate change is already a reality.
Last month was the hottest October ever recorded worldwide, according to data released by the European Union’s satellite monitoring service.
“We are lucky to live here — let us protect the Earth and its atmosphere,” said Mansoori.
On board the ISS, Mansoori, who was selected from more than 4,000 UAE candidates, donned Emirati dress and treated crew members to his country’s snacks.
He flew to the station after the UAE signed a contract with Russian space agency Roscosmos to make him a “spaceflight participant,” a term used for people from outside the main space agencies who take short trips to the ISS.
As part of its space plans, the UAE has announced its aim to become the first Arab country to send an unmanned probe to orbit Mars by 2021, naming it “Hope.”
“It’s the golden age for space exploration in the UAE,” said Salem Al-Marri, of the UAE’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center.
UAE’s first astronaut urges climate protection on Earth
UAE’s first astronaut urges climate protection on Earth
- Mansoori became the first Arab astronaut to visit the ISS and returned home to a hero’s welcome after an eight-day mission
- “It is really difficult to live in space, we have to provide a lot of oxygen, air and food... and we have all of this here for free,” he said
Vast majority of Brits want full arms embargo on Israel: Poll
- Just 16% oppose expelling the country from the UN
- Palestine Solidarity Campaign: Survey ‘speaks to Israel’s growing isolation and the significant public support for sanctions’
LONDON: Around 80 percent of the British public support a full arms embargo on Israel, and just 16 percent oppose expelling the country from the UN, according to a poll conducted by Opinium.
Around three-quarters of respondents want public sector pensions to disengage from investments linked to Israel.
The findings come in the aftermath of Co-op members voting at their annual general meeting last week for the supermarket to stop selling Israeli products. Two-thirds of those surveyed by Opinium back similar boycotts by other UK supermarkets.
Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said in a statement: “The polling … speaks to Israel’s growing isolation and the significant public support for sanctions.
“By continuing to arm and support Israel even as it enacts a genocide and a policy of forced starvation, the British government is holding on to an increasingly fringe position, completely out of sync with public opinion, and with the views of those who supported it at the last election.”
On Wednesday, thousands of activists are set to form a kilometer-long cordon around the Houses of Parliament in London, linked by a stretch of red fabric, to call for an end to UK military aid to Israel and the imposition of sanctions on the country.
Jamal said: “Those bringing the demand for an arms embargo to Parliament … in a symbolic red line are doing so knowing that the demand is supported by the majority of their fellow citizens.”
The PSC said in a press release: “For nearly 3 months Israel imposed a total blockade preventing all humanitarian assistance, resulting in deaths by starvation, widespread malnutrition and hunger amongst 2.3 million people.
“Israel has now imposed a severely limited and militarised aid operation, condemned by international aid organisations, that has resulted in scores of Palestinians being shot dead as they search for food.”
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Israel army says projectiles launched from Syria fell in open areas
- Two projectiles fell near two Israeli settlements in the occupied Golan Heights
JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said two projectiles launched from Syria crossed into Israeli territory on Tuesday, but fell without causing damage near two settlements in the occupied Golan Heights.
“Following the sirens that sounded in Haspin and Ramat Magshimim at 21:36, two projectiles were identified crossing from Syria into Israeli territory and fell in open areas,” the military said in a statement.
In a separate incident, Tel Aviv said it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen on Tuesday, with a series of explosions heard over Jerusalem.
"Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted," the Israeli military said.
Libya’s eastern-based parliament passed budget for its development fund
- The budget of $12.71 billion will be spread equally over three years
BENGHAZI: Libya’s eastern-based parliament voted on Tuesday to approve a budget for its development and reconstruction fund, a parliament spokesperson and member said, although it is unclear if the money will be forthcoming given the country’s divisions.
The budget of 69 billion Libyan dinar ($12.71 billion) will be spread equally over three years, lawmaker Tarek Jroushi told Reuters, adding that the funds will be overseen by the parliament.
Parliament spokesperson Abdullah Blheg earlier announced the approval of the budget in a post on X, without disclosing the budget amount.
The fund, established in February last year by the eastern-based House of Representatives, has independent financial status, according to the parliament gazette.
However it is unclear if the governor of the Tripoli-based Central Bank of Libya, Naji Issa, will hand over the money for the fund. The central bank, based in Tripoli, is the only internationally recognized depository for Libyan oil revenues, the country’s vital economic income.
The eastern development fund is headed by Belgasem Haftar, a son of military commander Khalifa Haftar.
The Benghazi-based government of Osama Hamad is allied to Haftar, who controls the east and large parts of the southern region of Libya.
The north African country’s separate Tripoli-based Government of National Unity is headed by interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Al-Dbeibah, who was installed through a UN-backed process in 2021.
Bahrain elected to Arab seat at UN Security Council for 2026-2027, succeeding Algeria
- Bahrain FM Alzayani calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza, release of hostages and detainees, inflow of humanitarian aid to enclave
NEW YORK CITY: The UN General Assembly on Tuesday elected Bahrain to the 15-member UN Security Council for two-year terms starting on Jan. 1, 2026.
The Gulf country was joined for the same stint by Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Latvia, and Liberia.
The Security Council is the only UN body that can make legally binding decisions such as imposing sanctions and authorizing use of force. It has five permanent veto-wielding members: Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.
The remaining 10 members are elected, with five new members joining every year. Bahrain, Colombia, the DRC, Latvia, and Liberia — who were all elected in uncontested slates — will replace Algeria, Sierra Leone, South Korea, Guyana and Slovenia.
To ensure geographical representation, seats are allocated to regional groups. But even if candidates are running unopposed in their group, they still need to win the support of more than two-thirds of the General Assembly.
Bahrain received 186 votes, DRC 183 votes, Liberia 181 votes, Colombia 180 votes and Latvia 178 votes.
The General Assembly on Monday elected former German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock as president of the 193-member body for its 80th session, which begins in September.
UAE’s foreign minister, Australian counterpart reaffirm friendship
- Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Penny Wong review issues 50 years on from establishing diplomatic relations
LONDON: Foreign ministers of the UAE and Australia have reaffirmed the friendship of their countries, some 50 years on from establishing diplomatic relations.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and Penny Wong stressed in a phone call their mutual commitment to strengthening areas of cooperation in support of both countries’ development goals, the Emirates News Agency reported.
The parties also reviewed regional and international issues of mutual interest and expressed their commitment to continue cooperating to achieve growth.
Abu Dhabi and Canberra are celebrating 50 years since establishing diplomatic relations in March 1975.
