• Kalkidan Gezahegne, of Bahrain, celebrates after winning the silver medal in the women's 10,000 metres in Tokyo.
    Kalkidan Gezahegne, of Bahrain, celebrates after winning the silver medal in the women's 10,000 metres in Tokyo.
  • Feryal Abdelaziz of Egypt (R) and Sofya Berultseva of Kazakhstan compete in their women's kumite +61kg karate semi-final. Abdelaziz went on to win gold while Berultseva clinched the bronze medal.
    Feryal Abdelaziz of Egypt (R) and Sofya Berultseva of Kazakhstan compete in their women's kumite +61kg karate semi-final. Abdelaziz went on to win gold while Berultseva clinched the bronze medal.
  • Bronze-medal winning Giana Lotfy (L), of Egypt, competes against Morocco's Btissam Sadini in the women's kumite +61kg karate.
    Bronze-medal winning Giana Lotfy (L), of Egypt, competes against Morocco's Btissam Sadini in the women's kumite +61kg karate.
  • Silver medallist Ahmed Elgendy of Egypt (L) in the laser run of the modern pentathlon event at the Tokyo Stadium.
    Silver medallist Ahmed Elgendy of Egypt (L) in the laser run of the modern pentathlon event at the Tokyo Stadium.
  • Egypt's Seif Eissa celebrates after winning a bronze medal in taekwondo at the Makuhari Messe Hall in Tokyo.
    Egypt's Seif Eissa celebrates after winning a bronze medal in taekwondo at the Makuhari Messe Hall in Tokyo.
  • Hedaya Malak Wahba of Egypt won bronze in taekwondo at the 2016 Rio Olympics and repeated that feat in Tokyo.
    Hedaya Malak Wahba of Egypt won bronze in taekwondo at the 2016 Rio Olympics and repeated that feat in Tokyo.
  • Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed of Egypt jumps for joy after defeating Artem Surkov to win bronze in the Greco-Roman wrestling.
    Mohamed Ibrahim Elsayed of Egypt jumps for joy after defeating Artem Surkov to win bronze in the Greco-Roman wrestling.
  • Saudi Arabia's Tareg Hamedi (R) competes against Iran's Sajad Ganjzadeh in the men's kumite +75kg final of the karate competition. Ganjzadeh was awarded the gold medal after Hamedi was disqualified in the final.
    Saudi Arabia's Tareg Hamedi (R) competes against Iran's Sajad Ganjzadeh in the men's kumite +75kg final of the karate competition. Ganjzadeh was awarded the gold medal after Hamedi was disqualified in the final.
  • Gold medallist Javad Foroughi of Iran on the podium after winning an air pistol event at Asaka Shooting Range.
    Gold medallist Javad Foroughi of Iran on the podium after winning an air pistol event at Asaka Shooting Range.
  • Ali Davoudi of Iran won silver in the men’s 109kg weightlifting.
    Ali Davoudi of Iran won silver in the men’s 109kg weightlifting.
  • Mohammadreza Geraei of Iran (facing camera) competes en route to winning the Greco-Roman wrestling 67kg final against Ukraine's Parviz Nasibov.
    Mohammadreza Geraei of Iran (facing camera) competes en route to winning the Greco-Roman wrestling 67kg final against Ukraine's Parviz Nasibov.
  • USA's David Taylor (blue) wrestles Iran's Hassan Yazdanicharati in their men's freestyle 86kg wrestling final, which Taylor won.
    USA's David Taylor (blue) wrestles Iran's Hassan Yazdanicharati in their men's freestyle 86kg wrestling final, which Taylor won.
  • Iranian wrestler Hossein Amir Zare looks exhausted after defeating Zhiwei Deng of China in an epic bout to win the men’s freestyle 125kg bronze.
    Iranian wrestler Hossein Amir Zare looks exhausted after defeating Zhiwei Deng of China in an epic bout to win the men’s freestyle 125kg bronze.
  • Mohammadhadi Saravi (L) of Iran landed bronze in Greco-Roman wrestling.
    Mohammadhadi Saravi (L) of Iran landed bronze in Greco-Roman wrestling.
