How the Zayed Award amplifies the work of its honorees to further their humanitarian missions

The honorees for 2025. (Supplied)
Short Url
Updated 04 February 2025
Follow

How the Zayed Award amplifies the work of its honorees to further their humanitarian missions

  • This year’s award recognizes Barbados PM Mia Mottley, World Central Kitchen, and young innovator Heman Bekele
  • By receiving the award in 2024, surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub has been able to expand his life-saving care to underserved communities

DUBAI: In a world grappling with crises ranging from conflict and humanitarian emergencies to economic vulnerability and climate change, the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity stands as a beacon of hope.

Since its establishment in 2019, the award, which includes a $1 million prize, has recognized individuals and organizations whose work embodies the universal values of peace, solidarity, and human dignity.




The trophies for the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity. (Supplied)

This year, the 2025 honorees — Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, humanitarian relief organization World Central Kitchen, and 15-year-old health innovator Heman Bekele — have each demonstrated a commitment to making the world a better place.

The Zayed Award for Human Fraternity, named in honor of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the late founder of the UAE, has become a symbol of recognizing and amplifying transformative humanitarian efforts worldwide.

The award is one of the outcomes of the dialogue between the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Al-Tayeb and Pope Francis, which led to the signing of the Document on Human Fraternity in Abu Dhabi in 2019.




With Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (L) as witness, Pope Francis (C) and Egypt's Al Azhar Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb sign documents during the Human Fraternity Meeting at the Founders Memorial in Abu Dhabi on February 4, 2019. (AFP)

 




Egyptian-British cardiothoracic surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub meeting with Pope Francis during last year's edition of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity. (Supplied)




Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Al-Tayeb congratulates Sir Magdi Yacoub during last year's awarding ceremonies. (Supplied) 

This year’s three recipients will be honored at a ceremony at the Founder’s Memorial in Abu Dhabi on Feb. 4.

The selection process for the annual award is rigorous, with an independent jury reviewing hundreds of nominations from individuals and organizations dedicated to advancing human fraternity.

“It is the judging committee’s honor to spotlight three outstanding honorees who are addressing some of today’s most urgent challenges — climate resilience, humanitarian relief, and youth-driven innovation,” Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam, secretary-general of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity, said in a statement.

2025 HONOREES

• Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley has long advocated for climate resilience, global financial reform, and renewable energy.

• World Central Kitchen has provided more than 300 million meals in crisis zones, including 70 million meals in Gaza since 2023.

• Heman Bekele developed an affordable soap to treat early-stage skin cancer, demonstrating the power of youth-led solutions in healthcare. 

“This year’s recipients demonstrate that transformative work can be undertaken at any age, in any place in the world, and in any field.”

Mottley has gained international recognition for her relentless advocacy in addressing climate change and her leadership in pushing for financial reform to support vulnerable nations.

Her efforts through the Bridgetown Initiative — a bold call for restructuring global financial systems — aim to ensure that developing nations have equitable access to climate resilience funding.

“She has committed to achieving 100 percent renewable energy for Barbados by 2030, investing in solar, wind, and other clean energy sources,” the award committee said in a statement.




Through her persistent advocacy, Barbados PM Mia Amor Mottley (shown on screen) has helped enable nations burdened by debt to reallocate funds toward climate adaptation and sustainability projects. (Supplied)

By pioneering debt-for-climate swaps, Mottley has enabled nations burdened by debt to reallocate funds toward climate adaptation and sustainability projects.

The award committee said Mottley’s leadership is a testament to how governance, when rooted in sustainability and equity, can create lasting change, and that her selection reinforces the global urgency of addressing climate change as an issue of human fraternity and justice.

Also among this year’s honorees is World Central Kitchen. Founded by Jose Andres in 2010, the charity has redefined humanitarian relief by providing immediate, fresh, and locally-sourced meals to people affected by disasters and crises.




World Central Kitchen founder Jose Andres attends an interfaith memorial service for the seven WCK workers killed in Gaza, at the Washington National Cathedral, in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2024. (AFP)

With more than 300 million meals served in over 30 countries, WCK’s work has proven essential in responding to humanitarian emergencies.

A particularly poignant example of the charity’s impact came in 2023 and 2024 when WCK delivered more than 70 million meals to Palestinians in Gaza, collaborating with local chefs and suppliers to ensure swift and effective relief under challenging circumstances.




