A repatriation flight to Ghana left Dubai on Thursday carrying hundreds of tourists and expats home.
Emirates flight EK9255 to Accra departed from Dubai International Airport shortly after 7am carrying 340 passengers.
Many who boarded the plane were stuck in the country on visit visas when the UAE closed its borders to prevent the spread of coronavirus on March 19. Others lost their jobs as a result of the current health pandemic.
Organised by the Ghanian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, it was the seventh repatriation flight to depart for the West African city since June.
Kofi Mumuni, from the Ghana consulate’s welfare department, said more than 1,200 people have returned home over the past two months.
“The tickets were priced between Dh1,740 and Dh2,500 and we requested that the funds be raised by the individual themselves,” he said.
“We met the passengers at the airport this morning and settled immigration fines for about 25 people, some as much as Dh1,000.
“Others arrived at the airport with tickets they had previously purchased but were unable to use because of the flight cancellations.
“We paid the fees to change their tickets so they could board Thursday morning’s flight, which still had a few seats available.”
Mr Mumuni said there were no confirmed dates for an upcoming flight but assured that the embassy and consulate would update its website when new dates were announced.
In June, several hundred men and women were given a place to stay by Dubai Police after pictures circulated online of a group camping out in a park near the consulate. Many claimed they were jobless and homeless and wanted to return to their home country.
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The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
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January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
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Our legal advisor
Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation.
Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.
