SHARJAH // Tenants of an apartment block destroyed by fire gathered yesterday, waiting to re-enter the building and collect what remained of their belongings.
Tuesday's blaze in Al Kuwait tower took firemen more than five hours to extinguish.
Six people were injured, one of them seriously, and the damage was extensive.
A crowd at least 100-strong had amassed outside the building by around 1pm yesterday, waiting their turn to enter one by one.
Some had stood in the heat since the early morning as the apparently random process of picking the next to enter moved slowly forward.
"We have been here since 8am but have not had a chance to see our flat," said Suresh Joe, a tenant of the gutted structure.
"I hate the system they are using. One person goes and stays for 30 minutes and then they pick another one. Can't they allow all of us to go at once?"
That approach was impossible due to concerns over the safety of the building, which was still cooling off, and the valuables that may remain inside it.
Safety, and the protection of property, were paramount, said Lt Mohammed Ali of Sharjah Police, who was leading the operation.
"Some people have money, others have gold and other valuables," he said. "If you allow all the people to just come in, many things will go missing," he said. "We are allowing one person at a go. Two police officers escort the tenant to ensure he doesn't tamper with other people's belongings."
The building would be open to all residents in two days, said Col Waheed al Serkal, the Sharjah Civil Defence director.
But the process of gaining entry lacked any organisation, many complained.
Selection for entry was seemingly dependent on the whim of police, said Ali Salim al Hendi, a resident who had been waiting since morning.
"I am thinking of asking my wife to come down and try pleading for a chance, as women are given first consideration," he said.
That was not the case for Estelita del Mundo, a Filipina who had been waiting for more than five hours.
"Some women have had a chance to come and go inside immediately, but not all of us," she said.
Mrs Mundo, who has a six-month-old baby, said she was looking for someone who could tell her the Arabic word for 'baby', to use when asking the police to enter.
Many who gained admission may have wished they had not. Roy Jarapuyod, a Filipino, was unable to find any evidence of his two-bedroom apartment on the third floor.
"I need to hatch a plan to survive and start a new life, with new clothing, new furniture and a new apartment," he said.
"I will start by sending my family back to Manila next week if they get travel documents, and start afresh."
Mr Jarapuyod was also keen to hear of possible insurance compensation, but was unable to access the necessary information.
The same was true of Mr Joe who, from the street, could see only a hole in the wall where his fifth-floor apartment once stood, and feared nothing remained of it.
He also feared the free hotel accommodation provided by the Red Crescent was about to end. "They told us that today was the last day, and anyone who wished to stay longer had to start paying," he said. Salah Salman, the public relations director of the Red Crescent's Sharjah branch, said many of the victims were now in a position to look after themselves, though he pledged the group would still assist those in need.
"Whoever approaches us and claims he still needs our support, we are willing to help," he said.
ykakande@thenational.ae
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
Unresolved crisis
Russia and Ukraine have been locked in a bitter conflict since 2014, when Ukraine’s Kremlin-friendly president was ousted, Moscow annexed Crimea and then backed a separatist insurgency in the east.
Fighting between the Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces has killed more than 14,000 people. In 2015, France and Germany helped broker a peace deal, known as the Minsk agreements, that ended large-scale hostilities but failed to bring a political settlement of the conflict.
The Kremlin has repeatedly accused Kiev of sabotaging the deal, and Ukrainian officials in recent weeks said that implementing it in full would hurt Ukraine.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
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.
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.
Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)
Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.
Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.
Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.
Get your priorities right.
And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
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Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 380hp at 5,800rpm
Torque: 530Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Price: From Dh299,000 ($81,415)
On sale: Now
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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
