Ban on our favourite soy sauce is really sad

I have never heard of anyone who drinks soy sauce just to get a buzz (UAE bans Japanese Kikkoman soy sauce due to alcohol content, August 9). In fact, what little alcohol there is in soy sauce evaporates through cooking. I really hope this problem is resolved. Kikkoman has always been a household favourite for cooking.

Jimmy Grant, Abu Dhabi 

Let’s be fair – if a product that is consumed by the masses contains alcohol, then a Muslim country has the right to choose not allow it to be freely available. I don't think it's a big deal, but I would request that the authorities don't take away my Listerine. The alcohol-free version doesn't give that burning clean feeling.

Suzanne Arruda-Wessel, Dubai

This seems a bit much, but I'm not going to put my European nose in your business.

Fred Inger, Dubai

Refugee crisis will snowball into a bigger problem

Faisal Al Yafai's opinion article, Syria's refugees are losing hope of going home. They may be right (August 7), painted a grim picture of the refugee situation. The magnitude of the problem is huge. While many refugees have been lucky to have been taken in by various countries, there are millions of families that have no access to proper health care and children who have no access to education. These children will face a harsher world when they grow up, so what are they expected to do as adults if they are uneducated and jobless? The problem is going to snowball into a more acute crisis. There is no easy solution, but we can certainly do our part in trying to resolve the Syria crisis, which will, at least, slow down the refugee flow.

Biju Joseph, Dubai

An easy solution to the cladding issue?

Regarding your article, Plan to introduce fire-resistant barriers on older UAE buildings being studied (August 7), existing cladding can be made fire-resistant by coating it with a product that is readily available here.

Dave Pryce, Dubai