AJMAN // Roads in Al Nuaimia are benefiting from a two-year, Dh96 million upgrade programme.
The work that started at the end of the third quarter of last year is expected to be completed by the end of 2018, a development that is welcomed by the emirate’s motorists.
“Road and Infrastructure Department is working on developing and establishing roads in various areas in the emirate according to the annual plan for 2017,” said Eng Mohammed Ahmed Al Mheiri, chief of technical affairs at Ajman Municipality.
“The project includes 26 kilometres of internal roads in Al Nuaimia area and a network of rainwater drainage. The project will cost Dh96m,” said Mr Al Mheiri.
Motorists and residents said the upgrade is needed, especially as winter rainfall on the undeveloped roads brings many problems.
Ismail Al Zarooni, an Emirati investor from Sharjah, said that he sold off a two-storey property in the area because people refused to rent there because the roads were so poor.
“I heard five years ago that the roads would be upgraded. When I saw nothing was happened, I sold the building. Residents refused to stay because of the upaved roads and rainfall that clogged the streets. Shops in the ground floor of the building would flood,” the 26-year-old said.
Ezzat El Sayed, an accountant from Egypt, lived in the area for 10 years before moving elsewhere in the emirate.
“Ten years ago, the roads were worse than today, but they are still bad, especially in winter,” the 42-year-old said.
“The rainfall causes big potholes where water gathers, and vehicles are damaged because to these holes. The underside of my little car was damaged because of the roads.”
Ameen Ali, 50, from Egypt, moved to Dubai because he was fed up with the state of the roads.
“Twenty years and the streets of the area are still same. They are not good and paved,” the building contractor said.
“The area becomes bad in summer and winter. In summer, because the streets are unpaved, too much sand and dust gets into houses and dirties up the cars. In winter, the water collects in pools and mud makes driving so hard,” he said.
Mohammed Saeed, a Palestinian resident, said that he sold his small car and bought a 4x4 vehicle to cope with the roads.
“Because the roads are so bad, the underside of my last car was damaged. I could not move to another area, so I decided to buy a 4x4 car,” the 57-year-old said.
“I hope the development of the roads in the area will be finished quickly. When that’s done, our problems are over.”
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The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
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
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The specs
Engine: Turbocharged four-cylinder 2.7-litre
Power: 325hp
Torque: 500Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh189,700
On sale: now
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
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
