A reader says the Great White shark must be protected for the sake of the global ecosystem. EPA / Helmut Fohringer
A reader says the Great White shark must be protected for the sake of the global ecosystem. EPA / Helmut Fohringer

Sharks are an essential force of nature



Your story Villa-share crackdown as Dubai rents rise (July 17) begs the question: where are the people who are currently house-sharing going to live?

It seems to me that very few people would choose to share if they could afford to rent a home of their own. And, obviously, that's not going to be possible if the Dubai Municipality campaign of evictions drives rental prices up.

If people on modest incomes have nowhere to live, then they may be forced to leave the country, and there will be gaps in the workforce that can't be filled, affecting the provision of services to everybody else.

Equally, the people who own the villas will be out of pocket if they cannot find families to move in after the single people have been moved out.

I know there are sound reasons for the policy against sharing villas, and I certainly would not like to be a member of a family whose lives were disrupted by a group of rowdy single people next door.

But surely, some sort of middle ground has to be found where affordable housing is made available to the people who need it.

Jane Rogers, Dubai

I understand the rule, because in my country, South Africa, the villas and flats are overrun with multiple families living together and it has become unsafe.

But, in some places, families living together in an organised way is not only affordable for everyone but is part of the culture.

"One family" could refer to mothers and fathers and cousins and siblings.

It is a difficult situation here in Dubai because the villas are so expensive.

Perhaps building just two-bedroom villas in larger complexes without fancy amenities like gyms and swimming pools would make them more affordable.

The law is a good one, but it's harsh on the struggling, hardworking poor.

Tricia Sutherland, Dubai

Sharks still need our protection

So another surfer dies after an attack in waters known for being Great White territory (Sharks under threat after fifth fatal attack, July 16). Why are we surprised?

However, removing their protected species status will not make them stop occasionally doing what they are designed to do.

If sharks are no longer protected, they will be heavily fished and this will eventually upset the oceans' ecosystem - which is only bad news for us.

Alternatively, we could seek to find better ways of keeping man and shark apart.

Gordon Torbet, Dubai

Russia's refusal to act is irrelevant

Surprise, surprise. Russia again says that the UN should not boot Bashar Al Assad out of Syria (Syrian rebels target Damascus, July 17).

And again everyone is shocked, dismayed and disappointed. Why?

Russia and China have their own reasons not to lift a finger in Syria - but the rest of the world is not waiting for them anymore.

Russia and China have had their chance to be part of the solution. Over and over, they have refused lest they ultimately rattle their own houses of cards.

Fine. But their inaction has committed them to getting out of the way.

They can do so and save face, or that they can continue to object and lose more face.

Either way, things are moving forward without them.

As for Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's claim that the West is blackmailing Russia, most countries see it the other way around.

George Kafantaris, US

Killer's family must make amends

Regarding Readers rally to help stricken Kenya family (July 16), the killing of Esther Mwikamba was a deliberate act, not an accident.

Let the attacker's family pay to support this poor girl's family.

C Woolmer, Dubai

Hold employees' gratuities in trust

I am writing in reference to The real victims of insolvency (July 17), about the fate of workers for the collapsed Hastie Group.

I don't understand it. This happens with enough regularity that it should be seen as a chronic problem, yet it's still going on.

At the very least, gratuity payments should be deposited in trust by employers to cover their obligations to their employees.

Jim Buckingham, Abu Dhabi

Parking changes are appreciated

I welcome the decision taken by Mawaqif, as described in Two more hours of paid-for parking (July 17).

The decision will give residents the opportunity to move freely until midnight. Syed Muhammad Humayun, Abu Dhabi

Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

The cost of Covid testing around the world

Egypt

Dh514 for citizens; Dh865 for tourists

Information can be found through VFS Global.

Jordan

Dh212

Centres include the Speciality Hospital, which now offers drive-through testing.

Cambodia

Dh478

Travel tests are managed by the Ministry of Health and National Institute of Public Health.

Zanzibar

AED 295

Zanzibar Public Health Emergency Operations Centre, located within the Lumumba Secondary School compound.

Abu Dhabi

Dh85

Abu Dhabi’s Seha has test centres throughout the UAE.

UK

From Dh400

Heathrow Airport now offers drive through and clinic-based testing, starting from Dh400 and up to Dh500 for the PCR test.

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Soldier F

“I was in complete disgust at the fact that only one person was to be charged for Bloody Sunday.

“Somebody later said to me, 'you just watch - they'll drop the charge against him'. And sure enough, the charges against Soldier F would go on to be dropped.

“It's pretty hard to think that 50 years on, the State is still covering up for what happened on Bloody Sunday.”

Jimmy Duddy, nephew of John Johnson

Results

Stage 4

1. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma 04:16:13

2. Gaviria (COL) UAE Team Emirates

3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe

4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep

5. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal

General Classification:

1. Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott        16:46:15

2. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates         0:01:07

3. Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team          0:01:35

4. David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ         0:01:40

5. Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe

TRAP

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue

Director: M Night Shyamalan

Rating: 3/5

Turkish Ladies

Various artists, Sony Music Turkey 

Libya's Gold

UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves. 

The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.

Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.

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%3Cp%3EAverage%20amount%20of%20biofuel%20produced%20at%20DIC%20factory%20every%20month%3A%20%3Cstrong%3EApproximately%20106%2C000%20litres%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAmount%20of%20biofuel%20produced%20from%201%20litre%20of%20used%20cooking%20oil%3A%20%3Cstrong%3E920ml%20(92%25)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETime%20required%20for%20one%20full%20cycle%20of%20production%20from%20used%20cooking%20oil%20to%20biofuel%3A%20%3Cstrong%3EOne%20day%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EEnergy%20requirements%20for%20one%20cycle%20of%20production%20from%201%2C000%20litres%20of%20used%20cooking%20oil%3A%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E%E2%96%AA%20Electricity%20-%201.1904%20units%3Cbr%3E%E2%96%AA%20Water-%2031%20litres%3Cbr%3E%E2%96%AA%20Diesel%20%E2%80%93%2026.275%20litres%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Red Joan

Director: Trevor Nunn

Starring: Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson, Tereza Srbova

Rating: 3/5 stars

MATCH INFO

Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')

Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')

Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)

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Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history

Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)

Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.

 

Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)

A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.

 

Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)

Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.

 

Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)

Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.

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