A Tunisian judge has resigned from the country's electoral commission in protest against the dismissal of dozens of judges by President Kais Saied, before a referendum on a new constitution next month.
Mr Saied removed 57 judges earlier this month, accusing them of corruption and protecting terrorists.
The judges' association said the charges were mostly politically motivated.
"I submitted my resignation from the membership of the electoral commission in support of my colleague judges and to ask for a basic law for judges in accordance with international standards," Administrative Judge Habib Rebai said on Monday.
The sackings by the president heightened accusations at home and abroad that he is aiming to consolidate one-man rule after assuming executive powers last summer in a move his opponents called a coup.
Mr Saied set aside the 2014 constitution to dismiss the elected parliament and rule by decree.
Tunisian judges went on strike on June 4, saying that most of the dismissals were politically motivated.
Last week, Tunisia's judges announced they intended to extend their strike into a second week if Mr Saied did not cancel a decree firing dozens of them.
Mr Saied has scheduled a referendum on "a new constitution for a new republic", on July 25.
He has excluded the main parties from participating in a debate on the proposed charter, while the powerful labour union UGTT has boycotted the process.
Mr Rebai was appointed after the president replaced members of the independent electoral commission, in a move that enhanced Mr Saied's powers and cast doubt on the credibility of any coming elections.
The president has said his actions were necessary to save Tunisia from a governing crisis that has persisted since the 2011 uprising that was expected to usher in democratic reform. He said he is aiming to cleanse the judiciary of rampant corruption and does not aim to control it.
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
