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The newly elected mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, is married to Rama Duwaji, a woman of Syrian descent. For many in Syria, that practically makes him family.That he’s also a Muslim and a supporter of the Palestinian cause doesn’t hurt either, and his election victory has inspired warm feelings and an outpouring of humour in the Arab world.”I love how Syrians are now calling Zohran Mamdani our brother-in-law,” wrote Karam Nachar, editor-in-chief of Al Jumhuriya, an independent Syrian media outlet.”The poor man thought he was marrying one Syrian woman! No, habibi Zohran, you belong to the entire nation now.”Mamdani’s wife Duwaji, a 30-year-old illustrator and designer, was born in Texas to Syrian parents and grew up partly in Dubai. This has prompted many Syrians keen to share in the joy of his win to adopt him as one of their own. Abdel Karim Bakkar, a Syrian scholar with more than three million Facebook followers, said he was “thrilled that the new mayor of New York City is our brother-in-law, but even more thrilled that he speaks for the marginalised, the working class, and the poor”.Uganda-born Mamdani will become New York City’s first Muslim and socialist mayor when he takes office in January, and in his victory speech he responded to US President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration platform by celebrating the Big Apple’s diversity. – Knafeh and bodega cats -In a viral campaign video showing the 34-year-old addressing New Yorkers in fluent Levantine Arabic, he grins and pours himself a glass of mint tea: “Now, I know what you’re thinking, I might look like your brother-in-law from Damascus.”He savours a slice of Palestinian knafeh — the syrupy dessert made of soft cheese and shredded pastry — and pitches his candidacy to New York’s immigrant communities. “Even if I can’t convince your uncle that the Knafeh Nabulsi from Steinway is better than the one in New Jersey, I promise to do everything I can to help you open your small business, pay your rent, and build your future here,” he said.Another clip showed Mamdani at a bodega — the small convenience stores in the city that are often owned by Arabs — talking to a cat named Egypt and promising the shop owner a rent freeze in near-perfect Egyptian.In Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, 26-year-old Palestinian student Saleh, who did not give his last name, called Mamdani’s win “incredible”.”A Muslim mayor in a city with more Jewish residents than Tel Aviv, that’s crazy,” he said.- ‘A bit of hope’ -Rami Kukhun, another Nablus resident and humanitarian worker, said the election had given him “a bit of hope”.”All the attention on Palestine… on what’s happening in Gaza, might eventually lead to political outcomes that, directly or indirectly, benefit Palestinians,” he said.In Iran, Mamdani’s victory received wide coverage in local media, which highlighted his Shiite background — the dominant branch of Islam in the country. Elsewhere in the region, some saw in Mamdani’s mayoral feat an opportunity to reflect on politics in their own countries.In Tunisia, where critics accuse President Kais Saied of cracking down on civil liberties, former radio host Haythem El Mekki said Mamdani’s remarks about welcoming migrants “would earn him twenty years in prison” along with “charges of conspiracy”.”You have every right to denounce the hypocrisy, racism, and injustice of the West,” El Mekki wrote to his 225,000 Facebook followers. “But ask yourself: do you and your country truly live up to those values?”Mamdani was born in Kampala and later lived in Cape Town, South Africa before migrating with his Indian parents, filmmaker Mira Nair and scholar Mahmood Mamdani, to the United States, where he became a citizen in 2018.burs-iba/bou/dc/smw

Friends Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry shared the lead in the Abu Dhabi Championship after they were paired together on Thursday and both shot eight-under-par opening rounds of 64.The pair shared the lead with New Zealander Kazuma Kobori, South African Richard Sterne and Frenchman Adrien Saddier at the start of the last event of the DP Tour before the season-ending World Championship in Dubai.Lowry and Fleetwood, both previous winners of the event, were drawn in a group that also included a third Ryder Cup player Rasmus Hojgaard.”It was nice,” said Lowry. “I was pretty excited when I saw the group, my pairing today, and it was nice to go out there with the boys.”Fleetwood carded eight birdies and no bogeys, while Lowry fired nine birdies and dropped a single shot.”Something about me and Tommy,” the Irishman added. “I just like playing with him, your friend, and really good player too.”And you kind of feed off each other. It was nice.”Fleetwood agreed.”I’m so close to both the guys, Ryder Cup team-mates, played with Rasmus, who I’m close with last week. It was great,” the Englishman said.”You focus on your own game,” he added. “It shouldn’t make that much difference but definitely when you’re in a comfortable pairing or group it’s nice. It’s helpful.”Dane Hojgaard ended the round in a chasing pack of seven one shot off the lead.Another Ryder Cup player Ludvig Aberg made a hole-in-one on the par-three eighth and finished the day two shots back.