  • Israel's Artem Dolgopyat (C) celebrates with his team after winning the floor event of the artistic gymnastics men's floor exercise final.
    Israel's Artem Dolgopyat (C) celebrates with his team after winning the floor event of the artistic gymnastics men's floor exercise final.
  • Linoy Ashram of Israel won gold in the Women's rhythmic individual all-around gymnastics.
    Linoy Ashram of Israel won gold in the Women's rhythmic individual all-around gymnastics.
  • Team Israel competes in the group all-around final of the Rhythmic Gymnastics event during Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics centre in Tokyo.
    Team Israel competes in the group all-around final of the Rhythmic Gymnastics event during Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics centre in Tokyo.
  • Semberg Abishag (L) of Israel won a taekwondo bronze in Tokyo.
    Semberg Abishag (L) of Israel won a taekwondo bronze in Tokyo.
  • Turkish karate star Eray Samdan (L), who won silver, competes against Jordan's Abdel Rahman Almasatfa, who won bronze in the men's kumite 67kg in Tokyo.
    Turkish karate star Eray Samdan (L), who won silver, competes against Jordan's Abdel Rahman Almasatfa, who won bronze in the men's kumite 67kg in Tokyo.
  • Silver medallist Saleh Elsharabaty of Jordan celebrates on the podium after the taekwondo men's 80kg bouts.
    Silver medallist Saleh Elsharabaty of Jordan celebrates on the podium after the taekwondo men's 80kg bouts.
  • Abdullah Alrashidi of Kuwait during skeet men's qualification at Asaka Shooting Range. He left Japan with a bronze medal.
    Abdullah Alrashidi of Kuwait during skeet men's qualification at Asaka Shooting Range. He left Japan with a bronze medal.
  • Morocco's Soufiane El Bakkali (R) wins the men's 3,000m steeplechase final followed by Ethiopia's Lamecha Girma (green). Kenya's Benjamin Kigen (L) was third.
    Morocco's Soufiane El Bakkali (R) wins the men's 3,000m steeplechase final followed by Ethiopia's Lamecha Girma (green). Kenya's Benjamin Kigen (L) was third.
  • Essa Mutaz Barshim of Qatar shared the men's high jump gold medal with Gianmarco Tamberi of Italy.
    Essa Mutaz Barshim of Qatar shared the men's high jump gold medal with Gianmarco Tamberi of Italy.
  • Qatar's Ahmed Tijan (R) watches as partner Cherif Younousse digs the ball on their way to winning the men's beach volleyball bronze medal match against Latvia at Shiokaze Park in Tokyo.
    Qatar's Ahmed Tijan (R) watches as partner Cherif Younousse digs the ball on their way to winning the men's beach volleyball bronze medal match against Latvia at Shiokaze Park in Tokyo.
  • Qatar's Fares Ibrahim Elbakh won gold in the men's 96kg weightlifting.
    Qatar's Fares Ibrahim Elbakh won gold in the men's 96kg weightlifting.
  • Saudi Arabian karate star Tareg Hamedi (L) won silver in the men's kumite +75kg event.
    Saudi Arabian karate star Tareg Hamedi (L) won silver in the men's kumite +75kg event.
  • Man Asaad of Syria is lifted by his coaches after winning a bronze medal in the men's +109kg weightlifting.
    Man Asaad of Syria is lifted by his coaches after winning a bronze medal in the men's +109kg weightlifting.
  • Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia celebrates after winning the gold medal in the men's 400m freestyle at Tokyo Aquatics Centre.
    Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia celebrates after winning the gold medal in the men's 400m freestyle at Tokyo Aquatics Centre.
  • Tunisia's Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi (Blue) won silver in the taekwondo men's 58kg event..
    Tunisia's Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi (Blue) won silver in the taekwondo men's 58kg event..