Volunteers of the World Central Kitchen cook meals to be distributed to needy Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on May 3, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Hamas movement. (AFP)

“Through collaborations — including with the UAE — and its innovative ‘first-on-the-ground’ approach, WCK has demonstrated its capabilities in providing meals to the people who need them most,” the award committee said.

The organization’s commitment to dignity and community resilience has earned it admiration worldwide. By working alongside local communities, WCK ensures that its relief efforts do not just provide temporary aid but strengthen long-term food security.

In a first for the Zayed Award, a youth category was introduced this year to honor the contributions of the next generation.

At just 15 years of age, Ethiopian-American innovator Heman Bekele has already made a significant contribution to global healthcare.




Hemen Bekele competing in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge in 2023. (Instagram)

In 2024, at the age of 14, he developed a cost-effective soap to help prevent and treat early-stage skin cancer, a breakthrough that earned him TIME’s “Kid of the Year” and various accolades in science competitions.

Now working alongside researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Bekele aims to scale up his innovation to reach communities most in need.

“His ambition to save lives and his vision of accessible and affordable healthcare” were central to his selection as the first youth honoree of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity, the award committee said.

Bekele’s work exemplifies the award’s commitment to recognizing contributions at any age. Indeed, his inclusion sends a strong message that the next generation is not just the future of humanitarian innovation but an active and powerful force in the present.

Since its inception, the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity has sought to amplify the voices and initiatives of individuals and organizations that inspire hope and action.

“Beyond recognizing outstanding contributions to human solidarity and fraternity, the award actively fosters global dialogue through dedicated platforms,” Abdelsalam, the award’s secretary general, told Arab News.

One such initiative is the Human Fraternity Majlis, which brings together global leaders, Nobel laureates, and youth representatives to explore solutions to pressing global challenges.




Last year’s winner Sir Magdi Yacoub mee other winners nof the Fraterniuty Awadrd (Supplied)

Another is the annual Zayed Award for Human Fraternity Roundtable, which provides a space for honorees and judges to collaborate on advancing the principles of human fraternity worldwide.

“In just five years, the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity has grown into a worldwide movement that encourages collaboration, fraternity, and communication between individuals from different cultures, religions, and backgrounds,” said Abdelsalam.

“Millions of people worldwide have benefited from the projects spearheaded by past honorees.”

AWARD IMPACT

* Since receiving the award in 2024, Egyptian-British cardiothoracic surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub has been able to expand his life-saving care to underserved communities.

The award does not just celebrate achievements — it actively supports and expands their reach. A striking example of this is last year’s honoree, renowned cardiac surgeon Professor Sir Magdi Yacoub.

His groundbreaking work in heart surgery and his initiatives to provide life-saving care to underserved communities were amplified through the award’s recognition.

With financial backing from the Zayed Award, Yacoub expanded his work to establish the Rwanda Heart Center in Kigali — a project modeled after his successful Aswan Heart Centre in Egypt.

“The prize means we can do more research, speed up the building of the Rwanda Heart Centre, and continue making an impact,” Yacoub said in 2024.




Sir Magdi Yacoub visiting a patient at the Rwanda Heart Centre. (Courtesy of My Heart Centre Rwanda)

Such outcomes highlight the real-world impact of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity. It is not merely an honor — it is an investment in solutions that drive tangible change.

In recognizing Mottley, WCK, and Bekele, the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity reaffirms the importance of leadership, innovation, and service to humanity.

Whether through shaping climate policy, feeding those in crisis, or developing life-saving healthcare solutions, these honorees exemplify what it means to act for the greater good.

As the 2025 ceremony approaches, the award serves as a reminder that impactful change can come from governments, non-profits, or even a determined teenager with a vision for a better world.

More than ever, these efforts need to be celebrated, supported, and replicated. Or, as Abdelsalam put it: “Now more than ever, these contributions serve as a beacon of hope in a world facing increasing division.”
 

