The Cabinet Wednesday approved in principle a draft law on nationalising jobs in the private sector and endorsed a draft Cabinet decision regarding the incentives, facilities and privileges granted under nationalisation of jobs in the private sector law.HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani chaired the Cabinet's regular meeting at its seat at the Amiri Diwan.Following the meeting, HE Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs said in a statement that according to the provisions of the draft, a Cabinet decision, based on a proposal by the Minister of Labour, determines the nationalised jobs in each of the work sectors, in light of the nationalisation plans and nationalisation rates in each of them.Also, a Cabinet decision, based on the Minister's proposal, determines, the incentives that may be granted to the entities subject to the provisions of this law, the facilities and privileges that may be granted to the entities that are committed to nationalisation rates, and the financial incentives that may be granted to Qatari workers in those entities.At the outset of the meeting, the Cabinet expressed the solidarity of Qatar and its sincere condolences to the government and people of the Republic of Turkiye and the Syrian people for the victims of the devastating earthquake that hit several Turkish and Syrian regions, wishing a speedy recovery for the injured.The Cabinet also reviewed the following issues and took the appropriate decisions in their regard:1- A draft agreement between the government of Qatar and the United Nations, regarding the arrangements for the 11th session of the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption.2- Results of the 35th session of Arab Ministers of Transport.3- The results of the visit of HE the Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs to the Republic of Turkiye and the United Kingdom.4- Outcomes of the 17th Regional Meeting for Asia, the Pacific and the Arab States on defining work priorities and promoting employment growth.Besides, the Cabinet listened to the presentation made by HE the Minister of Municipality on the Ministry's preparations to host the Horticultural Expo 2023 Doha from 10/2/2023 to 3/28/2024, and took the appropriate decision in this regard.

Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) announced the death of four personnel from its representation mission in Turkiye, who were operating in Syria, as a result of the devastating earthquakes that struck both countries on Monday.The deceased are Nisreen al-Hussein (psychosocial support professional at Salqin Clinic in Syria), Doaa Yasser Ramadan (health system support pharmacist in Syria), Mustafa al-Daghim (mobile clinic field officer at Al-Andalus Camp), and Mohannad Youssef al-Aali (driver in Azmarin town).Other personnel of the mission lost family members in Turkiye and Syria because of the earthquake-caused destruction of residential buildings in the affected areas, a QRCS statement explained.QRCS secretary-general Ali bin Hassan al-Hammadi expressed his deep sorrow for the devastation caused by the earthquake, and the thousands of casualties, including four employees of QRCS’ representation mission in Turkiye. He extended his condolences to the families of the deceased, the two sister National Societies, and the Turkish and Syrian nations in this painful affliction.Al-Hammadi said: “The tragedy affected some QRCS’ personnel working in Syria, as well as their families. To all of us, the agony is double, with the loss of dear colleagues who spared no effort to deliver humanitarian aid to the unfortunate people of Syria. Amid such an appalling tragedy, let’s pray for the deceased, the injured, the grieved nations, and all humanity”.According to him, QRCS would keep supporting the victims both in Syria and Turkiye, to relieve and help them overcome the ordeal.QRCS has already activated its emergency operations room and launched a $10mn fundraising campaign to provide more humanitarian aid. QRCS’ field personnel in northern Syria are currently distributing the first batch of emergency relief aid, consisting of 4,800 food parcels, for the benefit of the displaced Syrian families most affected by the quake.Pursuant to the directives of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, ordering an airlift from Qatar to Turkiye, QRCS prepared its contingency stock of relief materials in Doha to be deployed to the affected areas, in co-operation with Qatar Amiri Air Force and Qatar Fund for Development.The emergency relief shipment contains 35 tonnes of aid items, including 2,250 heavy blankets, 2,750 light blankets, 1,000 jerrycans, 3,000 mosquito nets, 2,000 tarpaulins, 500 shelter maintenance kits, and 1,360 family hygiene kits.

A meeting between the delegations of Qatar and Bahrain was held at the headquarters of the Secretariat General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Tuesday.Qatar's delegation at the meeting was chaired by HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, whereas the Kingdom of Bahrain's delegation was headed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani.The meeting dealt with developing the necessary mechanisms and procedures to set the course for talks at the level of bilateral committees, in accordance with the Al Ula statement issued after the Al Ula Summit in Saudi Arabia on January 5, 2021, in order to end the pending special files between them.The two sides also stressed the importance of working together and cooperating between the two sisterly countries in a way that enhances their fraternal relations, achieves the aspirations of their peoples for security, stability and development, and supports GCC joint action.