Dressed in an old straw hat and navy suspenders, Abo Tawila pedals around a southern district of Beirut. A rare sight in modern-day Lebanon, the young barber-on-a-bike is looking for his next customer.
Everything he needs for a trim on the pavement is in a handmade trunk attached to the back of his pushbike: scissors, combs, electric razors and brushes.
"It's a beautiful idea because it's a really old one," says the dapper 18 year old as he makes his way through the buzzing district of Burj Al Barajneh.
His real name is Mohammad Khaled Jahjah, but he prefers the name Abo Tawila - "the Tall One" in Arabic.
"People like this, and I love everything old. If I ever have the chance to open a barbershop, it'll be a vintage one," he says.
Before salons, mobile barbers were ubiquitous in Beirut.
Abo Tawila works in both, spending most of his day in a barbershop before hitting the tarmac on his bike.
Some stop him for a haircut, but others hail him down to catch up or introduce themselves.
"I used to love watching the barber near my parent's house. I'd come back from school, drop off my backpack, and go to his shop," Abo Tawila says.
"He told me to come to the salon after school if I like this job. But I decided to leave school altogether to work with him. He taught me the trade and introduced people to me."
The hairdresser has become something of a celebrity in southern Beirut. He is slender, stylishly dressed, and has a sharp wit.
"I'm so happy he's here," says Abo Saeed, one of his favourite curbside customers.
"He's talented and always available. When I have some time, I call him and he comes immediately, so I never have to leave work to go to the barber.
"On top of all of that, he reminds us of the barbers of the old days."
Abo Tawila wakes up at 9am every day, puts together an outfit and goes down to the coffee shop near his house before beginning his day at the salon.
In his free time or when his shift is done, he heads out on his bike to find customers, grooming between five to 30 people a day.
"The situation changes depending on the day," he said.
"There's not much work now during Ramadan, because people are waiting for Eid.
"Before Eid, we have three days where we don't sleep from all the customers coming in," he says.
While he dreams of opening his own shop, Abo Tawila insists he'll stay loyal to his bike.
"If I open a salon, I'll still keep it, because that's what got me here," he said.
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
The years Ramadan fell in May
At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
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"
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