 


Activist aid ship nears Gaza after reaching Egypt coast: organizers

Updated 57 min 30 sec ago
Follow

Activist aid ship nears Gaza after reaching Egypt coast: organizers

  • The Madleen, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, left Sicily last week with a cargo of relief supplies ‘to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza’

CAIRO: An aid ship with 12 activists on board, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, has reached the Egyptian coast and is nearing the besieged Palestinian territory, organizers said on Saturday.
The Madleen, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, left Sicily last week with a cargo of relief supplies “to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza.”
“We are now sailing off the Egyptian coast,” German human rights activist Yasemin Acar told AFP. “We are all good,” she added.
In a statement from London on Saturday, the International Committee for Breaking the Siege of Gaza — a member organization of the flotilla coalition — said the ship had entered Egyptian waters.
The group said it remains in contact with international legal and human rights bodies to ensure the safety of those on board, warning that any interception would constitute “a blatant violation of international humanitarian law.”
European parliament member Rima Hassan, who is on board the vessel, urged governments to “guarantee safe passage for the Freedom Flotilla.”
The Palestinian territory was under Israeli naval blockade even before the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas that sparked the Gaza war and Israel has enforced its blockade with military action in the past.
A 2010 commando raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which was part of a similar aid flotilla trying to breach the blockade, left 10 civilians dead.
In May, another Freedom Flotilla ship, the Conscience, reported coming under drone attack while en route for Gaza, prompting Cyprus and Malta to send rescue vessels in response to its distress call. There were no reports of any casualties.
Earlier in its voyage, the Madleen changed course near the Greek island of Crete after receiving a distress signal from a sinking migrant boat.
Activists rescued four Sudanese migrants who had jumped into the sea to avoid being returned to Libya. The four were later transferred to an EU Frontex vessel.
Launched in 2010, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition is a coalition of groups opposed to the blockade on humanitarian aid for Gaza that Israel imposed on March 2 and has only partially eased since.
Israel has faced mounting international condemnation over the resulting humanitarian crisis in the territory, where the United Nations has warned the entire population of more than two million is at risk of famine.


Israel says it has retrieved the body of a Thai hostage kidnapped into Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023

Updated 07 June 2025
Follow

Israel says it has retrieved the body of a Thai hostage kidnapped into Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023

TEL AVIV: Israel says it has retrieved the body of a Thai hostage kidnapped into Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023.
The Prime Minister’s office said Saturday that the body of Thai citizen Nattapong Pinta was returned to Israel in a special military operation.
Pinta was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz and killed in captivity near the start of the war, said the government. Thais were the largest group of foreigners held captive by Hamas militants.
This comes two days after the bodies of two Israeli-American hostages were retrieved.
Fifty-five hostages remain in Gaza, of whom Israel says more than half are dead.
The defense minister said Saturday that Pinta’s body was retrieved from the Rafah area. He had come to Israel from Thailand to work in agriculture.
On Thursday, Israel retrieved the bodies of Judih Weinstein and Gad Haggai, both of whom had Israeli and US citizenship.
This comes as Israel continues its operation in Gaza. At least 22 people were killed by Israeli strikes overnight Friday into Saturday.


Lebanon aims to lure back wealthy Gulf tourists to jumpstart its war-torn economy

Updated 07 June 2025
Follow

Lebanon aims to lure back wealthy Gulf tourists to jumpstart its war-torn economy

  • Lebanon’s new political leaders sense an opportunity to revitalize the economy once again with help from wealthy neighbors

