WADI MUSA, JORDAN // When Ibrahim Bdoul's father, Awad, took a second wife, an Egyptian from Cairo, and brought her to live in Petra almost 30 years ago, it was a shock that took her months to get over.
"He told her he owned a big house, but when she found out that it was a cave, she cried each night for three months. She lived there for almost 20 years and she loved it," Ibrahim Bdoul, a 25-year old Bedouin, said.
The Bdouls are the largest Bedouin tribe in Wadi Musa, who dwelled in the caves of the ancient rose-red Nabataean city since the middle of the last century.
They loved living in their caves. "I grew up in the cave. I used to ride a mule and fetch water for the sheep. Life was simpler then," said Mr Bdoul, who makes a living from renting mules and selling souvenirs for tourists in a tiny shop that the family owns in Petra.
In its efforts to protect the archaeological site, the government forcibly evacuated the caves of most Bdouls in 1984 and provided them with housing in Um Sayhun, a nearby village overlooking Petra.
The government promised any male reaching the age of 18 entitlement to a piece of land. But that was when the Bedouins numbered a couple of hundred families. Over the next 26 years, the Bdouls have repeatedly asked the government to make good on its promises so they can build houses, but they say their demands are ignored. About 40 families still live in the caves.
With families growing, most feel squeezed in their two-bedroom apartments. Unofficial estimates place their number at more than 2,500.
"We are 10 at home apart from the children. We feel suffocated. We need land. The government has land and it can give it to us," Attalah Abu Saksoukeh Bdoul, 26, who sells silver souvenirs, said.
Salman Bdoul, another Bedouin from the same tribe, said he is planning to return to live in the caves. "We live in a tiny apartment. I share one bedroom with my three brothers while my sister and mother sleep in the other," Mr Salman, 30, said. "If I want to get married, I can't think of it. If you want to have a guest at home, you cannot keep him more than 10 minutes. There is no privacy not even when I want to change my clothes. I want to get to back to the caves."
Ibrahim Bdoul still maintains the cave his family used to live in, but it is not his permanent residence. "I keep the cave for fun. I love the wild life. Sometimes I sleep there and I enjoy watching the stars at night. I play the flute there," he said.
The cave even has an address. "It is Street No 2, Cave No 1," he joked as he stepped down from his mule.
The cave has a wooden door and a lock. Several mattresses and blankets were piled up in the corner. "The problem is that the families are growing and we do not have lands. Petra is all ruins - there are people who want to return to living there," he said.
With their wild unruly hair, and dark eyes marked with strong kohl, the Bdouls add flavour to Petra. Tourism is their bread and butter. Although most are illiterate, they have picked up the languages of the tourists and speak several fluently. During the peak of the tourist season, about 4,000 people visit Petra each day.
For its part, Jordan wants to promote the site as a quality destination and wants to protect the archaeological site, which was designated as a Unesco heritage site in 1985, from being overrun. Therefore the government is not keen to see the Bdouls return to their caves. Petra, a once-forgotten city hidden in the mountains until it was rediscovered by a Swiss explorer in 1812, was voted as one of the new seven wonders of the world in 2007.
The sight of school dropouts who sell coloured stones to tourists does not look good on Jordan's record on child labour.
Last year, authorities enforced new regulations to make life easier for tourists. They also enforced park rules, such as preventing some silver jewellery vendors from the Bdouls from badgering tourists and ensuring that the donkeys, horses and camels remain confined to certain areas rather than roaming freely as they used to.
There has been talk in governmental circles about relocating the Bdouls in Wadi Araba, almost 150km away from Petra. But such a plan would require the government to secure them with housing and agricultural projects, something to generate a sustainable income.
"Even if we want to solve their problem and provide them with lands in the village, it is not a solution. They are too many," Hani Nawafleh, a former member of parliament representing Wadi Musa, said.
"We need to solve their problem at the root level, but successive governments have shelved their case each time. They need to be relocated in an organised manner and have lands that they can plant in order to generate an income that would compensate them for the lost income they make from tourism.
