N E W STUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2016

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Meanwhile, the Saudi government said yesterday it willraise municipal fees for services such as business licensingto increase revenues as its oil income sags because of lowglobal crude prices. The new fees, which also includecharges for operating telecommunications towers andbanks’ automated teller machines, will take effect on Dec 9,the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs said.

But in a sign that the government wants to limit thefinancial impact on companies, many of which are strug-gling with an economic slowdown, the fees were wellbelow ceilings approved by the cabinet in August. Also,the ministry postponed implementation of increases in

some fees, such as charges for collecting garbage andapproving real estate development plans. It was not clearwhen these might go ahead.

Investment bank NCB Capital estimated the impact onindustries’ net income this year would range from 0.02 per-cent for healthcare and 0.07 percent for banks to 0.79 per-cent for consumer staples and 1.36 percent for petrol sta-tions. Telecommunications operator Etihad Etisalat(Mobily) will see an impact of 3.3 percent, it calculated.Seeking to cut a budget deficit that totalled $98 billion lastyear, the government has been coming up with a range ofnew ways to raise revenues. In August, the cabinetapproved proposals to increase visa charges and trafficfines. — Agencies

Qatar raises govt salaries

Ruling family, leading figures urged...Clinton, Trump in frenzied campaign finale

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The first such election was held in Dec 2012, but theAssembly was dissolved in June by the constitutional court.

The second one-vote polls were held in July 2013 and itelected the Assembly that was dissolved last month afterthree years in office, following a dispute between MPs andthe government over hiking petrol prices. The group saidthat they believe that dissolving the Assembly came to enda period that was marred by shortcomings and an inca-pable Assembly and government, and their failure to facedomestic and external challenges.

The group also appealed to the political leadership and

to various sides to rescue the country from a state of deteri-oration that it has fallen into. The initiative called on thegovernment to firmly curb those who violate the lawamong the election candidates, crack down on bribery andcorruption and stop illegal appointments in ministriesbased on influence.

It called for the election of capable and qualified peopleand to reject those who incite social tensions and threatenthe unity of the society. It also appealed to voters to rejectall those who were involved in corruption cases. The initia-tive called for appointing capable and qualified peoplefrom the ruling family and the society to the posts of thepremier and so-called sovereign Cabinet portfolios.

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As she boarded her campaign plane in White Plains, NewYork for the day’s first rally in Pennsylvania, Clinton acknowl-edged the deep divisions in the country, and admitted thatbringing it together again will require “some work”. “I really dowant to be the president for everybody - people who vote forme, people who vote against me,” she told reporters.

In a video message set to air during two prime-time televisionreaching millions of viewers, Clinton warned, “Our core values arebeing tested in this election.” As a piano trills in the backgroundshe asks: “Is America dark and divisive, or hopeful and inclusive?”As the day began, Clinton held just a 2.2 percent lead over Trumpin a four-way race including third party candidates, according toa RealClearPolitics average of national polls. US media, however,predicted substantial to big wins for the 69-year-old Democratwhen electoral votes are counted. Influential election forecasterFiveThirtyEight gave her a two to one chance of winning the 270votes needed to claim the White House.

Under the cloud of an FBI investigation, Clinton got goodnews Sunday when James Comey, the agency’s director, clearedher again of criminal wrongdoing in her use of email. But thedamage may already have been done. Her popularity dippedand opinion polls tightened after Comey’s campaign bombshelleight days earlier that he was reopening an investigation intowhether she exposed US secrets by using a private email serverwhile serving as secretary of state.

It gave Trump a windfall opportunity to recover ground lostwhile battling accusations of sexual assault, and the race lookedheaded for a photo finish. From Sarasota, Trump headed toRaleigh, North Carolina, Scranton, Pennsylvania, Manchester, NewHampshire and Grand Rapids, Michigan for a flurry of back-to-

back campaign appearances. Besides Obama and First LadyMichelle, Clinton drew on the star power of rockers BruceSpringsteen and Jon Bon Jovi at their final big rally in Philadelphiayesterday night. Clinton was holding rallies in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania and Grand Rapids, Michigan, before ending her dayin the closely contested swing state of North Carolina. Clinton’sfinal appearances had a note of optimism mixed with warnings ofthe threat posed by Trump. “There’s fear, even anger in our coun-try. But I’ve got to say, anger is not a plan, my friends,” she told thecrowd in Pittsburgh. “We don’t have to accept a dark and divisivevision for America,” she said. “Tomorrow you can vote for a hope-ful, inclusive, big-hearted America.”

