Related: Free PCR tests in Abu Dhabi - Health workers see screening numbers double in a day
Tens of thousands of residents have been rushing to screening and vaccination centres in Abu Dhabi to activate their green passes.
Centres across the emirate were packed yesterday with those seeking PCR tests and others with pre-booked vaccination appointments.
Waiting times reached up to three hours at some centres, according to people in the queues, an increase that happened after the latest government regulations came into force on Tuesday.
We are happy to see this enthusiasm to take the vaccine
The green pass system is being used across public areas including parks, beaches, malls, hotels and large supermarkets. Gyms, swimming pools, entertainment centres, restaurants and cafes also require proof for entry.
To obtain a green pass on the Al Hosn app, people must be vaccinated and/or tested for Covid-19.
Both private and public screening centres have since been inundated with visitors.
The number of visitors requesting PCR tests and vaccinations has doubled at Bareen International Hospital in Mohamed bin Zayed City.
"From June 15 onwards we have seen a 100 per cent rise in demand for Covid-19 PCR tests. For Covid vaccines we have seen a double growth in the number of inquiries from the general public," said Dr Amaka Uzu, a consultant at Bareen International Hospital.
"Covid-19 vaccine appointments are fully booked until the second week of next month."
Seha's drive-through screening centres are serving thousands of visitors, up from a few hundred daily.
Waiting times have also increased from several minutes to no less than half an hour at drive-through centres.
Additional support has been called in to manage the crowds in some areas.
"We have seen an increase in users, particularly after the recent announcement, but we are happy to see this enthusiasm to take the vaccine," said Dr Fawaghi Al Naqbi, manager of the Seha drive-through screening centre on the Corniche.
The Seha centre has four drive-through lanes – one for vaccinations and three for PCR and DPI tests. Demand for both is currently equally high and waiting hours have increased even though vaccination bookings are made online.
Each of the four lanes used to serve around 180 drivers per day but, since Tuesday, there are around 1,000 vehicles in each line, according to Dr Al Naqbi.
The drive-through is open every week day from 8am to 8pm.
Both the Sinopharm and Pfizer vaccines are offered at Seha’s screening centres, which are open 8am until 8pm.
“I’m here to get the PCR test for the green pass,” said Al Shaimaa Sakr, 40, from Egypt.
She has not yet been vaccinated, having applied for an exemption on the assumption that she could not receive doses while breastfeeding.
"They turned down my request and said breastfeeding women could take the vaccine."
To get the green status on the Al Hosn App, unvaccinated individuals must have PCR tests taken every three days.
As a result, many who had postponed taking their shots have been booking appointments.
Constanaca Sanchec, 37, from Colombia, said she was waiting for a PCR test. She received her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine in April and will need to get a PCR test every week until her second shot to maintain the green status.
Anyone who has received their first dose and is waiting for an appointment for their second will keep their green status for seven days following a negative test.
“I want to go out and go to the mall which is why I am getting the test done today,” she said.
Many of those coming to the drive-through screening centres were getting their children vaccinated before the next academic school year.
Christeen Mesho was there with her daughter, 17.
“My daughter is going to university in the US and as a requirement has to get the Pfizer vaccine,” the Syrian national said.
Awais Ahshraf from Pakistan was also getting his three children aged 13, 14 and 15 vaccinated before the next academic school year.
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TV: World Cup Qualifier 2018 matches will be aired on on OSN Sports HD Cricket channel
How has net migration to UK changed?
The figure was broadly flat immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic, standing at 216,000 in the year to June 2018 and 224,000 in the year to June 2019.
It then dropped to an estimated 111,000 in the year to June 2020 when restrictions introduced during the pandemic limited travel and movement.
The total rose to 254,000 in the year to June 2021, followed by steep jumps to 634,000 in the year to June 2022 and 906,000 in the year to June 2023.
The latest available figure of 728,000 for the 12 months to June 2024 suggests levels are starting to decrease.
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The specs: 2018 Nissan Altima
Price, base / as tested: Dh78,000 / Dh97,650
Engine: 2.5-litre in-line four-cylinder
Power: 182hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 244Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Continuously variable tranmission
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.6L / 100km
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabriolet
Price, base: Dh429,090
Engine 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 510hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 700Nm @ 1,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.2L / 100km
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The five pillars of Islam
Tom Fletcher on 'soft power'
Results
2pm: Al Sahel Contracting Company – Maiden (PA) Dh50,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: AF Mutakafel, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
2.30pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: El Baareq, Antonio Fresu, Rashed Bouresly
3pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,950m; Winner: Lost Eden, Andrea Atzeni, Doug Watson
3.30pm: Keeneland – Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,000m; Winner: Alkaraama, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi
4pm: Keeneland – Handicap (TB) Dh76,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Lady Snazz, Saif Al Balushi, Bhupat Seemar
4.30pm: Hive – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
5pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – (TB) Handicap Dh64,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
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The Case For Trump
By Victor Davis Hanson
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
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Virtuzone GCC Sixes
Date and venue Friday and Saturday, ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City
Time Matches start at 9am
Groups
A Blighty Ducks, Darjeeling Colts, Darjeeling Social, Dubai Wombats; B Darjeeling Veterans, Kuwait Casuals, Loose Cannons, Savannah Lions; C Awali Taverners, Darjeeling, Dromedary, Darjeeling Good Eggs
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
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The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
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MATCH INFO
Delhi Daredevils 174-4 (20 ovs)
Mumbai Indians 163 (19.3 ovs)
Delhi won the match by 11 runs
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