The safety of delivery bikers

Motorcycle delivery riders are expected to make deliveries with speed and efficiency. Faster deliveries could also mean more tips from customers. Such pressure can, unfortunately, lead to unsafe driving or traffic rules being flouted.

And so, as The National reported yesterday, safety experts are urging motorcycle delivery riders to ride with caution and never neglect wearing protective gear. According to Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority, 26 people died in motorbike accidents in 2015 and 2016 and motorbike riders were involved in 824 traffic offences in 2016 alone. Although motorcycle users are a minority, they form a large part of the road casualties and deaths due to the vulnerability of any rider in an accident.

Authorities in Dubai and Abu Dhabi have been working on addressing the issue. Dubai has introduced new standardised technical specifications for delivery motorbikes, including rounded edges and phosphoric reflector strips, which will come into effect from June 6. In 2013, Abu Dhabi has also introduced regulations governing food deliveries to ensure the safety of drivers and other road users. Delivery staff, like any other motorcyclists, have to abide by traffic rules.

While it's important that these rules are strictly enforced, awareness and education are also critical. Delivery companies have to provide their staff with proper training and briefing of the traffic rules and encourage them to drive safely. A good initiative was Safety Delivered, which was launched last year by the pizza delivery company Freedom Pizza, to promote a strong safety culture among its staff. The company introduced a training programme and required its delivery riders to sign a pledge that they carry with them on the road when they leave for a delivery saying "I will drive safe," as a constant reminder.

Restaurant owners also have to equip their staff with appropriate gear and safe motorcycles and ensure good maintenance of the vehicles in the long run. It’s important that employers consider the safety of their staff before anything else.

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Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

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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