Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani will meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Friday to discuss projects to address chronic power shortages, his office said.
Despite its oil riches, Iraq is beset by crumbling infrastructure, endemic corruption and damage from decades of war.
Dependent on its powerful neighbour Iran for much of its energy needs, Baghdad seeks to diversify its sources of gas and electricity supply.
Mr Al Sudani, in power since October, will be received “with military honours” at the Federal Chancellery at 5pm UAE time, German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said.
The two leaders will discuss regional issues, as well as bilateral ones, he said.
The Iraqi Prime Minister expects to sign a memorandum of understanding with German company Siemens Energy that would pave the way to the “rehabilitation and maintenance” of Iraq's power grid, his press service said.
It described it as a “promising plan for developing the electricity sector … in the field of production, transmission and distribution”.
Regular power cuts have been lasting from four to 10 hours a day, putting a strain on Iraq's 42 million inhabitants, nearly one-third of whom live in poverty, according to the UN.
Wealthier Iraqis resort to using generators.
Last month, Mr Al Sudani met Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Baghdad, calling for closer economic ties including in the energy sector.
In Berlin, he also intends to raise the issue of the highly polluting practice of gas flaring.
The government seeks to eliminate gas flaring, a precursor to oil extraction, which contributes to global warming. The UN said Iraq was one of five countries most exposed to some impacts of climate change.
If captured and treated, flared gas could help address Iraq's chronic power shortages.
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
