DUBAI // The Sri Lankan government is eager to tap into growing interest in the UAE to see parts of the island nation that had been unsafe for decades.
Since 26 years of civil war ended in 2009, Sri Lanka has been rebuilding its battered north and encouraging tourism internally and from outside the country. Much of this is "war tourism", sights such as a tractor converted into a tank and a network of underground tunnels that the Tamil Tigers dug.
Sarath Wijesinghe, Sri Lanka's ambassador to the UAE, said in the past few months the number of tourists visiting his country had increased by 46 per cent.
"In fact in the northern and eastern areas we have are seeing around 500,000 tourists per month."
Overall, the numbers of visitors to Sri Lanka was 900,000 in December alone.
Mr Wijesinghe said there was an appetite for "war tourism" as many people were curious and inquisitive about the history of the country.
"I would say you can call it war tourism but we are looking to increase all kinds of tourism including medical, cricket and environmental," Mr Wijesinghe said, adding tourists would be able to learn more about the civil war and see what it was like for people during that time.
Mobisher Rabbani, the president of the Overseas Pakistanis and Sri Lankan Society in Dubai, last month visited the city of Jaffna at the island's northern tip. "We were taken to see a network of underground tunnels used by the Tamil Tigers and it was amazing to see how well everything was fitted out," Mr Rabbani said. "The strangest sight for me was seeing a tractor that had been converted into a tank with slabs of armour attached to it."
The war relics have been preserved by the government and have information boards telling people what happened at the scene.
He said Pakistan supported the Sri Lankan government from 1989 to 2009 and the island has been a popular destination for expatriate Pakistanis.
The number of Sri Lankans in the Emirates is estimated at 300,000.
nhanif@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Results
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
How to help or find other cats to adopt
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
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”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
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.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Frida%20
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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
