Mohammad Yahya is the first Emirati MMA champion. He defends his title at UAE Warriors Arabia on Sunday at the Etihad Arena. Champs Sports Club, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National
Mohammad Yahya is the first Emirati MMA champion. He defends his title at UAE Warriors Arabia on Sunday at the Etihad Arena. Champs Sports Club, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National
Mohammad Yahya is the first Emirati MMA champion. He defends his title at UAE Warriors Arabia on Sunday at the Etihad Arena. Champs Sports Club, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National
Mohammad Yahya goes for his first Arabia title defence on the UAE Warriors' biggest weekend – a triple header mixed martial arts championship cards across three nights at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
The fight card gets underway with the UAE Warriors Africa-2 on Friday followed by the UAE Warriors-28 (International) on Saturday and the UAE Warriors Arabia-7 on Sunday.
The three-day event features more than 80 fighters from 45 countries with plenty of titles on the line. The biggest weekend in the history of UAE Warriors will be broadcast live around the world on UFC Fight Pass.
Yahya (10-3) is the first Emirati to hold an MMA title and defends his UAE Warriors Arabia lightweight crown against Moroccan Mohamed El Jaghdal (7-4).
“I’m ready and it’s going to be my best performance on the night,” Yahya said. “I have been in the training camp since winning my last bout and the title, and this is going to be another big night for me, as it was when I was fighting for the title.
“I am very excited to fight at the Etihad Arena. The bout is over five rounds and I would like to think we would reach a decisive point in the fourth or fifth round.”
Fouad Darwish, chief executive officer of Palms Sports, believes the triple header across three categories is another milestone for the Abu Dhabi promotion.
“With the UAE Warriors Arabia and newly launched UAE Warriors Africa series of events, we are providing a global stage for athletes from Arab and African heritage to propel their career,” he said. “The UAE Warriors International events showcase athletes from around the world.
“We now have three different categories in our promotion both as a platform providing potential athletes to make it into the big stage in the MMA world as well as our international fight cards to provide a stage for the established ones.”
It’s the first time the Abu Dhabi-based promotion is staging a triple header and Darwish said they would hold a meeting to assess the first experience before moving forward.
“We’ll sit with the experts as well as some of the fighters to decide if it’s a good idea or a bad idea when we evaluate our first experience of the triple header,” he said. “If it’s a good idea we’ll do it again and if it’s a bad idea we’ll still do it again until it becomes a good idea.”
On the UAE Warriors planned calendar, Darwish said they have one fight night scheduled for June, two each in August, October and November, but added it can change.
The highlights of this weekend’s fight card include the first-ever title contest of the UAE Warriors Africa between Moroccan Badreddine Diani (4-1) and the Palestine-born Italian Wisem Hammami (6-0) for the welterweight title.
Syrian Tarek Suleiman (12-7) takes on Ireland’s Will Fleury (9-4) in the UAE Warriors world middleweight title, while Canadian Corinne Laframboise (7-4) faces Venezuelan Carolina Jimenez (7-0) for the women’s flyweight world title which was recently vacated by France’s Manon Fiorot, who has moved to UFC.
Jordanian Ali Al Qaisi (11-5) is attempting to earn his third successive title when he meets Ahmed Faress of Egypt (16-4) for the inaugural UAE Warriors Arabia featherweight championship.
Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
Park in shaded or covered areas
Add tint to windows
Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
Cryptocurrency Investing for Dummies – by Kiana Danial
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Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
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Available at Magrudy’s , Dh104
In numbers
- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side 8 There are eight players per team 9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one. 5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls 4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
