Live updates: Follow the latest on Syria
Syrian residents in the UAE are overjoyed after a lightning 11-day offensive by rebel forces ended the more than half-century rule of the Assad family. But families now based in the Emirates worry about the fate of the tens of thousands of people who went missing during the decades-long conflict in Syria.
Days after the fall of the Bashar Al Assad government, Syrian citizens want to support their country by helping to rebuild the cities they once called home.
People tell us, Syria will become like Iraq or Afghanistan, but for me no one can be worse than the Assad regime
Fayez Maarrawi,
Syrian resident in Dubai
Fayez Maarrawi, who moved with his family to Dubai in 2002, went home to Damascus on annual holidays but could not return following the 2011 crackdown on anti-government protests. Over the years, he convinced most relatives to leave Syria as the situation deteriorated. But he fears for those who went missing in the Assad regime’s notorious prison system.
“It’s been 54 years under this regime and its end is the happiness of a lifetime. This is what we have always been hoping for,” said Mr Maarrawi, 56, who works in the technology sector in Dubai. “But knowing there are thousands of people still suffering and we may be unable to reach them, this is stealing away our joy.
“We always knew about the cruel, brutal prisons but today we are devastated that they are trying to uncover underground prison cells and we are hoping people will be reached in time. It is a challenging time and we will spare no effort in rebuilding Syria.” The United Nations set up an independent body last year aiming to provide answers to families about more than 130,000 people missing during the 14-year conflict.
Media reports over the last few days show thousands of people being freed from cramped cells. The White Helmets, Syria’s civil defence force, posted on X that it was deploying emergency teams to Sednaya Prison to investigate reports of hidden underground cells.
Torture for prisoners and family
Mr Maarrawi’s family has its own traumatic story as his father-in-law was detained for nine years as a political prisoner from 1982. He breaks down as he tells how his wife suffered for years without knowing whether her father was alive.
When Mr Maarrawi’s father-in-law was finally released, he rarely spoke about the torture he underwent to shield his family. “My father-in-law was a victim of this regime, he was detained without trial and my wife did not know if her father was alive or not for years,” he said. “What happened was torture for the prisoners and for families outside the jail. Imagine, this was happening from the 1980s until a few days ago.”
Even after his father-in-law was released, he was not allowed to travel overseas for 10 years and had to report back for security investigations every month. “They did this repeatedly to keep people living in fear,” Mr Maarrawi said.
“He did not talk a lot about the solitary confinement, torture and beatings because he feared for his children, for us.” Mr Maarrawi managed to bring him to Dubai in 2014 where he died two years ago surrounded by family.
The takeover of key cities by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, which began as an Al Qaeda offshoot, has raised concern internationally as the organisation is designated as a terrorist group by the US and Europe. Like most Syrians, Mr Maarrawi is focused on the overthrow of a regime that crushed dissent.
“There is risk always when there is change,” he said. “People tell us, Syria will become like Iraq or Afghanistan. For me, there is no one that can be worse than the Assad regime and those truths are just being revealed. We look forward to anyone who proves they are aiming for the good of Syria, the good of the people.”
Trauma that will last generations
His son Yaman, 25, left Syria as a child, and feels a strong bond with the country he was born in. A student of politics and social policy, he wants to eventually return home and hopes other young people will too.
“No one in Syria wants to replace authoritarianism with authoritarianism, but today we just want to see detainees free and want to know the fate of the disappeared persons,” he said. “The state-building process will take time but it is our responsibility … also of doctors, engineers, lawyers … to go back and make sure we are on the right track.
“We are finally seeing family and friends post on social media how they actually feel about their country for the first time in their entire lives. Nothing can express the culture of fear that Assad implanted in the minds of Syrians everywhere. It has left a trauma that will stay with us for generations.”
As eager as the Maarrawi family is to return, they will wait until the millions who have taken refuge in other countries go back. “There are so many who have not seen their family for years, they should have the priority,” the older Mr Maarrawi said. “We are safe and happy here so we are not in a rush but we will definitely be there some time soon.”
Meanwhile, the Syrian consulate in Dubai announced a temporary suspension of urgent passport renewal applications. Operations will resume when the central passport system in Damascus is reconnected, the consulate said on its Facebook page. Similar announcements of a halt in services were made by embassies in Oman and Egypt.
Additional reporting by Salam Al Amir
How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars
Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.
Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.
After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.
Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.
It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.
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The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
RESULTS
Lightweight (female)
Sara El Bakkali bt Anisha Kadka
Bantamweight
Mohammed Adil Al Debi bt Moaz Abdelgawad
Welterweight
Amir Boureslan bt Mahmoud Zanouny
Featherweight
Mohammed Al Katheeri bt Abrorbek Madaminbekov
Super featherweight
Ibrahem Bilal bt Emad Arafa
Middleweight
Ahmed Abdolaziz bt Imad Essassi
Bantamweight (female)
Ilham Bourakkadi bt Milena Martinou
Welterweight
Mohamed Mardi bt Noureddine El Agouti
Middleweight
Nabil Ouach bt Ymad Atrous
Welterweight
Nouredine Samir bt Marlon Ribeiro
Super welterweight
Brad Stanton bt Mohamed El Boukhari
IF YOU GO
The flights: FlyDubai offers direct flights to Catania Airport from Dubai International Terminal 2 daily with return fares starting from Dh1,895.
The details: Access to the 2,900-metre elevation point at Mount Etna by cable car and 4x4 transport vehicle cost around €57.50 (Dh248) per adult. Entry into Teatro Greco costs €10 (Dh43). For more go to www.visitsicily.info
Where to stay: Hilton Giardini Naxos offers beachfront access and accessible to Taormina and Mount Etna. Rooms start from around €130 (Dh561) per night, including taxes.
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
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Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
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- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
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Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
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