More than 700 police deployed across the UK city of Birmingham Thursday for protests planned ahead of a football match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Aston Villa, with visiting Israeli fans barred.The UK government last month vowed to reverse the ban on Maccabi fans attending the Europa League match in the city in central England that has a significant Muslim population after widespread criticism of the decision taken by local safety advisors and police.However, the Israeli club later announced it would decline any tickets for its fans, citing safety concerns.Villa have said they are not selling tickets for the vacant away end of their Villa Park stadium.Birmingham, the UK’s second-largest city, has been the scene of regular pro-Palestinian rallies over the last two years.Close to Villa’s stadium on Thursday there was a large, visible police presence, an AFP correspondent saw.Local police said protests by different groups were scheduled Thursday near Villa Park, including a pro-Palestinian demonstration demanding Israel be excluded from international football.A pro-Israeli group has also organised a Maccabi Solidarity Rally, with both protests set to kick off around 6:00 pm (1800 GMT), two hours before the match is due to begin.”We are experienced at policing high-profile football matches and demonstrations, and for many weeks now, we have been working closely with different faith and local community groups to listen to their views and concerns,” West Midlands Police said in statement.Signs had been hung near the stadium reading “no war games allowed” and “Give Zionism the Red Card”, while channels spearheaded by far-right activist Tommy Robinson have made Islamophobic statements about the match and planned protests.One school near the stadium confirmed to AFP it was closing early to avoid disruption, with others reportedly planning to do the same.- ‘High risk’ -Police have classified the fixture as “high risk”, citing “violent clashes and hate crime offences” during a Europa League match in Amsterdam between Maccabi and local team Ajax last November.That game sparked two days of clashes between locals and Israeli fans in the Dutch city.But ahead of Thursday’s match things were calm in Birmingham.Residents Michael Harrison, 38, and Lisa Evans, 47, working at a small business near Villa Park, were not worried about possible protests.Harrison said Israeli fans should have been given tickets to attend the match.”The game, it’s about bringing people together,” he said, adding he understood the fears but the fans could have been searched properly.Maccabi Tel Aviv’s decision to turn down tickets also came after Israeli police called off an Israeli Premier League match between the club and city rivals Hapoel because of “riots” between rival fans.The team has insisted its supporters were not involved in the unrest and criticised “hate-filled falsehoods” about its supporters for creating a “toxic atmosphere”.Aston Villa have urged supporters not to display political symbols during the match — a practice banned under protocols issued by UEFA, the governing body of European football.Ayoub Khan, the independent MP for the area covering Villa Park who was elected last year on a pro-Palestinian ticket, said there was a “large concentration of Muslims” in the local area who had voiced fears about racism.

Hezbollah lashed out on Thursday against the prospect of any political negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, and insisted that it has a right to defend itself.A source close to Hezbollah’s political leadership told AFP the declaration followed recent US and Egyptian pressure on Lebanon’s leaders to open direct negotiations.Lebanon and Israel are still technically in a state of war, but all the recent armed conflicts with Israel were fought by Hezbollah, not the Lebanese military.On Thursday, an Israeli strike killed one person, according to the Lebanese health ministry. The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hezbollah construction team. The only diplomatic contact between Israel and Lebanon is through a ceasefire monitoring mechanism, which includes the United States, France and the United Nations.This body meets regularly at the headquarters of the UN force in southern Lebanon but the Lebanese and Israeli parties do not directly communicate with each other. – Disarmament drive -Hezbollah was the only movement in Lebanon that refused to disarm after the 1975-1990 civil war, first claiming it had a duty to liberate territory occupied by Israel, and then to continue defending the country.In an open letter to the Lebanese people and their leaders, Hezbollah said it rejected “any political negotiations” between Lebanon and Israel and that such talks would “not serve the national interest”.Hezbollah is backed by Iran, which also fought its own war against Israel earlier this year.”We reaffirm our legitimate right… to defend ourselves against an enemy that imposes war on our country and does not cease its attacks,” Hezbollah added.The group nevertheless said it remained committed to a ceasefire reached with Israel last year, after months of hostilities that escalated into an all-out war.Israel warned last week that it could intensify operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the group of trying to rearm.Last week, US envoy Tom Barrack said that dialogue with Israel could be the key to easing tensions.The Lebanese government is due to meet later Thursday to examine the progress of its efforts to disarm the militant group.Despite the November 2024 ceasefire agreement that ended the latest war, Israel maintains troops in five areas in southern Lebanon and has kept up strikes.Since the ceasefire, the United States has increased pressure on Lebanese authorities to disarm the group, a move opposed by Hezbollah and its allies.- ‘Hasty decision’ -Israel has stepped up its strikes on Lebanon in recent weeks, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah positions.President Joseph Aoun has criticised Israel for intensifying its strikes after he said he was open to negotiating with Israel. A Lebanese official told AFP on Thursday that Israel has not responded “positively nor negatively” to the offer. The Lebanese government has ordered the army to devise a plan to disarm Hezbollah, but last week Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz accused Aoun of “dragging his feet”.”The Lebanese government’s commitment to disarm Hezbollah and remove it from southern Lebanon must be implemented. Maximum enforcement will continue and even intensify — we will not allow any threat to the residents of the north,” he said.Netanyahu meanwhile accused Hezbollah of attempting to rearm, after it suffered staggering losses in its last war with Israel.In September 2024, Israel killed the group’s longtime chief, Hassan Nasrallah and over the course of the war took out many other senior leaders.Under the terms of the ceasefire, the army is tasked with ensuring Hezbollah is disarmed in the south near the Israeli border by the end of the year, before proceeding to its disarmament in the rest of Lebanon.Hezbollah has criticised the government’s “hasty decision” to disarm it, claiming that Israel has taken advantage of the push.