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Egypt's Amina Kadous Nominated for Int'l Photography Award

Amina Kadous.
Amina Kadous.
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Egypt's Amina Kadous Nominated for Int'l Photography Award

Amina Kadous.
Amina Kadous.

Egypt's Amina Kadous is among eight photographers nominated for the 6th edition of the Madame Figaro Photography Award (Prix de la Photo Madame Figaro Arles) at the “Les Rencontres de la Photographie à Arles” Festival.

The festival is held annually in the city of Arles, southern France.

This year, the festival will feature 40 photography exhibitions displaying photos captured by prominent names in the field.

Born in 1991, Kadous studied in Boston in United States. Her photographs explore the concepts of memory and experience.

According to the competition’s brochure, Amina believes that “nothing lasts. Experiences, things, and moments from the physical world.”

Kadous had formerly displayed her works in London, Paris, Bamako and Boston.

During the 12th Biennale of Photography in Bamako, Kadous displayed a photograph, called “Memory Crack”, for which she won the “Centre Soleil d'Afrique Prize” (Sun Center of Africa Award).

Commenting on the award, she said: “The grains of my identity are planted in the city of Mahala [her hometown in Egypt]”.

Known as the home of Egyptian cotton, Mahala is depicted by Kadous in a photography collection named “White Gold”. The photograph competing in Arles is selected from this collection.

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Varieties

UN Approves Resolution on Dealing with Rising Sea Levels

This picture taken on September 4, 2026, shows an aerial view of the small islands off the coast of Koror, the capital of Palau, scattered across the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean. (AFP)
This picture taken on September 4, 2026, shows an aerial view of the small islands off the coast of Koror, the capital of Palau, scattered across the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean. (AFP)
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UN Approves Resolution on Dealing with Rising Sea Levels

This picture taken on September 4, 2026, shows an aerial view of the small islands off the coast of Koror, the capital of Palau, scattered across the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean. (AFP)
This picture taken on September 4, 2026, shows an aerial view of the small islands off the coast of Koror, the capital of Palau, scattered across the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean. (AFP)

The United Nations on Thursday passed a unanimous resolution demanding stronger action on rising sea levels, an existential threat for low-lying island nations driven by ocean warming and melting ice sheets and glaciers.

In 2024, global sea levels rose by almost six millimeters, the largest annual increase ever recorded, and they are set to rise by a meter or more by the end of the century without drastic action.

"Sea-level rise is measured in millimeters, but its toll is measured in millions of shattered lives, uprooted communities, and stolen futures," Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

"We cannot allow countries and cultures to vanish beneath the waves -- or leave the aspirations of billions dead in the water."

The declaration is aimed at bringing new momentum to efforts to tackle the problem -- reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing funding to vulnerable countries to strengthen their resilience plans.

Concretely, it resolves legal issues around what happens to nations when they start to vanish under the waves.

It affirms that maritime zones remain in place even if coastlines recede, and that "once a State is established, the disappearance of one of its constituent elements would not necessarily entail the loss of its statehood."

"For States that are literally defined by the ocean around us, the impact of sea level rise will be life-altering," said Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr., speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.

Small island states have been sounding the alarm since the 1989 Male Declaration on Global Warming and Sea Level Rise and helped develop international law on the issue, he continued, welcoming the declaration as "a genuine achievement."

Even small increments of sea-level rise pose grave risks, explained Tom Mortlock, a senior catastrophe research analyst at Aon.

One centimeter of sea-level rise translates to a meter of coastline retreat.

Projections show that flooding that might occur once every 50 years with sea levels as they are today could happen every three or four years if sea levels rise by half a meter.

Nature-based solutions like mangroves "can reduce coastal risk, but it can also get to the core problem we have for climate change which is carbon sequestration and carbon mitigation," said Mortlock.

Varieties

Gaza Documentary 'NAZA' to be Available Online Free

Directors Yuval Abraham, left, and Rachel Szor pose for photographers at the photo call for the film "NAZA" during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP)
Directors Yuval Abraham, left, and Rachel Szor pose for photographers at the photo call for the film "NAZA" during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP)
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Gaza Documentary 'NAZA' to be Available Online Free

Directors Yuval Abraham, left, and Rachel Szor pose for photographers at the photo call for the film "NAZA" during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP)
Directors Yuval Abraham, left, and Rachel Szor pose for photographers at the photo call for the film "NAZA" during the 83rd edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP)

Israeli director Yuval Abraham said Thursday that his documentary "NAZA", which won an award at the Venice Film Festival and has faced fierce backlash at home, will be made available online for free in November.

The film is based on testimony from 24 anonymous Israeli military whistleblowers who accuse the army of widespread killing of civilians in Gaza with the use of AI-powered targeting systems.

In a message posted on X also on behalf of co-director Rachel Szor, Abraham said that he wanted to make the film accessible to as many people as possible to allow the "truth to emerge."

"I made this film to spark a public debate about the government's actions in Gaza, the killing of more than 73,000 people, most of them civilians, and the normalization of a war of annihilation," the filmmaker wrote, AFP reported.

"NAZA" takes its name from the Israeli military term for civilian casualties expected in airstrikes, an abbreviated form of the Hebrew phrase for "collateral damage".

The film has triggered strong reactions in Israel. Culture Minister Miki Zohar requested that authorities consider revoking the citizenship of the two filmmakers on account of "treason", while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described it as "shocking".

Shortly after the documentary was screened in Venice, a crowd of protestors marched to Szor's parents' home two nights in a row, calling on authorities to "expel the traitors".

The Israeli military, for its part, has "categorically rejected" the allegations, stressing that the anonymity of those interviewed and the absence of locations or dates made any verification impossible.

It reiterated that decisions on strikes are made by humans and that significant efforts are made to protect civilians.

Abraham said he believed his film had "cracked the screen of indifference" in Israel despite a "high personal cost", adding that he and Rachel Szor would return to Israel to "continue fighting" for the country's future.

Launched in retaliation for the deadly attacks carried out by Hamas on Israeli soil on October 7, 2023, Israel's military offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the health ministry in the territory controlled by the Islamist movement, whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.

Varieties

Saudi Flag Flies High in Makkah for National Day

Flying the flag at such a height underscores its national significance and the values of monotheism - SPA
Flying the flag at such a height underscores its national significance and the values of monotheism - SPA
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Saudi Flag Flies High in Makkah for National Day

Flying the flag at such a height underscores its national significance and the values of monotheism - SPA
Flying the flag at such a height underscores its national significance and the values of monotheism - SPA

The Saudi flag was raised high in Makkah to celebrate the National Day, reflecting dignity, pride, and honor, and serving as a symbol of the Saudi state's unity and sovereignty.

Located on Prince Mohammed bin Salman Road, the flagpole is one of Makkah's most prominent national landmarks.

Standing more than 80 meters tall, it is among the city's tallest flagpoles, with the flag visible from afar at one of its main gateways, according to SPA.

Flying the flag at such a height underscores its national significance and the values of monotheism, justice, and strength it represents, while reflecting a deep sense of belonging and loyalty to the nation and its leadership.