Parents celebrated a double blessing in the early hours of Monday as the first babies arrived in the UAE on Eid Al Fitr, minutes after midnight.
A baby girl, Noura Sultan, was among the first to be welcomed into the world at 12.20am to Emirati parents.
The family, who already have a 3-year-old girl, Naeema, said they were happy to share their joy with the rest of the world on Eid.
“May Allah keep his blessings on us all,” said her father, Sultan Shail.
The doctor who delivered the girl, who weighed 2.9kg, by Caesarean section, said she felt blessed to be part of the auspiciously timed event.
“My patients are like my family and it brings me joy to see them healthy and safe. The baby girl Noura Sultan is the first baby of Eid in our hospital,” said Dr Rabab Hilmy, consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology at NMC Royal Hospital Sharjah.
“She is doing well and so is her mother. I wish the family the blessings of Allah and Eid Mubarak to everyone.”
A couple of hours later, at 2.03am, Dr Hilmy oversaw the delivery of a second child, Yousuf, to an Iraqi family who arrived in the UAE only four months ago.
The couple, Shadan Alhishma and Dr Mustafa Alobaidi, who work as a pharmacist and orthopaedic surgeon, already have a girl, Sama, 3, who was born in Jordan.
“We are elated with the choice we made. The service has been fantastic. The staff have been professional, friendly and we know we are in safe hands,” said Dr Alobaidi.
In Abu Dhabi, baby Dhalia was born to Sudanese couple Lubna Abdurabo and Missara Mohammed by natural delivery at NMC Specialty Hospital, Abu Dhabi, at 5.57am, weighing 3.1kg. She is the third child to be born to the family.
“We are very happy that our third child is born in time of the celebration of the Eid Al Fitr,” said her father, Mr Mohammed.
“It is a truly a blessing. I would like to thank NMC Specialty Hospital, Abu Dhabi, especially the doctors and staff for the excellent service and taking good care of my wife and child.”
Michael Davis, the chief executive of NMC Healthcare, said the birth of a child is always a reason to celebrate, but when it coincides with an occasion such as Eid Al Fitr, “happiness knows no bounds”.
“We pray the babies continue to bring joy and remain a blessing for their families for ever,” he added.
At Burjeel Hospital, Abu Dhabi, the first baby born on Eid was welcomed seconds after midnight.
Shahmeer was born to a Pakistani couple Saba Irfan and Irfan Khan, weighing 2.70kg. He is their third child.
“We are thrilled to welcome our newest family member,” said father Mr Khan.
“His arrival has doubled the joy we feel on this auspicious day.”
At a minute past midnight, doctors at Medeor Hospital, Abu Dhabi delivered baby Ayla weighing 3.61kg to an Egyptian couple, Amira Magdy and Khaled Fahmy.
“Ayla is our third child. This pregnancy was a surprise for us,” said her mother, Ms Magdy, 32.
“Now, Ayla surprised us again by coming to us as the most precious gift from above on this blessed day. We are thrilled to finally hold our angel in our arms.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Defined benefit and defined contribution schemes explained
Defined Benefit Plan (DB)
A defined benefit plan is where the benefit is defined by a formula, typically length of service to and salary at date of leaving.
Defined Contribution Plan (DC)
A defined contribution plan is where the benefit depends on the amount of money put into the plan for an employee, and how much investment return is earned on those contributions.
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
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The bio:
Favourite holiday destination: I really enjoyed Sri Lanka and Vietnam but my dream destination is the Maldives.
Favourite food: My mum’s Chinese cooking.
Favourite film: Robocop, followed by The Terminator.
Hobbies: Off-roading, scuba diving, playing squash and going to the gym.
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
VERSTAPPEN'S FIRSTS
Youngest F1 driver (17 years 3 days Japan 2014)
Youngest driver to start an F1 race (17 years 166 days – Australia 2015)
Youngest F1 driver to score points (17 years 180 days - Malaysia 2015)
Youngest driver to lead an F1 race (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest driver to set an F1 fastest lap (19 years 44 days – Brazil 2016)
Youngest on F1 podium finish (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest F1 winner (18 years 228 days – Spain 2016)
Youngest multiple F1 race winner (Mexico 2017/18)
Youngest F1 driver to win the same race (Mexico 2017/18)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Walls
Louis Tomlinson
3 out of 5 stars
(Syco Music/Arista Records)
RESULT
Huddersfield Town 1 Manchester City 2
Huddersfield: Otamendi (45' 1 og), van La Parra (red card 90' 6)
Man City: Agüero (47' pen), Sterling (84')
Man of the match: Christopher Schindler (Huddersfield Town)
