A prominent businessman has pledged to spend Dh3 million (US$816,704) each year to free expatriate prisoners in the UAE, paying off their debts and flying them back to their home countries.
Firoz Merchant, the chairman of Pure Gold Jewellers, last year helped 700 insolvent prisoners and paid their airfares home.
"I believe in humanity," said Mr Merchant. "Whoever has experience they use their experience. My experience says always help others."
Pure Gold, which runs and owns more than 100 stores across the Middle East, is involved in philanthropic work with many bodies in the UAE, including the Red Crescent Society and the Zakat Fund Abu Dhabi.
"I'm not doing it with just the prisoners, I'm doing work with many charities in UAE and India," said Mr Merchant.
Last year, the Zakat Fund Abu Dhabi pledged Dh230,000 to free 10 debt prisoners in the UAE, as a result of a donation from Pure Gold. Mr Merchant now aims to spend Dh3m a year by paying off Dh20,000 to Dh25,000 of a person's debts through one of the charities with which he works. His goal is to help 50 people a month.
"I have a target of spending at least Dh3m each year, just on prisoners," he said.
"I am in process to sign the contract to all the emirates' director generals of police."
He has so far helped prisoners from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Ethiopia, Morocco, Afghanistan and the Philippines.
Mr Merchant, an Indian, helps all nationalities of prisoners in debt, but asks that those he supports have been jailed for one of three reasons: they cannot pay debts related to healthcare costs; they owe education fees; or have been jailed for bounced home rental cheques.
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What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
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There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
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Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
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According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
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For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
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