Barcelona, Spain
"Stay four and pay three" with Emirates Holidays' package to Barcelona, with accommodation in El Palace Hotel, located in the heart of the city and close to the Gothic quarter and shopping districts. The trip costs from Dh9,149 per person, based on two sharing a standard room, including breakfast, economy airfare from Dubai to Madrid, round-trip airport transfers and return train journeys between Madrid and Barcelona, hotel transfers and taxes. The offer is valid until February 25. Visit www.emiratesholidays.com or call 800 5252.
Maldives
Etihad Holidays has a three-night package in the Maldives with accommodation at Biyadhoo Island Resort and Spa. The package costs from Dh4,830 per person, half board, including airport transfers, return flights from Abu Dhabi and taxes. Each additional night costs from Dh515 per person. The Biyadhoo Island Resort and Spa, set on the South Kaafu Atoll, is about 30km from Malé airport and has one of the Maldives' finest house reefs, with a wealth of easy-to-access diving sites nearby. The 96 rooms are set over two-storey buildings around lush gardens, with balconies or private patios leading down to the beach. Visit www.etihadholidays.com to book.
Jordan
Soak up Jordan's rich history and sights on this week-long trip that begins and ends in the city's capital, Amman. Besides a tour of Amman, a visit to the superbly preserved remains of Jerash and exploring Wadi Rum in a 4x4, the trip's highlight is a drive along the famed King's Highway to Petra, an epic nine-hour journey over 306km with stops at Mount Nebo and the mosaics of Madaba, among other places. From Dh5,060 per person for seven days, including the services of a tour guide, sightseeing and transfers, entrance fees, accommodation based on two sharing, and some meals, but excluding flights. Visit www.balesworldwide.com for more information.
Ithaca, Greece
Enjoy a self-catered holiday in a traditional house on the island of Ithaca off Greece's west coast. Each house has two bedrooms, a fully equipped kitchen and a living room with a wood-burning heater. The houses offer views over a bay and are surrounded by private herb gardens. Winding, stone-flagged pathways connect the houses to other parts of the estate, such as the coffee shop, the outdoor cooking and dining area, and a saltwater infinity pool.
There's plenty to do in the area - Pilates and yoga classes at sunrise, held on the edge of the forest on the pool terrace; massages and spa treatments in a forest pavilion; long walks, hikes and cycling in the hills; cooking classes; sea excursions with a marine biologist as guide; boating trips and scuba diving. Below the estate are two coves, perfect for swimming and sunbathing.
Each house sleeps four to six people and costs from €1,520 (Dh7,380) per week. The price includes round-trip airport transfers, welcome snacks and drinks, breakfast on the first morning, bread and seasonal garden produce daily; and local transport. Book through www.responsibletravel.com.
travel@thenational.ae
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
How to help
Donate towards food and a flight by transferring money to this registered charity's account.
Account name: Dar Al Ber Society
Account Number: 11 530 734
IBAN: AE 9805 000 000 000 11 530 734
Bank Name: Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank
To ensure that your contribution reaches these people, please send the copy of deposit/transfer receipt to: juhi.khan@daralber.ae
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
RESULT
Valencia 3
Kevin Gameiro 21', 51'
Ferran Torres 67'
Atlanta 4
Josip Llicic 3' (P), 43' (P), 71', 82'
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
Types of fraud
Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
* Nada El Sawy
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Voices: How A Great Singer Can Change Your Life
Nick Coleman
Jonathan Cape
Contracted list
Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine, Matt Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.