BEIRUT: Fireworks lit up the night sky over Beirut’s famous St. Georges Hotel as hit songs from the 1960s and 70s filled the air in a courtyard overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.
The retro-themed event was hosted last month by Lebanon’s Tourism Ministry to promote the upcoming summer season and perhaps recapture some of the good vibes from an era viewed as a golden one for the country. In the years before a civil war began in 1975, Lebanon was the go-to destination for wealthy tourists from neighboring Gulf countries seeking beaches in summer, snow-capped mountains in winter and urban nightlife year-round.
In the decade after the war, tourists from Gulf countries – and crucially, Saudi Arabia – came back, and so did Lebanon’s economy. But by the early 2000s, as the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah gained power, Lebanon’s relations with Gulf countries began to sour. Tourism gradually dried up, starving its economy of billions of dollars in annual spending.
Now, after last year’s bruising war with Israel, Hezbollah is much weaker and Lebanon’s new political leaders sense an opportunity to revitalize the economy once again with help from wealthy neighbors. They aim to disarm Hezbollah and rekindle ties with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, which in recent years have prohibited their citizens from visiting Lebanon or importing its products.
“Tourism is a big catalyst, and so it’s very important that the bans get lifted,” said Laura Khazen Lahoud, the country’s tourism minister.
On the highway leading to the Beirut airport, once-ubiquitous banners touting Hezbollah’s leadership have been replaced with commercial billboards and posters that read “a new era for Lebanon.” In the center of Beirut, and especially in neighborhoods that hope to attract tourists, political posters are coming down, and police and army patrols are on the rise.
There are signs of thawing relations with some Gulf neighbors. The United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have lifted yearslong travel bans.
All eyes are now on Saudi Arabia, a regional political and economic powerhouse, to see if it will follow suit, according to Lahoud and other Lebanese officials. A key sticking point is security, these officials say. Although a ceasefire with Israel has been in place since November, near-daily airstrikes have continued in southern and eastern Lebanon, where Hezbollah over the years had built its political base and powerful military arsenal.
Tourism as a diplomatic and economic bridge
As vital as tourism is — it accounted for almost 20 percent of Lebanon’s economy before it tanked in 2019 — the country’s leaders say it is just one piece of a larger puzzle they are trying to put back together.
Lebanon’s agricultural and industrial sectors are in shambles, suffering a major blow in 2021, when Saudi Arabia banned their exports after accusing Hezbollah of smuggling drugs into Riyadh. Years of economic dysfunction have left the country’s once-thriving middle class in a state of desperation.
The World Bank says poverty nearly tripled in Lebanon over the past decade, affecting close to half its population of nearly 6 million. To make matters worse, inflation is soaring, with the Lebanese pound losing 90 percent of its value, and many families lost their savings when banks collapsed.
Tourism is seen by Lebanon’s leaders as the best way to kickstart the reconciliation needed with Gulf countries — and only then can they move on to exports and other economic growth opportunities.
“It’s the thing that makes most sense, because that’s all Lebanon can sell now,” said Sami Zoughaib, research manager at The Policy Initiative, a Beirut-based think tank.
With summer still weeks away, flights to Lebanon are already packed with expats and locals from countries that overturned their travel bans, and hotels say bookings have been brisk.
At the event hosted last month by the tourism ministry, the owner of the St. Georges Hotel, Fady El-Khoury, beamed. The hotel, owned by his father in its heyday, has acutely felt Lebanon’s ups and downs over the decades, closing and reopening multiple times because of wars. “I have a feeling that the country is coming back after 50 years,” he said.
On a recent weekend, as people crammed the beaches of the northern city of Batroun, and jet skis whizzed along the Mediterranean, local business people sounded optimistic that the country was on the right path.
“We are happy, and everyone here is happy,” said Jad Nasr, co-owner of a private beach club. “After years of being boycotted by the Arabs and our brothers in the Gulf, we expect this year for us to always be full.”
Still, tourism is not a panacea for Lebanon’s economy, which for decades has suffered from rampant corruption and waste.
Lebanon has been in talks with the International Monetary Fund for years over a recovery plan that would include billions in loans and require the country to combat corruption, restructure its banks, and bring improvements to a range of public services, including electricity and water.
Without those and other reforms, Lebanon’s wealthy neighbors will lack confidence to invest there, experts said. A tourism boom alone would serve as a “morphine shot that would only temporarily ease the pain” rather than stop the deepening poverty in Lebanon, Zoughaib said.
The tourism minister, Lahoud, agreed, saying a long-term process has only just begun.
“But we’re talking about subjects we never talked about before,” she said. “And I think the whole country has realized that war doesn’t serve anyone, and that we really need our economy to be back and flourish again.”


US mulls giving millions to controversial Gaza aid foundation, sources say

Updated 07 June 2025
Follow

US mulls giving millions to controversial Gaza aid foundation, sources say

  • The plan has met resistance from some US officials concerned with the deadly shootings of Palestinians near aid distribution sites and the competence of the GHF, the two sources said

