Around the world people of all faiths follow the selection of a new Pope. The pomp and drama of change at the top of what may be the oldest continuous human organisation attracts all eyes.
The Muslim world will certainly take special interest in the successor to Pope Benedict XVI, who stepped down at 85 years old because age was reducing his ability to carry out his duties in the highest office in the Roman Catholic faith.
The new Catholic leader Pope Francis, known until Wednesday as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, will surely be hoping to get off to a better start than his predecessor did in his relationship with the planet's 1.6 billion Muslims. In a 2006 speech at the University of Regensburg, in his native Germany, Benedict spoke of the need for a "dialogue of cultures" but managed also to muse about the balance, in Islam, between reason and submission to God. He also quoted an offensive comment by a 15th-century emperor.
Later, however, Benedict tried to distance himself from those views and did much for interfaith communication, including convening a three-day "summit" of Catholic and Muslim leaders, in the Vatican, in 2008. He also visited Turkey, Jordan and, during his last overseas trip in September 2012, Lebanon.
Relations with the Arab and Muslim world may not be a high priority for Pope Francis, who will begin his duties preoccupied with a seemingly endless series of sex scandals, fierce Vatican infighting and all the problems of running a multi-billion-dollar global bureaucracy.
And yet there are also pressing issues for him in relation to Muslims, although only about 6 million Christians live in the Middle East.
Throughout the West, a Pope who took the lead in discouraging prejudice and injustice towards Muslims could make an important contribution to a true dialogue of civilisations. Meanwhile Christian minorities have faced ill-treatment on occasion in Egypt and other Muslim countries. And there has been overt organised violence in Nigeria, where the two communities are nearly equal in size.
Multiple "dialogues of cultures", open and fair-minded, are essential in today's world. These range beyond religion alone, but religious leaders can be instrumental in setting the tone for such communication. The world will be watching Pope Francis.
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion
The five new places of worship
Church of South Indian Parish
St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch
St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch
St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais
Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
Arrogate's winning run
1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016
2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016
3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016
4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016
5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016
6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017
7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital