DUBAI: // Some had been waiting for over an hour. Others had just arrived. A little further, a third group kept watch from a prime spot at the outdoor tables of nearby restaurants.
All were waiting for the same moment - the arrival of Dubai's latest superstars.
"They are here," announces a security guard, one ear to his walkie talkie as he urgently moves along other cars trying to pass the roundabout dominated by a statue of a black horse between The Address Hotel and Dubai Mall.
They could be heard before they were seen. With a deafening roar, Dubai's supercops, driving the world's best known supercars, had arrived. It was 6.30 on a Thursday evening and the weekend's entertainment had just begun.
Decked in the immaculate green and white of Dubai Police, the public welcomed the Lamborghini Aventador, with license plate number six and driven by two male cops and a Ferrari FF, license plate number nine, driven by two policewomen.
Within seconds, the two cars were surrounded by people holding up their mobile phones, taking photos and recording videos, while trying to get as close as possible to the cars that had yet to find a parking spot by the roundabout's curb.
"The reception from the public has been amazing and very warm," said Lt. Mariam Al Kaabi, a mother of three and one of the drivers of the Ferrari. "I feel like a star."
Lt Al Kaabi, joined by First Warrant Officer Badriya Al Suwaidi, had been chosen from women police officers after last month's announcement on Twitter Dubai Police Chief, Lt General Dahi Khalfan Tamim that the wheel of the Ferrari would be reserved for women. In another Tweet, the police chief explained that the supercars were not "for chasing, but for acting classy with people."
This week, three more luxury super cars were added to the police fleet. Next to the Lamborghini and Ferrari, public can expect to see a Mercedes SLS, a Bentley Continental GT, and a collectors-item Aston Martin One-77 patrolling the streets and leaving an impression wherever they go.
Dubai police are not the only force with supercars, with police in Italy and Germany using supercars as faster and more powerful patrol cars. But like so much in the city, Dubai's are the biggest and the best.
The Dubai police supercars are on display at the Dubai Police stand at the Arabian Travel Market, which ends tomorrow the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. So far the price of the fleet has reached over Dh12m.
Maj Gen Khamis Mattar, deputy head of Dubai Police, explained that the addition of the cars was part of Dubai Police's desire to keep up with the growth of the city as a tourism and business hub.
But while they may be the world's fastest cars - the Aston Martin's V-12, 750 horse-power engine can push it to over 350 kph, faster than most aircrafts taking off - they all must be driven within the speed limits of the Dubai streets.
"We have never exceeded the speed limit on the highway," said Lt. Al Kaabi, when asked about the temptation to push the pedal to the metal and and experience the true power of her Ferrari.
Tourists and residents would come up and ask permission to shake the super cops' hands, and to take photo with them next to their cars. Many of the tourists who didn't seem to speak any English would gesture to take photos and would do the thumbs up as they said "Dubai! Dubai!"
In the midst of all the admiration and photo taking, a child sneaks into the Ferrari, squealing with glee to the great delight of his father.
"You are superman!" yells the father, while taking photos of his child before the two female officers ushered the child out of the car.
"It is not allowed for anyone to go inside our cars. We are very protective over our Ferrari," said Al Suwaidi, a mother of six. "We really miss the car when we are not driving it. It has become part of us."
Patrolling the tourist areas like Downtown Dubai and Jumeirah Beach Residence, the officers can be seen on the roads at sunset until late at night on a daily basis.
All from the Criminal Investigative Department, the current four supercar drivers had special training how to drive the powerful vehicles and careful watch over their expensive charges against overenthusiastic members of public.
"It has really worked in bridging the gap between us and the public," said Lt Khalifa Al Falasi, one of the Lamborghini drivers. "They feel they can approach us and talk to us."
"We have really connected with the public, which was the vision behind bringing the supercars into our fleet," he says. "Before, you would see people tense up, put on their seat belts and look all suspicious and uncomfortable when they see a police car approach. Now, they lean in through their car windows to talk to us and to take photos and even wave at us wherever we drive."
"It is truly an amazing feeling to be driving around in a supercar," he adds.
As well as the fans among the public and with pictures and videos of the cars going viral on the internet, it is the families of the drivers who also cannot wait to take photos with the cars and their partners driving the cars.
"My wife was never into fast cars, but now, after seeing me drive one, she likes them," said First Warrant Officer Ali Youssef, the other Lamborghini driver.
Within minutes of trying to open the doors of their car to continue their patrols, crowds flocked in to take photos of the interiors, with some trying to persuade the officers to let them sit in the driving seat even for a few seconds.
"We can't. It is against regulation. It is still a police car," said Officer Youssef to a group of teenage boys who were pleading for a group photo inside the car.
"It is so cool! The cars are amazing," said Abduallah Ahmed, one of the teenagers, who had come to the same spot at the Dubai Mall three times the past week just to see the cars.
"I can't wait for the other supercars to hit the streets," he added. "I just hope they let us sit in them one day soon."
Until then, the four chosen drivers have become celebrities in their own right, with their photos almost everywhere posing with people from across the world.
"I have no idea where these photos will end up. But whatever the case, everyone is smiling in the pictures," says Lt. Al Falasi. "We leave a positive impression wherever we go, and that is the whole point of it."
rghazal@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
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
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
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
On sale: now
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Results:
CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
4. Nadia Taryam (UAE) Askaria 3 39.63
5. Miriam Schneider (GER) Fidelius G 47.74
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