WASHINGTON: The State Department is weighing giving $500 million to the new foundation providing aid to war-shattered Gaza, according to two knowledgeable sources and two former US officials, a move that would involve the US more deeply in a controversial aid effort that has been beset by violence and chaos.
The sources and former US officials, all of whom requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that money for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) would come from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which is being folded into the US State Department.
The plan has met resistance from some US officials concerned with the deadly shootings of Palestinians near aid distribution sites and the competence of the GHF, the two sources said.
The GHF, which has been fiercely criticized by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations, for an alleged lack of neutrality, began distributing aid last week amid warnings that most of Gaza’s 2.3 million population is at risk of famine after an 11-week Israeli aid blockade, which was lifted on May 19 when limited deliveries were allowed to resume.
The foundation has seen senior personnel quit and had to pause handouts twice this week after crowds overwhelmed its distribution hubs.
The State Department and GHF did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reuters has been unable to establish who is currently funding the GHF operations, which began in Gaza last week. The GHF uses private US security and logistics companies to transport aid into Gaza for distribution at so-called secure distribution sites.
On Thursday, Reuters reported that a Chicago-based private equity firm, McNally Capital, has an “economic interest” in the for-profit US contractor overseeing the logistics and security of GHF’s aid distribution hubs in the enclave.
While US President Donald Trump’s administration and Israel say they don’t finance the GHF operation, both have been pressing the United Nations and international aid groups to work with it.
The US and Israel argue that aid distributed by a long-established UN aid network was diverted to Hamas. Hamas has denied that.
USAID has been all but dismantled. Some 80 percent of its programs have been canceled and its staff face termination as part of President Donald Trump’s drive to align US foreign policy with his “America First” agenda.
One source with knowledge of the matter and one former senior official said the proposal to give the $500 million to GHF has been championed by acting deputy USAID Administrator Ken Jackson, who has helped oversee the agency’s dismemberment.
The source said that Israel requested the funds to underwrite GHF’s operations for 180 days.
The Israeli government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The two sources said that some US officials have concerns with the plan because of the overcrowding that has affected the aid distribution hubs run by GHF’s contractor, and violence nearby.
Those officials also want well-established non-governmental organizations experienced in running aid operations in Gaza and elsewhere to be involved in the operation if the State Department approves the funds for GHF, a position that Israel likely will oppose, the sources said.
Gaza hospital officials have said more than 80 people had been shot dead and hundreds wounded near GHF’s distribution points between June 1-3.
Since launching its operation, the GHF has opened three hubs, but over the past two days, only two of them have been functioning.
Witnesses blamed Israeli soldiers for the killings. The Israeli military said it fired warning shots on two days, while on Tuesday it said soldiers had fired at Palestinian “suspects” advancing toward their positions.


Activist boat says rescues migrants en route to Gaza

Updated 06 June 2025
Follow

Activist boat says rescues migrants en route to Gaza

  • The Madleen has “a 12-member crew of peaceful activists” headed for Gaza “with the aim of breaking the blockade of Palestine by the state of Israel,” the March to Gaza Greece group said

ATHENS: A vessel organized by an international activist coalition to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza has rescued several migrants from the sea near Crete, a support group in Greece said on Friday.
The Madleen, launched by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, said it had received a distress signal from a boat in the Mediterranean, forcing it to change course off the coast of Crete.
The Madleen has “a 12-member crew of peaceful activists” headed for Gaza “with the aim of breaking the blockade of Palestine by the state of Israel,” the March to Gaza Greece group said.
“Upon arrival (at the scene), it discovered that the boat was sinking with approximately 30-35 people aboard.”
At that point, the Madleen was approached by a ship that initially identified itself as Egyptian.
“The activists aboard the Madleen quickly realized that this was a false identification and that the ship was, in fact, a Libyan coast guard vessel,” they said.
“Libya is not considered a safe country and for this reason some of the refugees jumped into the sea to avoid being returned there.
“The Madleen rescued four Sudanese individuals who had jumped into the water and brought them aboard.”
After several hours of calls for assistance, a Frontex vessel eventually picked up the rescued individuals, the group said, referring to the European Union’s border and coast guard agency.
The Madleen sailed from Sicily on Sunday.
Those on board include climate activist Greta Thunberg.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, launched in 2010, is a non-violent international movement supporting Palestinians.
It combines humanitarian aid with political protest against the Israeli blockade of Gaza.
Israel has come under increasing international criticism over the critical humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territory.
It blocked all aid into Gaza on March 2. The United Nations warned on May 30 that the entire population of more than two million was at risk of famine.
Fighters from Palestinian group Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
A total of 1,218 people died, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.
The militants abducted 251 hostages, 55 of whom remain in Gaza, including 32 the Israeli military says are dead.
Since October 2023, Israel’s retaliatory war on Hamas-run Gaza has killed 54,677 people there, mostly civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The United Nations deems the health ministry figures to be reliable.
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.