Aden // Fourteen members of Yemen’s government arrived in Aden on Monday in what prime minister Ahmed Obaid Bin Dagher said was a permanent return after more than a year in exile because of the country’s civil war.
Mr Bin Dagher, who was accompanied by nine ministers and four deputy ministers, said the move was ordered by president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.
Mr Hadi and his government took refuge in Aden last year after escaping from the Iran-backed Houthi rebels who seized the capital Sanaa in September 2104. They were forced to flee to Saudi Arabia after the rebels advanced on the southern port city in March last year, triggering an intervention by a Saudi-led military coalition that includes the UAE.
Mr Bin Dagher said the government would begin its work by addressing problems such as shortages of electricity and fuel in Aden.
"More ministers will be arriving in Aden soon," government spokesman Rageh Badi told The National. He said some were attending the UN-mediated peace talks being held in Kuwait.
Mr Badi said a meeting of the full cabinet would be held soon to discuss restoring services in Aden as well other provinces retaken from the rebels, as well as the security situation.
This is the first time Mr Bin Dagher has returned to Aden since he was appointed prime minister on April 3. He was met at the airport by the Aden governor Aidarous Al Zabidi and the police chief, Brig Gen Shallal Shaei.
His predecessor, Khalid Bahah, and other ministers have visited Aden several times since the city was retaken from the rebels last June by Yemeni and coalition forces, but did not shift their base from Riyadh.
Hours before Mr Bin Dagher arrived, guards repulsed an attack on the airport in Khormaksar district.
"Gunmen attacked the guards at 1am, but soldiers from the Sheik Zaed brigade forced them to flee," a security source told The National.
He said an Apache helicopter provided air cover during the operation and there were no casualties.
“The purpose of the attack was to create chaos to keep the airport closed”, the source said, adding that it was not carried out by extremist groups.
Both Al Qaeda and ISIL have claimed a number of attacks in Aden since the city was liberated last year.
The security source cited the transportation minister, who arrived with Mr Bin Dagher, as saying Aden’s airport would reopen fully from the next week.
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
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One in nine do not have enough to eat
Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.
One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.
The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.
Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.
It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.
On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.
Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.
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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
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
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Avengers 3: Infinity War: an American superhero film released in 2018 and based on the Marvel Comics story.
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Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
