• The Middle East Film and Comic Con took place in Abu Dhabi for the first time in 2022 after being held in Dubai for many years. All photos: Victor Besa / The National
    The Middle East Film and Comic Con took place in Abu Dhabi for the first time in 2022 after being held in Dubai for many years. All photos: Victor Besa / The National
  • The event is region's largest pop culture festival.
    The event is region's largest pop culture festival.
  • A woman in cosplay at the outdoor Party Plaza area at Adnec.
    A woman in cosplay at the outdoor Party Plaza area at Adnec.
  • Saeed with the Alejandro stuffed toy.
    Saeed with the Alejandro stuffed toy.
  • Print artist Khalid Al Raiisi with his 3D work.
    Print artist Khalid Al Raiisi with his 3D work.
  • Women take a selfie with the Batman statue.
    Women take a selfie with the Batman statue.
  • Ameera of Princess Designs custom art mugs.
    Ameera of Princess Designs custom art mugs.
  • A fan takes a selfie with The Chuckies.
    A fan takes a selfie with The Chuckies.
  • Comic Con visitors pose with Batman.
    Comic Con visitors pose with Batman.
  • Nadine, left, as Ms Joke and Reem as Shinso from the Japanese manga 'Of My Hero Academia'.
    Nadine, left, as Ms Joke and Reem as Shinso from the Japanese manga 'Of My Hero Academia'.
  • From left: Mimi Al Hajehr as Beidou, Lilly Lou as a Japanese school girl and Shouq Al Mehairbi as Nezuko.
    From left: Mimi Al Hajehr as Beidou, Lilly Lou as a Japanese school girl and Shouq Al Mehairbi as Nezuko.
  • A replicate of Thanos's infinity stone gauntlet.
    A replicate of Thanos's infinity stone gauntlet.
  • Visitors enjoy the outdoor area of Party Plaza.
    Visitors enjoy the outdoor area of Party Plaza.
  • Dexter Stephenson as Zenitsu Agatsuma, left, and Ahmed Al Hammadi as Inosuke from 'Dragon Slayer'.
    Dexter Stephenson as Zenitsu Agatsuma, left, and Ahmed Al Hammadi as Inosuke from 'Dragon Slayer'.
  • From left: Paris as Sleeping Beauty, Majed as Karl Heissenberg from 'Resident Evil Village' and Erim as Ezio of 'Assassin's Creed'.
    From left: Paris as Sleeping Beauty, Majed as Karl Heissenberg from 'Resident Evil Village' and Erim as Ezio of 'Assassin's Creed'.
  • Children enjoy an inflatable playhouse in the Party Plaza area.
    Children enjoy an inflatable playhouse in the Party Plaza area.
  • Glow in the dark artist Mohammed Al Ketbi.
    Glow in the dark artist Mohammed Al Ketbi.
  • The Middle East Film and Comic Con 2022 was held at Adnec.
    The Middle East Film and Comic Con 2022 was held at Adnec.
  • Artists Yasmin, left, and Leila Nemer at Artist Alley.
    Artists Yasmin, left, and Leila Nemer at Artist Alley.
  • Young visitors playing computer games.
    Young visitors playing computer games.
  • Comic books available for purchase at Comic Con.
    Comic books available for purchase at Comic Con.

Culture

Television

Middle East Film and Comic Con returns to Abu Dhabi for a second time in March

The region's largest pop culture festival will be held at Adnec from March 3 to 5

Hareth Al Bustani
Hareth Al Bustani

October 06, 2022

  • English
  • Arabic

Middle East Film and Comic Con, the region’s largest pop culture festival, has confirmed its next Abu Dhabi outing will be held from March 3 to 5 next year.

The event will be hosted by Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre for the second time, after moving from its long-time home in Dubai World Trade Centre.

Scroll through the gallery above for pictures from MEFCC 2022

A celebration of pop culture and fandom, the event brings together fans and stars for a fun-filled weekend that features workshops, talks, meet-and-greets, concerts, competitions and more.

MEFCC 2022 marked the event's 10th anniversary with special appearances from Charlie Cox, known for his role as Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil; Barry Keoghan, who acted in Dunkirk and The Batman; Ming-Na Wen (The Mandalorian); Nathalie Emmanuel (Game of Thrones); Charles Martinet (the voice of Super Mario) and others.