Olympics

Tokyo 2020: All the Mena medallists from a thrilling Olympics - in pictures

Some star moments for the region's top performers

Matthew Kynaston
Matthew Kynaston

August 08, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

An extraordinary Olympic Games came to a close on Sunday, after just over two weeks of mesmerising action.

There were some thrillng perfromances across all the sports, and the athletes from the Middle East and North Africa certainly played their part.

Below and in the gallery are all the athletes from the region who won a medal at Tokyo 2020.


Bahrain

Kalkidan Gezahegne, silver, women's 10,000m

Egypt

Feryal Abdelaziz, gold, women's karate +61kg

Ahmed Elgendy, silver, men's individual modern pentathlon

Giana Lotfy, bronze, women's -61kg karate

Seif Eissa, bronze, men's -80kg taekwondo

Hedaya Malak, bronze, women's -67kg taekwondo

Mohamed Elsayed, bronze, men's Greco-Roman wrestling 67kg

Iran

Sajad Ganjzadeh, gold, men's +75kg karate

Javad Foroughi, gold, men's 10m air pistol

Ali Davoudi, silver, men's +109kg weightlifting

Mohammadreza Geraei, gold, men's Greco-Roman 67kg wrestling

Hassan Yazdanicharati, silver, men's 86kg freestyle wrestling

Amir Hossein Zare, bronze, men's freestyle 125kg wrestling

Mohammadhadi Saravi, bronze, men's Greco-Roman 97kg wrestling

Israel

Artem Dolgopyat, gold, men's floor gymnastics

Israel, bronze, mixed team judo

Linoy Ashram, gold, women's individual all-round rhythmic gymnastics

Abishag Semberg, bronze, women's -49kg taekwondo

Jordan

Abdel Rahman Almasatfa, bronze, men's -67kg karate

Saleh Elsharabaty, silver, men's -80kg taekwondo

Kuwait

Abdullah Alrashidi, bronze, men's skeet

Morocco

Soufiane El Bakkali, gold, men's 3,000m steeplechase

Qatar

Mutaz Essa Barshim, gold, men's high jump

Cherif Younoussane/Ahmed Tijan, bronze, men's beach volleyball

Fares Ibrahim Elbakh, gold, men's 96kg weightlifting

Saudi Arabia

Tareq Hamedi, silver, men's +75kg karate

Syria

Man Asaad, bronze, men's weightlifting +109kg

Tunisia

Ahmed Hafnaoui, gold, men's 400m freestyle swimming

Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi, silver, men's -58kg taekwondo




The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

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While you're here...
The specs

Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo

Transmission: seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic

Power: 375bhp

Torque: 520Nm

Price: Dh332,800

On sale: now

UK’s AI plan
  • AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
  • £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
  • £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
  • £250m to train new AI models
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption. 

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks. 

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes. 

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion. 

8. Pillar 2 implementation 

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations. 

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity. 

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz S 450

Price, base / as tested Dh525,000 / Dh559,000

Engine: 3.0L V6 biturbo

Transmission: Nine-speed automatic

Power: 369hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 500Nm at 1,800rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.0L / 100km

Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 3/5

While you're here
What is a robo-adviser?

Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.

These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.

Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.

Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.

'Falling%20for%20Christmas'
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Janeen%20Damian%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EStars%3A%20Lindsay%20Lohan%2C%20Chord%20Overstreet%2C%20Jack%20Wagner%2C%20Aliana%20Lohan%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%201%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
While you're here
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProcessor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Apple%20M3%2C%208-core%20CPU%2C%20up%20to%2010-core%20CPU%2C%2016-core%20Neural%20Engine%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2013.6-inch%20Liquid%20Retina%2C%202560%20x%201664%2C%20224ppi%2C%20500%20nits%2C%20True%20Tone%2C%20wide%20colour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%2F16%2F24GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStorage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20256%2F512GB%20%2F%201%2F2TB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Thunderbolt%203%2FUSB-4%20(2)%2C%203.5mm%20audio%2C%20Touch%20ID%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConnectivity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wi-Fi%206E%2C%20Bluetooth%205.3%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2052.6Wh%20lithium-polymer%2C%20up%20to%2018%20hours%2C%20MagSafe%20charging%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECamera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201080p%20FaceTime%20HD%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EVideo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Support%20for%20Apple%20ProRes%2C%20HDR%20with%20Dolby%20Vision%2C%20HDR10%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAudio%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204-speaker%20system%2C%20wide%20stereo%2C%20support%20for%20Dolby%20Atmos%2C%20Spatial%20Audio%20and%20dynamic%20head%20tracking%20(with%20AirPods)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColours%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Midnight%2C%20silver%2C%20space%20grey%2C%20starlight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MacBook%20Air%2C%2030W%2F35W%20dual-port%2F70w%20power%20adapter%2C%20USB-C-to-MagSafe%20cable%2C%202%20Apple%20stickers%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh4%2C599%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Wicked: For Good

Director: Jon M Chu

Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater

Rating: 4/5

The Specs

Price, base Dh379,000
Engine 2.9-litre, twin-turbo V6
Gearbox eight-speed automatic
Power 503bhp
Torque 443Nm
On sale now

Profile of Hala Insurance

Date Started: September 2018

Founders: Walid and Karim Dib

Based: Abu Dhabi

Employees: Nine

Amount raised: $1.2 million

Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers

 

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

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.

Updated: August 08, 2021, 12:16 PM
SportOlympicsTokyo 2020Olympic Games