COP28 Summit in Dubai: Clashes over agreement to phase out fossil fuels after OPEC pushback | Top 10 updates

Countries clashed on Saturday over a possible agreement to phase out fossil fuels at the COP28 summit in Dubai, jeopardizing attempts to deliver a first-ever commitment to eventually end the use of oil and gas in 30 years of global warming talks.

Saudi Arabia and Russia were among several countries insisting that the conference in Dubai focus only on reducing climate pollution - and not on targeting the fossil fuels causing it, according to observers in the negotiations.

Here are top 10 updates on COP28 climate summit in Dubai, 

1) Addressing the attendees of the Mangrove Alliance for Climate Ministerial Meeting at the COP28 Summit in Dubai on Saturday, Bhupendra Yadav said, "India has adopted a holistic approach towards conservation. We are not just focused on reducing emissions to tackle temperature rise, but are also working towards arresting land degradation, accelerating ecosystem restoration, and enriching biodiversity."

2) Yadav said PM Modi believes that global cooperation is the surest way to meet shared challenges like climate change. He recalled that India became a member of the Mangrove Alliance for Climate (MAC) during COP27 in Egypt, ANI reported. 

3) Activists designated Saturday a day of protest at the COP28 summit in Dubai. But the rules of the game in the tightly controlled United Arab Emirates at the site supervised by the United Nations meant sharp restrictions. 

4) A late afternoon demonstration of around 500 people, the largest seen at the climate conference, couldn't go beyond the UN-governed Blue Zone in this autocratic nation. And their calls for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip couldn't name the parties involved, as per AP reports. 

5) The 'Blue Zone' where the COP28 talks are taking place, on the sprawling site that housed Expo 2020, is currently under UN control, according to AFP reports. 

6) Holding pro-environment banners painted in the colors of the Palestinian flag, the demonstrators shouted for "Climate justice!" and "Ceasefire now!"

7) At least 80 countries including the United States, the European Union, and many poor, climate-vulnerable nations are demanding that a COP28 deal call clearly for an eventual end to fossil fuel use, Reuters reported. 

8) COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber told nations late on Saturday to speed up their work to find a final deal, saying there were "still more areas of divergence than agreement". “The window is closing to close the gaps.”

9) Other countries including India and China have not explicitly endorsed a fossil fuel phase-out at COP28, but have backed a popular call for boosting renewable energy.

10) COP28 Director General Majid Al Suwaidi avoided the term "fossil fuels" but said the United Arab Emirates, as president of the summit, wanted a deal to get the world on track to limit warming to 1.5 C.

(With inputs from agencies)