• The mosques of the UAE stand with a rich diversity. The beautiful domes, exquisite exteriors and calligraphic inscriptions are testament to the hard work and architectural elegance from which they were designed and built. Here are ten of the most beautiful mosques to visit in the UAE.
    The mosques of the UAE stand with a rich diversity. The beautiful domes, exquisite exteriors and calligraphic inscriptions are testament to the hard work and architectural elegance from which they were designed and built. Here are ten of the most beautiful mosques to visit in the UAE.
  • Modern architecture of Abdul Rahman Siddik Mosque on The Palm, Jumeirah. Reem Mohammed / The National
    Modern architecture of Abdul Rahman Siddik Mosque on The Palm, Jumeirah. Reem Mohammed / The National
  • Al Aziz Mosque in Marina Square on Al Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National
    Al Aziz Mosque in Marina Square on Al Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National
  • Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Fujairah. Reem Mohammed / The National
    Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Fujairah. Reem Mohammed / The National
  • Sheikha Fatima Mosque at Mohammed bin Zayed City in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National
    Sheikha Fatima Mosque at Mohammed bin Zayed City in Abu Dhabi. Ravindranath K / The National
  • Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. Christopher Pike / The National
    Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. Christopher Pike / The National
  • Salama Mosque in Al Barsha. Antonie Robertson / The National
    Salama Mosque in Al Barsha. Antonie Robertson / The National
  • The dome at Abdul Rahman Siddik Mosque on The Palm, Jumeirah. Reem Mohammed / The National
    The dome at Abdul Rahman Siddik Mosque on The Palm, Jumeirah. Reem Mohammed / The National
  • Al Noor Mosque in Sharjah. Pawan Singh / The National
    Al Noor Mosque in Sharjah. Pawan Singh / The National
  • Exterior of Al Aziz Mosque in Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National
    Exterior of Al Aziz Mosque in Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh / The National
  • Al Badiyah Mosque, Fujairah, the oldest existing mosque in the UAE. Pawan Singh / The National
    Al Badiyah Mosque, Fujairah, the oldest existing mosque in the UAE. Pawan Singh / The National

UAE

UAE weekend change moves Friday prayers permanently to 1.15pm

New prayer time on Friday will prevent conflict with half working day

The National

December 07, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

Friday prayers across the UAE will begin at 1.15pm to accommodate the new working week, the Government said on Tuesday.

Typically, Friday prayers begin at dhuhr – between noon and 12.30pm – dependent on the season.

The Government on Tuesday said that Saturday and Sunday will be the new weekend for public sector workers and that Friday will be a half day, with work beginning from 7.30am and ending at midday.

The decision takes effect on January 1, 2022.

To allow government workers time to attend Friday prayers at a mosque, the dhuhr prayer time has been moved forward about an hour, with the sermon beginning at 1.15pm. Friday prayers are led with the sermon in the mosque, followed by Jumaa prayers.

Prayer is the second of the five pillars of Islam and its timings were determined by the Prophet Mohammed according to the solar cycle. Five prayers are conducted throughout the day: fajr (dawn), dhuhr (midday), asr (afternoon), maghrib (sunset) and isha (evening).

Each must be prayed once the adhan – or call to prayer – is heard. Muslims are encouraged to pray immediately but have a window of a few hours before the next prayer is called.

Friday prayers are considered the most important of the week, and Muslims are encouraged to pray at a mosque in a group.

In a document containing questions and answers issued by the Government, authorities said there was no conflict between the Friday prayer timings and the half-day of work.

"This decision was based on fixing the timing of the prayer for 1.15pm throughout the year," the government said, indicating that the timing would not change based on the seasons as is typical.

Asked if working on a Friday went against Sharia and religious scripture, as Friday is the holiest day of the week for Muslims, the document said no and cited a passage from the Quran: "Oh ye who believe, when the call is proclaimed to prayer on Friday [the day of assembly], hasten earnestly to the remembrance of Allah and leave off business [and traffic] that is the best for you, if ye but knew." (aya 9, of surat al Jumaa).

Match info

Deccan Gladiators 87-8

Asif Khan 25, Dwayne Bravo 2-16

Maratha Arabians 89-2

Chadwick Walton 51 not out

Arabians won the final by eight wickets

Turkish Ladies

Various artists, Sony Music Turkey 

The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

While you're here

Michael Young: Where is Lebanon headed?

Kareem Shaheen: I owe everything to Beirut

Raghida Dergham: We have to bounce back

Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
WHAT%20MACRO%20FACTORS%20ARE%20IMPACTING%20META%20TECH%20MARKETS%3F
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Looming%20global%20slowdown%20and%20recession%20in%20key%20economies%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Russia-Ukraine%20war%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Interest%20rate%20hikes%20and%20the%20rising%20cost%20of%20debt%20servicing%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Oil%20price%20volatility%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Persisting%20inflationary%20pressures%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Exchange%20rate%20fluctuations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Shortage%20of%20labour%2Fskills%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20A%20resurgence%20of%20Covid%3F%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The biog:

Favourite book: The Leader Who Had No Title by Robin Sharma

Pet Peeve: Racism 

Proudest moment: Graduating from Sorbonne 

What puts her off: Dishonesty in all its forms

Happiest period in her life: The beginning of her 30s

Favourite movie: "I have two. The Pursuit of Happiness and Homeless to Harvard"

Role model: Everyone. A child can be my role model 

Slogan: The queen of peace, love and positive energy

While you're here
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UNSC Elections 2022-23

Seats open:

  • Two for Africa Group
  • One for Asia-Pacific Group (traditionally Arab state or Tunisia)
  • One for Latin America and Caribbean Group
  • One for Eastern Europe Group

Countries so far running: 

  • UAE
  • Albania 
  • Brazil 

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Match info

What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm

Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
  • US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
  • Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
  • Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
  • Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
  • Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
  • The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
  • Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
  • Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
Transgender report
Updated: November 13, 2025, 12:26 PM