Among the highlights of the show is the annual cosplay competition, where fans dress up as their favourite characters and compete to see who is the best-dressed. Last year, a prize pool of Dh25,000 ($6,807) was up for grabs, split across three different categories, including Best Craftsmanship, Best Performance on Stage and Best Kids Cosplay.

Scroll through the gallery below for pictures from the cosplay competition at MEFCC 2022

  • A woman in cosplay poses with Batman at the Middle East Film & Comic Con 2022 in Abu Dhabi. All photos by Antonie Robertson / The National, unless specified otherwise
    A woman in cosplay poses with Batman at the Middle East Film & Comic Con 2022 in Abu Dhabi. All photos by Antonie Robertson / The National, unless specified otherwise
  • The judging panel of the cosplay competition.
    The judging panel of the cosplay competition.
  • A woman in cosplay performs on stage.
    A woman in cosplay performs on stage.
  • A cosplayer with a horse head mask.
    A cosplayer with a horse head mask.
  • The audience turned out in full force to watch the cosplay competition.
    The audience turned out in full force to watch the cosplay competition.
  • A cosplayer as the Marvel superhero Iron Man.
    A cosplayer as the Marvel superhero Iron Man.
  • Symbiote x Chainsaw Man.
    Symbiote x Chainsaw Man.
  • A young girl participates in the cosplay competition.
    A young girl participates in the cosplay competition.
  • The event took place at the MEFCC Mainstage, which is outdoors.
    The event took place at the MEFCC Mainstage, which is outdoors.
  • A girl cosplays as DC superhero Wonder Woman.
    A girl cosplays as DC superhero Wonder Woman.
  • The judging panel featured regional and international cosplayers.
    The judging panel featured regional and international cosplayers.
  • Even though not everyone entered the competition, there was still plenty of cosplay on display on day two of the Middle East Film & Comic Con.
    Even though not everyone entered the competition, there was still plenty of cosplay on display on day two of the Middle East Film & Comic Con.
  • A cosplayer in a menacing outfit.
    A cosplayer in a menacing outfit.
  • The children who competed in the Kids Cosplay competition were all winners and received swag bags.
    The children who competed in the Kids Cosplay competition were all winners and received swag bags.
  • Sylar Serag, as Bazelgeuse Armor from 'Monster Hunter', won first place in the Best Craftsmanship category. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
    Sylar Serag, as Bazelgeuse Armor from 'Monster Hunter', won first place in the Best Craftsmanship category. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
  • Ashwani Kapoor as Samurai Vegito Blue from 'Dragon Ball Z' took second place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
    Ashwani Kapoor as Samurai Vegito Blue from 'Dragon Ball Z' took second place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
  • Mohamed Farahat as Banbaro from 'Monster Hunter World' took third place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
    Mohamed Farahat as Banbaro from 'Monster Hunter World' took third place in Best Craftsmanship. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
  • Sabie Cipriani as Nico Yazawa from 'Long Live! School Idol Project' was first in Best Performance on Stage. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
    Sabie Cipriani as Nico Yazawa from 'Long Live! School Idol Project' was first in Best Performance on Stage. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
  • Mohammed Hasan, who goes by the cosplay name Themed Injection, won third place for Best Performance on Stage as Heath Ledger’s The Joker. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con
    Mohammed Hasan, who goes by the cosplay name Themed Injection, won third place for Best Performance on Stage as Heath Ledger’s The Joker. Photo: Middle East Film and Comic Con

The Mainstage section of the event also featured gaming and dance competitions, alongside live DJ and musical performances. Emirati singer Alira performed an anime-themed concert, while gamers battled for the Dh30,000 prize pool playing popular titles such as Rocket League, Tekken 7 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

With tens of thousands of fans descending on the capital from across the world for the event, traders also regularly exhibit and sell wares ranging from retro gaming consoles to rare early comic books editions.

The outdoor zone also usually features plenty of food trucks, as well as a children’s play area for the younger guests.

MEFCC is yet to announce its line-up of guests and activities, but fans can find out more about the event at mefcc.com.

THE BIO

Age: 33

Favourite quote: “If you’re going through hell, keep going” Winston Churchill

Favourite breed of dog: All of them. I can’t possibly pick a favourite.

