GAZA: Palestinian journalist Zakaria Abu Ghali was killed on Tuesday, along with his mother and sister, in an Israeli airstrike on Rafah in the Gaza Strip.
According to Arab News’ reporter in southern Gaza, the strike hit targets in Rafah’s densely populated Tal Al-Sultan neighborhood, including Abu Ghali’s home.
He was a journalist and screenwriter at Al-Quds Today TV channel.
At least 122 journalists and media professionals have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel’s onslaught in October, according to UN figures.
UN experts said in a recent press release that the Palestinian enclave “has become the deadliest and most dangerous conflict for journalists in recent history.”
They warned that “targeted attacks and killings of journalists are war crimes,” stressing that “journalists are entitled to protection as civilians under international humanitarian law.”
They urged Israeli authorities “to allow journalists to enter Gaza and protect the safety of all journalists in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
On Tuesday, at around 10 p.m. local time, Israeli artillery shells also hit the home of the Abu Akar family, in which many displaced families were taking shelter. The strikes wounded several Palestinians, including three children.
Tal Al-Sultan, close to the border with Egypt, has been home to thousands of displaced Palestinian families since October.
In the wake of Tuesday’s strikes, many displaced families packed what little they owned and fled, during what Arab News’ reporter said was one of the coldest nights of the year.
The UN estimates that 90 percent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million have been displaced since October.
Palestinian journalist Zakaria Abu Ghali killed in Israeli airstrike on Rafah
https://arab.news/2szc2
Palestinian journalist Zakaria Abu Ghali killed in Israeli airstrike on Rafah
- The strike targeted Tal Al-Sultan district in western Rafah
- Abu Ghali died with his mother and sister
UAE outlines approach to AI governance amid regulation debate at World Economic Forum
- Minister of State Maryam Al-Hammadi highlights importance of a robust regulatory framework to complement implementation of AI technology
- Other experts in panel discussion say regulators should address problems as they arise, rather than trying to solve problems that do not yet exist
DUBAI: The UAE has made changes to 90 percent of its laws in the past four years, Maryam Al-Hammadi, minister of state and the secretary-general of the Emirati Cabinet, told the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday.
Speaking during a panel discussion titled “Regulating at the Speed of Code,” she highlighted the importance of having a robust regulatory framework in place to complement the implementation of artificial intelligence technology in the public and private sectors.
The process of this updating and repealing of laws has driven the UAE’s efforts to develop an AI model that can assist in the drafting of legislation, along with collecting feedback from stakeholders on proposed laws and suggesting improvements, she said.
Although AI might be more agile at shaping regulation, “there are some principles that we put in the model that we are developing that we cannot compromise,” Al-Hammadi added. These include rules for human accountability, transparency, privacy and data protection, along with constitutional safeguards and a thorough understanding of the law.
At this stage, “we believe AI can advise but still (the) human is in command,” she said.
Authorities in the UAE are aiming to develop, within a two-year timeline, a shareable model to help other nations learn and benefit from its experiences, Al-Hammadi added.
Argentina’s minister of deregulation and state transformation, Federico Sturzenegger, warned against overregulation at the cost of innovation.
Politicians often react to a “salient event” by overreacting, he said, describing most regulators as “very imaginative of all the terrible things that will happen to people if they’re free.”
He said that “we have to take more risk,” and regulators should wait to address problems as they arise rather than trying to create solutions for problems that do not yet exist.
This sentiment was echoed by Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, who said “imaginative policymakers” often focus more on risks and potential harms than on the economic and growth benefits of innovation.
He pointed to Europe as an example of this, arguing that an excessive focus on “all the possible harms” of new technologies has, over time, reduced competitiveness and risks leaving the region behind in what he described as a “new technological revolution.”
