FUJAIRAH // Against a catchy Emirati song and drumbeat, a cocky swordsman named Hamad challenges a newcomer.
Clad in the national dress of white kandura and hamdaniya on his head, Hamad pulls out all his best moves, dancing and jumping away with a sword in a circular arena. Your swordsman, a twin of Hamad in a beige kandura, just hops along - until you figure out how to press the right buttons at the right time.
A hint: the space button on the keyboard makes him jump.
Welcome to the internet video game Al Saif.
"Yala yala!" cries out 12-year-old Ahmed Mohammed, slamming the keyboard hard, trying to make his swordsman jump as high as possible.
The young Emirati tried out the video game after watching the live competition between real swordsmen in Fujairah last month as part of the annual Al Saif sword championships.
This year's Al Saif championships saw the soft launch of the video game, pioneered by the Crown Prince of Fujairah, Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad, that aims to reach "young generations from all backgrounds".
"His Highness thought up the idea of a video game, based on this competition, where the players will have to learn the rules of this tradition in order to play it," says Ali Yaeesh, head of the new media committee of the sword competition. "It is taking a traditional sport and making it accessible to everyone to learn and participate in it."
Early reviews suggest the game, while intriguing, still has some kinks to work out.
"I keep forgetting the rules," young Ahmed says. "It is actually pretty annoying."
The rules of the game, which is in English, are among the available options when you load Al Saif onto your computer screen. Character movements are defined by keyboard buttons. The swordsman can be made to jump or "ghali", throw the sword high and catch it, perform the "luqiya" or the meeting, and do the various moves that go into the actual Al Mazafen, which is also known as sword dancing.
When he throws and catches his sword properly, Ahmed's player gets a shower of clapping and whistling, and the words "well done" pop up on the screen from the invisible audience in the game.
But Ahmed says the game could be a bit more realistic.
"They need to add more options and some blood," he says. "For in real life, the swordsmen get injured."
Experts studying the virtual world and its effect on culture and society say these kinds of games and initiatives are important.
"It looks interesting," said Dr Sara de Freitas, a professor of virtual environments and the director of research at UK-based The Serious Games Institute.
"Games such as these can inform, teach, and effect upon behavioural changes," she said.
"Whether used for connecting communities up with their heritage or awareness raising of particular issues, serious games are at the cutting edge of new innovative technologies and have the power to change the way we live, play, work and learn."
Four months in the making, the Al Saif game is available for free online at http://www.saif.mhm.ae/. Its developers are still working on making it compatible with all platforms, particularly the hand-held smartphones such as iPhones, BlackBerrys and Androids.
"We are still working on making it better and hope it will be the beginning of reviving traditional games from real life into timeless virtual ones," Mr Yaeesh said.
Players compete against the champion Hamad to see who can do the sword dance Al Mazafen better, including hopping and sword throwing, with a meter that measures the height of the throws. (You can cheat by pressing 'R' to reset the sword for a second chance at a toss.)
Hamad wasn't the only virtual character born of the sword championships. There was also an animated Saif welcoming visitors to the heritage village at Fujairah Fort where the real competition took place.
This virtual Saif extended greetings, provided information about the competition and the heritage village, and gave visitors a virtual tour of Fujairah's hot spots.
Some who have played the video game complained that when too many buttons were pressed at the same time, the screen went fuzzy.
One of the players who tried out the game is a real-life, reigning swords champion.
"It is way too simple," says Saif Al Yammahi, 21, who won second place in the 2011 championships. "The actual sport is far more difficult and complicated."
Mr Al Yammahi is from the mountainous area of Al Tawain. The tribesmen of Al Yammahi took home a silver-plated sword and Dh60,000 in prize money last year.
"I think they need to add more levels and variety to the game itself so people keep playing it," says Mr Al Yammahi, who has been injured many times during practice.
Looking at the video game's Hamad, who sports a slight beard, Mr Al Yammahi laughs and says, "He looks a bit like me, right?"
The game's creators won't say after who the character was modelled on, but living and breathing swordsmen say they still prefer the real deal.
"Nothing beats actually throwing the sword in real life," Mr Al Yammahi says.
rghazal@thenational.ae
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
On sale: now
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
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THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%204.4-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20653hp%20at%205%2C400rpm%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20800Nm%20at%201%2C600-5%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3ETransmission%3A%208-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E0-100kph%20in%204.3sec%0D%3Cbr%3ETop%20speed%20250kph%0D%3Cbr%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20NA%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Q2%202023%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh750%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
COPA DEL REY
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
Started: 2016
Founders: Hussein Nasser Eddin, Laila Akel, Tayeb Akel
Based: Ramallah, Palestine
Sector: Technology, Security
# of staff: 13
Investment: $745,000
Investors: Palestine’s Ibtikar Fund, Abu Dhabi’s Gothams and angel investors
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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
Kibsons%20Cares
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERecycling%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fstrong%3EAny%20time%20you%20receive%20a%20Kibsons%20order%2C%20you%20can%20return%20your%20cardboard%20box%20to%20the%20drivers.%20They%E2%80%99ll%20be%20happy%20to%20take%20it%20off%20your%20hands%20and%20ensure%20it%20gets%20reused%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EKind%20to%20health%20and%20planet%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ESolar%20%E2%80%93%2025-50%25%20of%20electricity%20saved%3Cbr%3EWater%20%E2%80%93%2075%25%20of%20water%20reused%3Cbr%3EBiofuel%20%E2%80%93%20Kibsons%20fleet%20to%20get%2020%25%20more%20mileage%20per%20litre%20with%20biofuel%20additives%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESustainable%20grocery%20shopping%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ENo%20antibiotics%3Cbr%3ENo%20added%20hormones%3Cbr%3ENo%20GMO%3Cbr%3ENo%20preservatives%3Cbr%3EMSG%20free%3Cbr%3E100%25%20natural%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
England v South Africa Test series:
First Test: at Lord's, England won by 211 runs
Second Test: at Trent Bridge, South Africa won by 340 runs
Third Test: at The Oval, July 27-31
Fourth Test: at Old Trafford, August 4-8
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
