Japan's Emperor Akihito delivered his final New Year's address on Wednesday before his abdication later this year, telling a record turnout of well-wishers that he was praying for peace.
The Imperial Palace provisionally said some 154,800 people had flocked to the royal residence for a final chance to see the 85-year-old royal deliver his traditional annual greeting.
It was the largest number of visitors to the palace for his New Year speech since he ascended to the throne in 1989.
The emperor appeared seven times at the balcony - up from five originally scheduled - as he "strongly" wanted more people to attend after seeing the vast number of well-wishers still gathered outside the palace in the afternoon, a palace spokesman said.
He will become the first Japanese monarch to abdicate in around two centuries when he steps down from the throne on April 30, ending his three-decade reign.
"Happy New Year. I'm sincerely glad to celebrate the new year together with you under the clear sky," he told the crowd, many waving Japanese flags and shouting "Banzai", meaning "long live".
"I hope this year will be a good year for as many people as possible," the soft-spoken Akihito said in a dark suit, flanked by Empress Michiko and other family members.
"I pray for the peace and happiness of the people of our country and the world," he added.
Some in the morning crowd yelled "Thank you very much" as the emperor waved, while others sang the national anthem. One woman in the front row shed tears as she looked up at the balcony.
"I came here with my mother to imprint his last appearance as emperor in our memories," said Yume Nishimura, a university student, as she waited in a long queue to enter the palace.
"I want to tell him we appreciate his hard work for the country," she said.
Kazuo Iwasaki, a 68-year-old pensioner, said: "I hope he will be able to spend his post-retirement years in a healthy and relaxing manner with Empress Michiko."
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Mr Akihito shocked the country in 2016 when he signalled his desire to take a back seat, citing his age and health problems.
His eldest son, Crown Prince Naruhito, is set to take the Chrysanthemum Throne a day after his father's abdication, continuing the rule of the world's oldest imperial family.
The status of the emperor is sensitive in Japan given its 20th-century history of war waged in the name of Mr Akihito's father Hirohito, who died in 1989.
Mr Akihito has keenly embraced the more modern role as a symbol of the state - imposed after World War II ended. Previous emperors including his father had been treated as semi-divine.
The palace, surrounded by stone walls and mossy moats, is opened to the public twice a year - on the emperor's birthday and the second day of New Year - for the royal family to greet well-wishers.
In a rare emotional address to mark his 85th birthday last month, Mr Akihito pointed to the "countless lives" lost in the war.
"It gives me deep comfort that the Heisei Era (his reign) is coming to an end, free of war in Japan," he said in a press statement.
Mr Akihito has used his speeches and travels to express his strong pacifist views, which are sharply at odds with the aggressive expansionism Japan pursued under his father's rule.
The emperor has also worked to bring the royal household closer to the people and frequently visited the disadvantaged and families hit by natural disasters.
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
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Pari
Produced by: Clean Slate Films (Anushka Sharma, Karnesh Sharma) & KriArj Entertainment
Director: Prosit Roy
Starring: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani
Three stars
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
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Sreesanth's India bowling career
Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40
ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55
T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12
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RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
Started: 2016
Founders: Hussein Nasser Eddin, Laila Akel, Tayeb Akel
Based: Ramallah, Palestine
Sector: Technology, Security
# of staff: 13
Investment: $745,000
Investors: Palestine’s Ibtikar Fund, Abu Dhabi’s Gothams and angel investors
TALE OF THE TAPE
Manny Pacquiao
Record: 59-6-2 (38 KOs)
Age: 38
Weight: 146lbs
Height: 166cm
Reach: 170cm
Jeff Horn
Record: 16-0-1 (11 KOs)
Age: 29
Weight: 146.2lbs
Height: 175cm
Reach: 173cm
Brief scores:
Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first
Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)
Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15
Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)
Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49