"They also need services and military schools to ensure that their children do not drop out. We need to protect Petra, too," he said.
In 1991, many of the Bdouls left their apartments and returned to Petra's caves in protest against the government's reneging on promises to provide them with land.
But they returned home after 16 days when the government promised them again to provide solutions, said Atallah Mohammad Bdoul, a 42-year-old Bedouin who sells silver handicrafts near the Great Temple of Petra. Mr Atallah, 42, moved out of his cave in 1984.
At one point, their frustration with the government led to violent clashes. Three Bedouins were killed 10 years ago when the government demolished an unlicensed cave for one of the Bedouins.
"We are Jordanian citizens and the government has to provide us with housing. We need services, too. There is population explosion," Atallah Mohammad Bdoul, said.
"As a local community, decision-makers should meet with us to address our needs. But they only see the negative things about us. They point to children who beg tourists for money.
"But they don't recall how many times we helped tourists who got lost, or how we returned lost money we found," he said.
Nasser Shraideh, chief commissioner of the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority, said the Bdouls face challenges the authority is trying to address.
"We are trying to find the best solution for them based on social and economic studies," he said.
Back at his apartment, Ibrahim Bdoul has a desktop computer. Last week he bought a used silver Isuzu pickup from Amman. He enjoys both his lives - in his apartment and at the cave. "I lived all my life here, I will never leave Petra."
smaayeh@thenational.ae
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
'Cheb%20Khaled'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKhaled%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBelieve%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%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
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
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
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.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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%3Cp%3E%0DIf%20Catherine%20Richards%20debuts%20for%20Wales%20in%20the%20Six%20Nations%2C%20she%20will%20be%20the%20latest%20to%20have%20made%20it%20from%20the%20UAE%20to%20the%20top%20tier%20of%20the%20international%20game%20in%20the%20oval%20ball%20codes.%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESeren%20Gough-Walters%20(Wales%20rugby%20league)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EBorn%20in%20Dubai%2C%20raised%20in%20Sharjah%2C%20and%20once%20an%20immigration%20officer%20at%20the%20British%20Embassy%20in%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20she%20debuted%20for%20Wales%20in%20rugby%20league%20in%202021.%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESophie%20Shams%20(England%20sevens)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EWith%20an%20Emirati%20father%20and%20English%20mother%2C%20Shams%20excelled%20at%20rugby%20at%20school%20in%20Dubai%2C%20and%20went%20on%20to%20represent%20England%20on%20the%20sevens%20circuit.%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFiona%20Reidy%20(Ireland)%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMade%20her%20Test%20rugby%20bow%20for%20Ireland%20against%20England%20in%202015%2C%20having%20played%20for%20four%20years%20in%20the%20capital%20with%20Abu%20Dhabi%20Harlequins%20previously.%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The biog
Name: Samar Frost
Born: Abu Dhabi
Hobbies: Singing, music and socialising with friends
Favourite singer: Adele
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
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THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
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
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.
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Power: 272hp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 331Nm from 5,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.7L/100km
On sale: now
Price: Dh149,000
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
About Krews
Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: January 2019
Number of employees: 10
Sector: Technology/Social media
Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Barcelona v Tottenham Hotspur, midnight
World Cup League Two
Results
Oman beat Nepal by 18 runs
Oman beat United States by six wickets
Nepal beat United States by 35 runs
Oman beat Nepal by eight wickets
Fixtures
Tuesday, Oman v United States
Wednesday, Nepal v United States
FIGHT INFO
Men’s 60kg Round 1:
Ahmad Shuja Jamal (AFG) beat Krisada Takhiankliang (THA) - points
Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) beat Akram Alyminee (YEM) - retired Round 1
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Bhanu Pratap Pandit (IND) - TKO Round 1
Men’s 71kg Round 1:
Seyed Kaveh Soleyman (IRI) beat Abedel Rahman (JOR) - RSC round 3.
Amine Al Moatassime (UAE) walk over Ritiz Puri (NEP)
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
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