Favourite place in the UAE: The Stray Dogs Centre in Umm Al Quwain. It sounds predictable, but it honestly is my favourite place to spend time. Surrounded by hundreds of dogs that love you - what could possibly be better than that?

Favourite colour: All the colours that dogs come in

Attacks on Egypt’s long rooted Copts

Egypt’s Copts belong to one of the world’s oldest Christian communities, with Mark the Evangelist credited with founding their church around 300 AD. Orthodox Christians account for the overwhelming majority of Christians in Egypt, with the rest mainly made up of Greek Orthodox, Catholics and Anglicans.

The community accounts for some 10 per cent of Egypt’s 100 million people, with the largest concentrations of Christians found in Cairo, Alexandria and the provinces of Minya and Assiut south of Cairo.

Egypt’s Christians have had a somewhat turbulent history in the Muslim majority Arab nation, with the community occasionally suffering outright persecution but generally living in peace with their Muslim compatriots. But radical Muslims who have first emerged in the 1970s have whipped up anti-Christian sentiments, something that has, in turn, led to an upsurge in attacks against their places of worship, church-linked facilities as well as their businesses and homes.

More recently, ISIS has vowed to go after the Christians, claiming responsibility for a series of attacks against churches packed with worshippers starting December 2016.

The discrimination many Christians complain about and the shift towards religious conservatism by many Egyptian Muslims over the last 50 years have forced hundreds of thousands of Christians to migrate, starting new lives in growing communities in places as far afield as Australia, Canada and the United States.

Here is a look at major attacks against Egypt's Coptic Christians in recent years:

November 2: Masked gunmen riding pickup trucks opened fire on three buses carrying pilgrims to the remote desert monastery of St. Samuel the Confessor south of Cairo, killing 7 and wounding about 20. IS claimed responsibility for the attack.

May 26, 2017: Masked militants riding in three all-terrain cars open fire on a bus carrying pilgrims on their way to the Monastery of St. Samuel the Confessor, killing 29 and wounding 22. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack.

April 2017: Twin attacks by suicide bombers hit churches in the coastal city of Alexandria and the Nile Delta city of Tanta. At least 43 people are killed and scores of worshippers injured in the Palm Sunday attack, which narrowly missed a ceremony presided over by Pope Tawadros II, spiritual leader of Egypt Orthodox Copts, in Alexandria's St. Mark's Cathedral. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks.

February 2017: Hundreds of Egyptian Christians flee their homes in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, fearing attacks by ISIS. The group's North Sinai affiliate had killed at least seven Coptic Christians in the restive peninsula in less than a month.

December 2016: A bombing at a chapel adjacent to Egypt's main Coptic Christian cathedral in Cairo kills 30 people and wounds dozens during Sunday Mass in one of the deadliest attacks carried out against the religious minority in recent memory. ISIS claimed responsibility.

July 2016: Pope Tawadros II says that since 2013 there were 37 sectarian attacks on Christians in Egypt, nearly one incident a month. A Muslim mob stabs to death a 27-year-old Coptic Christian man, Fam Khalaf, in the central city of Minya over a personal feud.

May 2016: A Muslim mob ransacks and torches seven Christian homes in Minya after rumours spread that a Christian man had an affair with a Muslim woman. The elderly mother of the Christian man was stripped naked and dragged through a street by the mob.

New Year's Eve 2011: A bomb explodes in a Coptic Christian church in Alexandria as worshippers leave after a midnight mass, killing more than 20 people.

While you're here
Skoda Superb Specs

Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol

Power: 190hp

Torque: 320Nm

Price: From Dh147,000

Available: Now

On Women's Day
The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases

A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.

One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait,  Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.

In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.

The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.

And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.

 

While you're here
Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

Five famous companies founded by teens

There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:

  1. Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate. 
  2. Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc. 
  3. Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway. 
  4. Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
  5. Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
RACE CARD

4.30pm: Maiden Dh80,000 1,400m
5pm: Conditions Dh80,000 1,400m
5.30pm: Liwa Oasis Group 3 Dh300,000 1,400m
6pm: The President’s Cup Listed Dh380,000 1,400m
6.30pm: Arabian Triple Crown Group 2 Dh300,000 2,200m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (30-60) Dh80,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Handicap (40-70) Dh80,000 1,600m.

Updated: October 12, 2022, 10:18 AM
Marvel UniverseGamingDisneyAbu Dhabi