A year ago, The National met Yazan Hussein Qassam, a blind nine-year-old boy displaced from Ablin, Zawiya Mountain, in Syria's northern governorate of Idlib.
For three years he had been living in a tent in the Kill refugee camp, one of hundreds of similar camps in northern Syria catering for more than 1.8 million people displaced by conflict.
“I wish for our misery in the tent to end and to have a village for us, the blind,” he said.
A year later, his wish was granted when he moved to Nour Village, a unique charity project established in 2021 which hosts the severely visually impaired and their families.
“Now I go to school every day and learn how to read with Braille”, says Yazan. He was blind at birth and he has never seen light. “I feel good here with my family and friends,” he tells The National.
A charity for Syria's blind
Nour Village is a residential complex in north-west Syria built by Basaier, a Kuwaiti charity, and staffed by the local humanitarian organisation Al Diaa, according to Nour Village's manager Amer Mahmoud Jarad.
Like those he looks after, he is also sightless and manages his work with the Talkback app, an Android programme that helps blind people to use their phones.
The village design currently has 182 apartments, 103 of which are being prepared for new families.
Meanwhile, the charity is applying to continue construction work. The project manager says they have created a system to assess requests to live there based on need, including the number of children in the family and the number of visually-impaired.
“Each family accepted in the project has one blind person or more”, says Amer Jarad.
“There are two kinds of blind people, those blinded by birth and those who lost their sight due to war injuries. For the blind by birth it is easier for them to cope with than those who suffered war injuries”, he adds.
Ahmed Hatem Al Hamid, 29, lost his sight in 2016 after a missile launched by the Syrian regime on his village struck him with shrapnel. “Our village was in the firing line”, says Mr Al Hamid.
Originally from Al Hawash village on the Al Ghab Plain in rural Hama – once the scene of heavy fighting – he is married and has two children. He now lives in Nour Village but says life is still hard because his wife was also seriously injured in the same attack.
Ahmed is the only blind person in his family, but the missile that blinded him also destroyed his wife’s leg, and she now depends on a prosthetic limb to go about her daily life.
Ahmed Habob, 40, has a family of five including his wife and three daughters. Like Yazan, he was blind at birth and lived in the eastern countryside of Shallakh in north-east Idlib until he moved to Nour Village.
“I heard of Nour Village from my wife, we registered and moved to the village after three months”, says Ahmed.
Basic daily needs
“I find life here more comfortable than I do with people who can see,” Nour Village manager Amer Jarad said.
He says most towns in northern Syria hit by 12 years of conflict have no hope of catering to the unique needs of the visually impaired.
“The village is designed to ease life for them. There’s a school, park, market and mosque, but it still lacks an active medical centre,” he says. “The centre is prepared but the work on it has not started yet.”
Different aspects of the village are designed with blind people in mind.
Roads are specially paved to make movement easier for the sightless, and carefully organised so people can make their way around with relative ease. Wall tiles around the village are marked with Braille letters and other aides for navigation.
“I place my hand on the building to recognise its number, our apartment number is nine”, says Yazan. He says he loves living in the village, a place where he can finally find his way around without help, where all apartment doors are marked with Braille.
Ahmed Al Hamid, another village resident, recognises his house by the number four on his door. “The road is paved and it is easy to go around walking. Most of the time I go to the mosque or the market on my own”.
The apartment's tiles have patterns to help blind people live more comfortably in different rooms.
“I can get into the rooms by myself, I find the kitchen and house entrance by touching the tiles”, says Mr Habob.
He says his life has changed for the better since he moved to Nour Village. “My mind has become clearer, especially knowing everyone is blind, like me”.
“We wish there would be monthly financial aid to provide a decent life for the blind”, says Nour Village manager Amer Jarad. Many residents – despite their appreciation and their vastly improved situation, say life is still tough.
“I cannot work. There are lots of things my house lacks and I cannot afford to buy them, we get no financial or food aid”, Ahmed Al Hamid says. “We still need financial aid to raise our kids”, adds Mr Habob.
One hundred families have moved to a place which is safer and more comfortable, but the need is still great as there are more than 3,000 blind people in north-west Syria, according to statistics collected by local aid groups.
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300 Cabriolet
Price, base / as tested: Dh275,250 / Dh328,465
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 245hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,300rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.0L / 100km
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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The Details
Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5
Match info
Wolves 0
Arsenal 2 (Saka 43', Lacazette 85')
Man of the match: Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)
QUALIFYING RESULTS
1. Max Verstappen, Netherlands, Red Bull Racing Honda, 1 minute, 35.246 seconds.
2. Valtteri Bottas, Finland, Mercedes, 1:35.271.
3. Lewis Hamilton, Great Britain, Mercedes, 1:35.332.
4. Lando Norris, Great Britain, McLaren Renault, 1:35.497.
5. Alexander Albon, Thailand, Red Bull Racing Honda, 1:35.571.
6. Carlos Sainz Jr, Spain, McLaren Renault, 1:35.815.
7. Daniil Kvyat, Russia, Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda, 1:35.963.
8. Lance Stroll, Canada, Racing Point BWT Mercedes, 1:36.046.
9. Charles Leclerc, Monaco, Ferrari, 1:36.065.
10. Pierre Gasly, France, Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda, 1:36.242.
Eliminated after second session
11. Esteban Ocon, France, Renault, 1:36.359.
12. Daniel Ricciardo, Australia, Renault, 1:36.406.
13. Sebastian Vettel, Germany, Ferrari, 1:36.631.
14. Antonio Giovinazzi, Italy, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:38.248.
Eliminated after first session
15. Antonio Giovinazzi, Italy, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:37.075.
16. Kimi Raikkonen, Finland, Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari, 1:37.555.
17. Kevin Magnussen, Denmark, Haas Ferrari, 1:37.863.
18. George Russell, Great Britain, Williams Mercedes, 1:38.045.
19. Pietro Fittipaldi, Brazil, Haas Ferrari, 1:38.173.
20. Nicholas Latifi, Canada, Williams Mercedes, 1:38.443.
Tom Fletcher on 'soft power'
The Vines - In Miracle Land
Two stars
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Trolls World Tour
Directed by: Walt Dohrn, David Smith
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake
Rating: 4 stars
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
Top goalscorers in Europe
34 goals - Robert Lewandowski (68 points)
34 - Ciro Immobile (68)
31 - Cristiano Ronaldo (62)
28 - Timo Werner (56)
25 - Lionel Messi (50)
*29 - Erling Haaland (50)
23 - Romelu Lukaku (46)
23 - Jamie Vardy (46)
*NOTE: Haaland's goals for Salzburg count for 1.5 points per goal. Goals for Dortmund count for two points per goal.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Greatest Royal Rumble results
John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
Cedric Alexander retained the WWE Cruiserweight title against Kalisto
Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt win the Raw Tag Team titles against Cesaro and Sheamus
Jeff Hardy retained the United States title against Jinder Mahal
Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos
Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe
AJ Styles remains WWE World Heavyweight champion after he and Shinsuke Nakamura are both counted out
The Undertaker beats Rusev in a casket match
Brock Lesnar retains the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last
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.
