ABU DHABI // The Armed Forces Officers Club Ramadan Festival, which concluded on Sunday with the five-a-side football finals, has raised the profile of women's sport in the Emirates, according to organisers.
"We placed more emphasise in promoting women's sport, particularly to promote it among the Emirates, and the response this year was very encouraging," said Lt Gen (Retd) Mohammed Hilal Al Kaabi, the head of the higher organising committee.
"Football has a large following among the Emirati girls, and we saw some of the national team players in action.
"This year it was a huge jump for women's football, and we hope next year will be better."
The directive to promote and create awareness for sport among Emirati women comes from the General Women's Union and Family Development Foundation, both headed by Sheikha Fatima bin Mubarak.
"From what I have seen tonight, and heard of the last three weeks, the AFOC Festival has set the precedent to encourage the Emirati women to actively get involved in sport," said Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, Minister of Economy, who was the guest of honour on the final day.
Thailand's national team won the women's football title, picking up a cheque for Dh100,000, that, according to their manager Thanapat Ujjin, will be shared by the 10 players.
The three-day AFOC Festival drew more than 3,000 entries in 13 different sporting disciplines that included five-a-side football for men and women, boxing, judo, karate, wrestling, jiu-jitsu, ice hockey, shooting, chess, and PlayStation.
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What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Unresolved crisis
Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter conflict since 2014, when Ukraine’s Kremlin-friendly president was ousted, Moscow annexed Crimea and then backed a separatist insurgency in the east.
Fighting between the Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed more than 14,000 people. In 2015, France and Germany helped broker a peace deal, known as the Minsk agreements, that ended large-scale hostilities but failed to bring a political settlement of the conflict.
The Kremlin has repeatedly accused Kiev of sabotaging the deal, and Ukrainian officials in recent weeks said that implementing it in full would hurt Ukraine.
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Sukuk are Sharia-compliant financial certificates issued by governments, corporates and other entities. While as an asset class they resemble conventional bonds, there are some significant differences. As interest is prohibited under Sharia, sukuk must contain an underlying transaction, for example a leaseback agreement, and the income that is paid to investors is generated by the underlying asset. Investors must also be prepared to share in both the profits and losses of an enterprise. Nevertheless, sukuk are similar to conventional bonds in that they provide regular payments, and are considered less risky than equities. Most investors would not buy sukuk directly due to high minimum subscriptions, but invest via funds.
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Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
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