The story of how Munira Abdulla spontaneously woke from a coma after 27 years has shed light on how someone could come back to life after decades of unconsciousness.
Her case is by no means the first, though it is remarkable given the period of time that has passed.
The coma itself - a state of unconsciousness - occurs after a severe head injury or stroke, though can be a result of severe poisoning or a brain infection.
Patients with diabetes can also fall into a coma if their blood glucose gets out of control.
Most comas do not last for more than two to four weeks.
A patient’s potential for recovery often relates to their score on what's known as the Glasgow Coma Scale tool, which assesses three areas: eye opening, verbal response to a command and voluntary movements.
A score of one means no eye opening, while four means the patient is able to open their eyes spontaneously.
Doctors say patients who score three to four in the first 24 hours of falling in a coma are likely to either die or remain in a vegetative state.
It is not always clear why some patients spontaneously wake, although doctors are seeing some success in using medication. Amantidine, a drug to treat Parkinson’s has shown promise, as has zolpidem, a sleeping aid.
As past cases have shown, patients often find themselves in a very different world.
Family members may have passed away and loved ones moved on to new relationships.
The most notable cases include:
Terry Wallis
The American, from the Ozark mountains, fell into a coma after suffering a serious head injury in a road accident in 1984.
He was initially diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state, but gradually became minimally conscious, meaning he was occasionally responsive.
On June 11, 2003, he said his first word, 'mum,' 19 years after he last spoke.
Doctors studied his brain, showing how it was able to grow new connections, effectively rewiring itself after almost two decades.
His personal circumstances shed light on the world coma survivors can be themselves returning to.
Wallis would not have known that the 17-year-old bride he kissed goodbye on the night of his accident would go on to have three children with another man.
And he had to come to terms with the fact that Amber, the six-month-old daughter he left behind, was a 20-year-old strip club dancer when he woke.
Sunny Von Bulow
An American millionaire heiress and socialite. Her marriage to her husband Claus had been difficult, and he was suspected of injuring her, causing her to fall into a coma in 1979.
She recovered, only to enter a second coma a year later in 1980.
Her husband, who stood to inherit her fortune, was twice found guilty in the 1980s of attempting to murder her by injecting her with sedatives and insulin, but was later acquitted on appeal.
She did not wake from the second coma, dying 27 years, 11 months and 15 days later of a heart attack in a New York nursing home.
Elaine Esposito
Esposito holds the record for the world’s longest coma. She went in for a routine operation, the removal of her appendix, as a six-year-old on August 6, 1941.
But she never woke from the general anaesthetic, staying in a coma for 37 years and 111 days, before dying in 1978.
Dubbed 'sleeping beauty' by the press, she survived numerous operations while comatose, including pneumonia and measles. Her family even took her to the grotto at Lourdes in France, hoping for a miracle.
Gary Dockery
A US police officer, he was shot in the head while responding to a call in Tennessee in 1988.
He fell into a coma, which he remained in for eight years, but spontaneously woke in 1996 after undergoing lung surgery.
He began talking non-stop and was able to remember the names of friends and relatives, his horses and the colour of his car.
But it did not last long. He fell into a coma again 18 hours later and died the following April, at the age of 43.
Michael Schumacher
The F1 star was placed in a medically-induced coma after suffering a serious brain injury while skiing in the French Alps in December 2013.
Schumacher, a seven-time world racing champion, has never been seen publicly since.
Since his release from hospital he has been treated at his home in Switzerland, reportedly at a cost of tens of millions of dollars.
It is not clear whether he remains unconscious and his family, frustrated by tabloid media intrusion, issue few updates.
But sources have told media he is no longer bed-ridden nor existing on tubes. His family said they celebrated his 50th birthday in January this year.
"You can be sure that he is in the very best of hands," a statement said at the time.
Ayanda Nqinana
The South African fell into a coma after being severely injured in a car accident in Eastern Cape in 2005.
His doctors agreed to treat him seven years later with a sleeping pill after being persuaded by his wife, who had conducted research into the topic.
He regained consciousness after five days of treatment. The case caused a sensation and South African media dubbed the simple pills, Stilnox, the 'Lazarus drug'.
Another South African, Louis Viljoen, 24, was given the same treatment in 1999, five years after he was hit by a lorry and left in a coma. He awoke 25 minutes later, though medics have cautioned that the treatment is unproven.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
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.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US' most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was first created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out projectiles, namely ballistic missiles, as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles both inside and outside of the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 93 miles above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then deployed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
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About Tenderd
Started: May 2018
Founder: Arjun Mohan
Based: Dubai
Size: 23 employees
Funding: Raised $5.8m in a seed fund round in December 2018. Backers include Y Combinator, Beco Capital, Venturesouq, Paul Graham, Peter Thiel, Paul Buchheit, Justin Mateen, Matt Mickiewicz, SOMA, Dynamo and Global Founders Capital
Results
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
