The UAE reported 882 new Covid-19 cases on Friday after a further 398,902 tests were carried out.
The new cases bring the total number of infections recorded in the country since the pandemic began early in 2020 to 873,092.
Two people died during the 24-hour reporting period, raising the death toll to 2,292.
Another 2,294 people beat the virus, as the recovery total climbed to 813,926.
More than 133 million tests have been conducted across the Emirates under a comprehensive screening strategy.
Daily infections dropped below 1,000 on Tuesday for the first time this year, having peaked at 3,116 on January 15 — the highest since February 2021.
This week, cinemas, shopping centres and other entertainment spots and venues across the UAE were allowed to return to full capacity for the first time in 18 months.
Authorities said there was no change to the use of masks, which are required by law in all indoor and outdoor public places nationwide.
Meanwhile, a new study in the UK has found that people vaccinated against Covid-19 have less chance of developing long Covid in the event of an infection.
The UK Health Security Agency data review also indicates that being inoculated may alleviate symptoms in those who are already experiencing long Covid symptoms.
Researchers studied evidence taken from 15 studies of the condition and how it is affected by vaccination. Two of these studies found that fewer fully vaccinated people developed the medium or long-term symptoms associated with long Covid, such as headaches, fatigue and dizziness.
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
BELGIUM%20SQUAD
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
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.
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
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