At night, families gather for picnics on dusty patches of grass that line sections of motorway running south out of Damascus — a holiday tradition revived this Ramadan in defiance of Syria’s on-going war.
This is the fourth Ramadan since the start of the uprising-turned-conflict in March 2011.
While the violence grinds on, there are small signs — including the revived custom of picnicking next to bustling, polluted roads — that the war is not hindering this year’s Islamic holy month in the capital. At least not to the same extent it once did.
“I was shocked by how many families were sitting on the green areas along the motorway, children, women, men all out there during power cuts, eating fruits and playing and smoking water pipes just as they always used to,” said Abu Zaidoun, a 35-year-old government employee who lives in the southern suburbs.
“It was around midnight and the roads were all busy, the people were out, they were ignoring the war,” he said.
Last year, the same part of Nahar Aisha, on the Damascus-Deraa motorway, had been deserted at night, a landscape marked by buildings riddled with bullet holes and debris from tank shelling.
In the more affluent neighbourhoods of central Damascus, residents have become well practised in the art of turning a blind eye to the war. Some insist it is something happening elsewhere. Others escape it by taking breaks in the safety of neighbouring Lebanon.
Still, in the poorer neighbourhoods around the city centre, the brutal conflict has been impossible to ignore. Years of heavy fighting have seen the death toll in rural Damascus rise to among the highest in the country, in a war that has killed more than 160,000 people.
Air strikes, artillery bombardments and gunfights are not an abstraction in these suburbs and on previous Ramadans, that close brush with violence and financial hardship had dampened the holiday spirit.
This year however, the situation appears to be different.
“This Ramadan I’m so happy, people are going to the markets, to coffee shops, they have been watching the world cup football, all trying to forget the killing and the bloodshed,” said a taxi driver from Ruken El Deen, a working class area on the northern edge of Damascus, built up on the side of Qassiun mountain.
While it has been spared major destruction, unarmed protesters and armed rebels have at different times been present there, placing it on the edge of the front lines in the battle for Damascus.
Forces loyal to president Bashar Al Assad have also scaled back checkpoints in some prominent places in the city since the start of Ramadan, including on a major road linking Bab Masala to upmarket Mezzeh, via Kafr Susa. The area includes major security force offices — likely targets for rebels — and lies close to rebelling southern suburbs such as Yarmouk, Hajar Aswad, Qadam and Daraya.
Two years ago, the road was blocked off entirely during Ramadan. This year, security presence has been cut back significantly.
A major checkpoint that was once reinforced by several tanks and torn up cement in Nahar Aisha has also been removed.
That put an end to hours-long traffic jams that used to build up as soldiers checked the IDs of everyone passing through.
It also bolstered regime claims that the military is gaining a firmer control of Damascus, helping to convince residents that the authorities are no longer afraid of rebels infiltrating central areas.
“Many people have been encouraged by the removal of the checkpoints, and they feel it is safe to leave their houses even late at night. Restaurants and cafes are now more crowded than before in Damascus,” said a city resident, who remained in Damascus throughout the war.
“This Ramadan things are certainly different from the previous years. People have adjusted themselves to living with the crisis and they are trying to enjoy themselves and do not think as much about the on-going fighting in the country,” he said.
Pre-war Ramadans in Damascus were marked by long, late nights, road side picnics, visiting families and friends, and watching Bab Al Hara, a Syrian made soap opera about life in French-occupied Damascus. All of those traditions re-emerged this year, once again acting as way points through the holiday season.
News programmes detailing the war are still widely watched, but not as obsessively as they once were.
“People are tired of the news, both sides, pro-Assad and rebels are tired, if you do go through a checkpoint the soldiers hardly bother to look at your ID. They are exhausted from standing there in the sun all day, and in the rebel areas the fighters are also tired, they just want some rest,” said a taxi driver who works on both sides of the lines.“This year we are not thinking about the war, even though we know it is still happening very close to us. Instead, we are thinking about the TV soap operas and worrying about finding a free table in busy cafes at night. We are trying to live normal lives,” he said.
psands@thenational.ae
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.”
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ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
CHELSEA SQUAD
Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, Rudiger, Christensen, Silva, Chalobah, Sarr, Azpilicueta, James, Kenedy, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Saul, Barkley, Ziyech, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, Werner, Havertz, Lukaku.
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Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
The five pillars of Islam
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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 figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
UK's plans to cut net migration
Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.
Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.
But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.
Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.
Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.
The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
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Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
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Sinopharm vaccine explained
The Sinopharm vaccine was created using techniques that have been around for decades.
“This is an inactivated vaccine. Simply what it means is that the virus is taken, cultured and inactivated," said Dr Nawal Al Kaabi, chair of the UAE's National Covid-19 Clinical Management Committee.
"What is left is a skeleton of the virus so it looks like a virus, but it is not live."
This is then injected into the body.
"The body will recognise it and form antibodies but because it is inactive, we will need more than one dose. The body will not develop immunity with one dose," she said.
"You have to be exposed more than one time to what we call the antigen."
The vaccine should offer protection for at least months, but no one knows how long beyond that.
Dr Al Kaabi said early vaccine volunteers in China were given shots last spring and still have antibodies today.
“Since it is inactivated, it will not last forever," she said.