In a touching tale on Twitter, the French Ambassador to the UAE has narrated how he helped to rescue the pet bird of an Afghan girl who fled Kabul during the Taliban takeover.
Perched in a cage that now sits in the garden of the French Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Juji – the name given to the black and white mynah – has been called the embassy’s mascot by those caring for him.
A member of the starling family, Juji arrived in the UAE in a box on an evacuation plane last month.
Ambassador Xavier Chatel said its owner, Alia, fought hard to keep her beloved bird with her when fleeing her home country.
“There is a story I have been meaning to tell for a while,” Mr Chatel wrote on Twitter.
“During the Afghan evacuation operation, a girl arrived at Al Dhafra airbase, exhausted, with an unusual possession: a bird.
“She had fought all the way at Kabul airport to bring the treasured little thing with her.”
Left behind
After travelling more than 1,800 kilometres on a packed plane with Juji, Alia was forced to leave the bird behind as she travelled onwards to France to start her new life.
Mr Chatel said she “cried silently” at the prospect of abandoning the injured bird she had rescued and had come to love.
“I was moved. I promised to take care of the bird at the residence and feed him,” he said.
He told her she could visit him at any time and take him back.
“I will not forget her look of desperate gratefulness.”
During his two weeks working on the evacuation at the airbase in Al Dhafra – sleeping only just two to three hours each night – the ambassador slipped away for a few hours to bring Juji to the French residence.
New home in Abu Dhabi
The drive from the airbase to the embassy didn’t quite go to plan, with the bird jumping from his box and hiding under the passenger seat.
“This energetic little myna escaped his box and made a big mess in the car,” he said.
“He hid beneath the seat and wouldn’t budge.
“When I tried to talk him into coming out, the fierce little fellow showed me that if he survived the Kabul airport, I was no match.”
After some tough negotiations, he eventually appeared from beneath the seat and made his way to his new temporary home in Abu Dhabi.
Now with his own cage, he spends the cool mornings in the garden and has even learnt to say bonjour.
“He has a girlfriend now; a dove that visits him every day.
“He has loosened up and started to say mysterious things in a language we can’t understand.
“I tried for a few minutes every day to teach him words, starting with bonjour, but the thing is, Juji doesn't like men. He frowned at me and looked angrily, while he giggled at females.
“I went on trying hopelessly with my daily bonjour, but sure enough he wouldn’t listen. Or so I thought.”
One day, the female manager of the French residence sent him a video of the bird saying “bonjour”, a moment Mr Chatel said touched his heart.
Alia recently found the ambassador on Twitter and was delighted to see her beloved Juji in a loving home.
And in a pact with the girl, Mr Chatel has promised to one day reunite the pair, even if it means him taking her pet to France himself.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon
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Australia tour of Pakistan
March 4-8: First Test, Rawalpindi
March 12-16: Second Test, Karachi
March 21-25: Third Test, Lahore
March 29: First ODI, Rawalpindi
March 31: Second ODI, Rawalpindi
April 2: Third ODI, Rawalpindi
April 5: T20I, Rawalpindi
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Ottoman, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Sharkh, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 85,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Yaraa, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Maaly Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Jinjal, Fabrice Veron, Ahmed Al Shemaili
8pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Al Sail, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
Meydan racecard:
6.30pm: Handicap | US$135,000 (Dirt) | 1,400 metres
7.05pm: Handicap | $135,000 (Turf) | 1,200m
7.40pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes | Group 3 | $200,000 (T) | 2,000m
8.15pm: UAE Oaks | Group 3 | $250,000 (D) | 1,900m
8.50pm: Zabeel Mile | Group 2 | $250,000 (T) | 1,600m
9.20pm: Handicap | $135,000 (T) | 1,600m
More from our neighbourhood series:
Marathon results
Men:
1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13
2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25
4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46
5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30
2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01
3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30
4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43
5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01
Types of policy
Term life insurance: this is the cheapest and most-popular form of life cover. You pay a regular monthly premium for a pre-agreed period, typically anything between five and 25 years, or possibly longer. If you die within that time, the policy will pay a cash lump sum, which is typically tax-free even outside the UAE. If you die after the policy ends, you do not get anything in return. There is no cash-in value at any time. Once you stop paying premiums, cover stops.
Whole-of-life insurance: as its name suggests, this type of life cover is designed to run for the rest of your life. You pay regular monthly premiums and in return, get a guaranteed cash lump sum whenever you die. As a result, premiums are typically much higher than one term life insurance, although they do not usually increase with age. In some cases, you have to keep up premiums for as long as you live, although there may be a cut-off period, say, at age 80 but it can go as high as 95. There are penalties if you don’t last the course and you may get a lot less than you paid in.
Critical illness cover: this pays a cash lump sum if you suffer from a serious illness such as cancer, heart disease or stroke. Some policies cover as many as 50 different illnesses, although cancer triggers by far the most claims. The payout is designed to cover major financial responsibilities such as a mortgage or children’s education fees if you fall ill and are unable to work. It is cost effective to combine it with life insurance, with the policy paying out once if you either die or suffer a serious illness.
Income protection: this pays a replacement income if you fall ill and are unable to continue working. On the best policies, this will continue either until you recover, or reach retirement age. Unlike critical illness cover, policies will typically pay out for stress and musculoskeletal problems such as back trouble.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