The world has looked on aghast as Trump’s sensationalist real-ity television style became a driving force propelling him towardthe most powerful political post in the world. Asian andEuropean exchanges, which had been rocked by news of the FBIprobe, surged yesterday morning and Wall Street rose two per-cent on news of Comey’s announcement. Even so, said PatrickO’Hare of Briefing.com, “Polls still show a fairly tight race, andwith the Brexit surprise still fresh in participants’ memory, there isa reluctance to take the polling information for granted.”

Trump is predicting just such a ballot upset, or “Brexit plus,plus, plus” as he put it Sunday, referring to the poll-defyingBritish vote to exit the EU. “If we win the corrupt politicians andtheir donors lose. If they win, the American people lose bigleague,” he said in his first rally in Sarasota. “This is it, folks. Wewill never have another opportunity. Not in four years, not ineight years. It will be over,” he told his followers. “Our failed politi-cal establishment has delivered nothing but poverty at homeand disaster overseas. They get rich making America poor. It’stime to reject a media and political elite that’s bled our countrydry,” he said. — AFP

JERUSALEM: An Israeli court sentenced threePalestinian teenagers to more than a decadein prison yesterday for stabbing Israelis,including a 14-year-old involved in one of themost high-profile attacks. The sentences drewcriticism from Palestinians and rights activistswho said the youths should not be given suchlong jail terms. Ahmed Mansura, 14, was sen-tenced to 12 years after having earlier beenfound guilty of the attempted murder of twoIsraelis, a 20-year-old and a 12-year-old boy.He was 13 at the time of the Oct 2015 attackin the Jewish settlement neighborhood ofPisgat Zeev in annexed east Jerusalem.

The stabbings led to a propaganda warbetween Palestinians and Israelis, sparked bysurveillance footage later released of the inci-dent. Manasra carried out the attack alongwith his 15-year-old cousin Hassan, who was

shot dead by security forces. The two Israeliswere seriously wounded. In addition to thejail term, the Jerusalem district court orderedManasra to pay 80,000 shekels ($21,000) incompensation to the adult victim and100,000 to the boy, the ruling said. His lawyerLea Tsemel said she planned to appeal thesentence. The sentencing and trial wereclosed to journalists because Manasra is aminor. Prosecutors had requested 12 years.

‘Not-Possible Fine’ “Although the accused was a minor, he

tried to harm human life and there is no oth-er option than to give him jail time,” prosecu-tor Yuval Keidar told journalists after the sen-tencing. Manasra had earlier pleaded notguilty, saying he had not personally stabbedeither of the victims and had only intended

to frighten them. The teenager appearedcalm as he entered and left the courtroom ineast Jerusalem in handcuffs. His fatherrefused to comment, asking journalists toleave him alone.

“Our defeat, of the legal team, is a verysmall defeat compared to the wide and deepdefeat of both the Israeli society and thecourt,” said defense lawyer Tsemel. She saidthat “everyone talked about the full rehabili-tation he is going through. Everyone talkedabout a kid who’s not dangerous at all. Anddespite this, the court approved the prosecu-tion’s claim and gave him the full sentence,plus an unimaginable and not-possible fine.”

In a separate case, the court sentenced a15-year-old and a 17-year-old to 11 years inprison for stabbing a Jew in Jerusalem’s OldCity in January. “International standards are

clear that all efforts should be directedtowards rehabilitation of the child,” Sari Bashiof Human Rights Watch told AFP. “Such longsentences raise questions regarding Israel’scommitment to work towards rehabilitatingthe children.” The incident involving Manasracame at the beginning of a months-long waveof Palestinian knife, gun and car-rammingattacks. Footage released by Israeli authoritiesin the wake of the attack purported to showthe cousins - knives in hand - following theIsraeli victims. It also showed Manasra, whowas hit by a car as they fled, lying bleeding onthe ground in the aftermath of the attack asIsraeli onlookers shouted abuse. Palestinianpresident Mahmoud Abbas later claimed hehad been “executed”, while Israel scrambled torelease footage of him sitting up and eating ina Jerusalem hospital bed. — AFP

Palestinian boy sentenced to prison over knife attack

JERUSALEM: Ahmed Manasra, a 14-year old Palestinianboy convicted of the attempted murder of two Israelisin a stabbing in Oct 2015, leaves the District Court afterhis sentencing hearing yesterday. — AFP