With reference to Liz Cookman's article President Erdogan: Don't smoke, drink Turkish tea instead (October 21). It was an interesting read. On the one hand, the Turkish president has attacked the Kurds. Now he seems to be concerned about people's health. He is opposed to the idea of e-cigarettes and wants his fellow Turks to stick to drinking tea instead. This is not a bad idea but the percentage of smokers has gone up over the years, despite Turkey being one of the largest consumers of tea. It remains to be seen whether the people will follow the advice of their leader.
K Ragavan, Bengaluru
Cameras in taxis will cut reckless driving. Next stop: card readers
I write to you regarding Anna Zacharias's article Cameras fitted in all of Dubai's 10,600 taxis (October 20): some months ago, as I was stepping out of a cab, the driver just sped off without waiting for me to close the door. I lodged a complaint. But despite following up, they could not find the driver as their systems were not up-to-date. I hope we can rely on surveillance cameras and smart systems to prevent reckless driving and ensure customer safety in future. As with the gradual implementation of cameras, I look forward to all cabs in the UAE being equipped with credit card readers. This would address the problem of looking for exact change.
Mathew Litty, Dubai
The next generation promises to reduce, repair, reuse and recycle
I write to you in reference to Ramola Talwar Badam's article Expo 2020 to deliver eco boost with nearly 150 tonnes of daily waste recycled (October 20): I am confident that my generation can help raise awareness regarding the recycling rules: reduce, reuse, recycle, repair, rethink and refuse. There are so many steps we can take. For example, cotton scraps end up in landfills. We can change that and reuse the cotton scraps to make earrings. This is a great initiative by the Expo 2020 team. Together we can create a wave of change.
Sainath Manikandan, Abu Dhabi
The specs
Price: From Dh529,000
Engine: 5-litre V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 520hp
Torque: 625Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.8L/100km
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
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Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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
Biography
Favourite book: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Holiday choice: Anything Disney-related
Proudest achievement: Receiving a presidential award for foreign services.
Family: Wife and three children.
Like motto: You always get what you ask for, the universe listens.
