Crowds gathered on a Jumeirah Beach early on Tuesday morning as 14 turtles, including an injured one rescued by Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi, were released into the ocean.
Two green sea turtles and one loggerhead, each weighing about 90 kilograms, were first to make it into the water as workers from the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project guided them towards the shore.
Eleven smaller turtles followed, with the final one noted as the 2,000th to be recused and released by the team since 2004.
Farah, who was affectionately named by Sharjah's Sheikh Fahim after he found her tangled in a fishing line nine months ago, led the way.
These turtles have been around since the time dinosaurs roamed the Earth. But humans have come in and endangered them
Sheikh Fahim Al Qasimi
“When I found Farah and saw how badly injured her flipper was, I honestly never thought she’d be fit enough to be released into the wild again,” Sheikh Fahim said.
“The team that helped her worked so hard and got her swimming, diving and thriving in the water again. That’s when I knew she had a chance.
“Saying goodbye today has been bittersweet. I’ve loved watching her progress over the past nine months and because we have a tracker on her, I’d love to see her return to the place we found her.”
The turtle, aged around 20, was found struggling to free herself from a dumped fishing line off Sir Bu Nuair, a protected area 100 kilometres west of Dubai.
Sheikh Fahim dived seven metres down to rescue her. After the animal was handed over to the Dubai Falcon Hospital, Dr Panos Azmanis attempted surgery but was unable to save her flipper.
“You know, these turtles have been around since the time dinosaurs roamed the Earth,” Sheikh Fahim said.
“But now humans have come in and endangered them. As we celebrate the release of 2,000 turtles, which is a credit to the whole team involved, I can’t help but think 2,000 is too many.
“We can’t control certain things that endanger or risk the health of turtles, like barnacle growth or cold stunning, but we need to respect these animals more.
“Slow down and be careful. This is their habitat you are playing in.”
During Tuesday's release, it was announced that for the first time the public can now also play their part in helping protect marine life in Dubai, especially turtles.
A hotline has been set up where people can report a sick or injured animal by calling 800 TURTLE.
Barbara Lang-Lenton, director of the aquarium at the Burj Al Arab hotel where the rescued turtles were rehabilitated, on Tuesday said there has been an uptake in the number animals coming into the centre.
“Most of the turtles we receive are sick and many of them are just yearlings,” she said.
“They get cold stunned in the winter months and barnacles grow on them, which reduces their ability to move because of the additional weight.
“But we are seeing more and more come in that have been impacted by plastic pollution in the ocean and many that have been hit by boats and jet skis.
“One turtle we treated had its carapace — which is the top shell — cut completely in half. She won’t be able to be released back into the ocean, sadly, because it has effected her buoyancy.”
Over the years, the team has released 64 turtles into the wild with GPS tracking devices.
One turtle ventured an astonishing 8,600km in nine months, ending up in Thailand.
Cared for by a team of people at the aquarium under the Burj Al Arab, the turtles are then transferred to the lagoon at Jumeirah Al Naseem, before they are released into the ocean.
Some turtles have been under the care of the project for more than 10 years, while others are released within three months of being rescued.
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
List of officials:
Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.
Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 5
Keita 1', Mane 23', 66', Salah 45' 1, 83'
Huddersfield 0
THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS
Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.
Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.
Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2 (Benzema 13', Kroos 28')
Barcelona 1 (Mingueza 60')
Red card: Casemiro (Real Madrid)
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Men's football draw
Group A: UAE, Spain, South Africa, Jamaica
Group B: Bangladesh, Serbia, Korea
Group C: Bharat, Denmark, Kenya, USA
Group D: Oman, Austria, Rwanda
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)
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
Jawan
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
F1 drivers' standings
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 281
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 247
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 222
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull 177
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 138
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull 93
7. Sergio Perez, Force India 86
8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 56
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
