Road rage is one of the main catalysts for accidents during Ramadan, Dubai Police have said.
Six people died in road accidents in Ramadan last year, accounting for four per cent of the 148 total deaths in the emirate.
Maj Gen Mohammed Al Zafein, head of the Federal Traffic Council and assistant commander-in-chief of Dubai Police for Operations Affairs, said road rage causes motorists to drive recklessly and without patience.
“Road rage is experienced by some fasting drivers, particularly smokers. They get angry and do not respect those on the road. Those type of drivers need to calm down and remember that they are not the only ones who are fasting,” he said.
Of the six road deaths during the holy month last year, one died due to an accident caused by sudden swerving, three pedestrians were run over and another was reversed over by a fasting driver, Maj Gen Al Zafein said.
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Part of the traffic problem during Ramadan is speeding, which is exacerbated in the period just before iftar — ahead of maghrib prayers at around 7pm this year — when motorists speed home to break their fasts.
He said some fasting drivers may also suffer from concentration or dehydration problems, which negatively affected their driving attitudes.
“Most accidents took place in the last couple of hours before iftar time and early morning prayers, said Maj Gen Al Zafein.
“During these two periods, drivers speed and do not pay attention to the roads.”
Over the past three years, fifteen people died in car accidents between 6am and 2pm throughout Ramadan. Three people died in crashes between 2pm to 10pm during Ramadan last year, according to Dubai Police.
Dubai Police released the statistics during a conference on Wednesday.
They showed that road deaths decreased during Ramadan last year compared to the 20 deaths during the holy month in 2016.
Maj Gen Al Zafein said that Emirates Road and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road were the most dangerous during Ramadan over the past three years.
Eight people died on Emirates Road, four died on Mohammed bin Zayed Road, three died in Jebel Ali and two on Sheikh Zayed Road.
Last year, three of the deaths were caused by accidents involving lorries, which have been banned from the streets of Abu Dhabi during peak hours.
Dubai Police urged motorists to drive carefully and calmly throughout the holy month and indeed beyond. They advised drivers leave early enough to avoid feeling as though they must rush to arrive at their destinations.
Police will provide tips about safe driving in Ramadan on their social media channels and distribute awareness leaflets.
Patrols will be increased for the duration of the holy month and will be dispatched to areas where Ramadan tents are located.
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 banned).
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.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The details
Colette
Director: Wash Westmoreland
Starring: Keira Knightley, Dominic West
Our take: 3/5
Low turnout
Two months before the first round on April 10, the appetite of voters for the election is low.
Mathieu Gallard, account manager with Ipsos, which conducted the most recent poll, said current forecasts suggested only two-thirds were "very likely" to vote in the first round, compared with a 78 per cent turnout in the 2017 presidential elections.
"It depends on how interesting the campaign is on their main concerns," he told The National. "Just now, it's hard to say who, between Macron and the candidates of the right, would be most affected by a low turnout."
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Sub Regional Qualifier
Event info: The tournament in Kuwait this month is the first phase of the qualifying process for sides from Asia for the 2020 World T20 in Australia. The UAE must finish within the top three teams out of the six at the competition to advance to the Asia regional finals. Success at regional finals would mean progression to the World T20 Qualifier.
UAE’s fixtures: Fri Apr 20, UAE v Qatar; Sat Apr 21, UAE v Saudi Arabia; Mon Apr 23, UAE v Bahrain; Tue Apr 24, UAE v Maldives; Thu Apr 26, UAE v Kuwait
World T20 2020 Qualifying process:
- Sixteen teams will play at the World T20 in two years’ time.
- Australia have already qualified as hosts
- Nine places are available to the top nine ranked sides in the ICC’s T20i standings, not including Australia, on Dec 31, 2018.
- The final six teams will be decided by a 14-team World T20 Qualifier.
World T20 standings: 1 Pakistan; 2 Australia; 3 India; 4 New Zealand; 5 England; 6 South Africa; 7 West Indies; 8 Sri Lanka; 9 Afghanistan; 10 Bangladesh; 11 Scotland; 12 Zimbabwe; 13 UAE; 14 Netherlands; 15 Hong Kong; 16 Papua New Guinea; 17 Oman; 18 Ireland
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
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David Haye record
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Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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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
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
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Investment raised: $4 million
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