From Foreign Waters

From the time the United Arab Emirates announced its first case of COVID-19 on January 29 to when the cases rose to the extent that there is no more individual reporting of covid positive people, the nation has implemented a lot of steps and taken strict measures to ensure the safety and health of the citizens. So even as the cases keep on increasing, the spread of coronavirus in the UAE is far more controlled than any other country. Initially when the cases were identified in the middle eastern country, they decided to cancel all public gatherings and functions that were scheduled for those months. They even decided to limit the flight to Beijing and no other city in China was allowed to share the flights. The UAE was one of the first ones to do it. Gradually as the cases increased, the restaurants were also closed and only were open for delivery and even flights, they were paused for the country went into a lockdown. As Iran showed a massive spike in the number of cases, UAE suspende

The Abu Dhabi health services has started a new series of clinical trials in the phase III of inactivated vaccine to combat Covid-19 in an attempt to support the efforts and collaboration of the UAE leadership's vision and commitment to fight the battle against corona and overcome the pandemic with combined effort of the world. The COVID-19 inactivated vaccine, developed by Sinopharm China National Biotec Group Company (CNBG), the trial is being carried out in a cooperation partnership between G42 Healthcare, an Abu Dhabi-based organisation leading the UAE's COVID-19 clinical trial efforts. From the moment people knew that the clinical tests have started and the health department is looking for volunteers, there has been an overwhelming response by the people. “The diversity of nationalities that call the UAE home, as well as the leading role our leadership plays in tackling the virus in various countries of the world, made the country the perfect place for Phase III of the cli

Dubai opens up for health tourism in the latest development with regard to the emirate as the city witnesses a decrease in a fatality rate of COVID cases to less than 0.6% and recovery rate over 80%. This is a part of the plan first coined in the year 2014 when Dubai revealed its plans to build 22 hospitals as part of plans to attract 500,000 medical tourists a year and boost its economy by up to Dh2.6 billion by 2020. Dr. Marwan Al Mulla, CEO of Health Regulations at the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), said the emirate is well prepared to provide an unparalleled health tourism experience, even as the world continues to fight Covid-19. The top health official announced on Wednesday that the emirates is ready to welcome back 5,00,000 tourists on a yearly basis as the spread of coronavirus lessens. In a report of Khaleej Times, the official said, "With over four million PCR tests conducted across the UAE (of which 950,000 were done in Dubai), over 100 field campaigns, 9,000 healthcare

Potential COVID-19 vaccine is at the final stage of the trials and is being tested on thousands of people to get the stamp of approval for launch. The vaccine is being tested on nearly 5000 people now and there are reports that the number is on the rise. Abu Dhabi is expecting more volunteers to sign up for the testing of the vaccine, in phase III of its trial, where the numbers can go up to 15,000. Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed Al Hamed, chairman of the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, was the first volunteer to receive the jab. It is the first WHO enlisted global clinical Phase III trial of Sinopharm CNBG’s inactivated vaccine to combat COVID-19. The world’s first Phase III trial is the result of a collaboration between Abu Dhabi based G42 Healthcare and Sinopharm CNBG, the world’s sixth-largest vaccine manufacturer, ranked 169th on the Fortune Global 500 list of 2018. There are many potential vaccines for coronavirus at different stages but only three have managed to be in phase III o

In the last 24 hours, the United Arab Emirates did not report even a single death related to coronavirus. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, congratulated the frontline workers and said, “Today we announce no deaths related to Covid-19 in the UAE in the last 24 hours.” Through his twitter handle, he said, “Our deepest gratitude to our frontline heroes and to society for their commitment to adhering to precautionary measures. We must continue our collective efforts in tackling this challenge.” Till July 13, the health officials have conducted over 4 million tests which is the highest globally in COVID-19 screenings per capita, according to the official WAM news agency. UAE has been known to take all the necessary steps in preventing coronavirus spread and the officials have taken very strong actions in implementing the restrictions within the country. Last week, reports came that the UAE has planned to test

Abu Dhabi is one of those places where not only heavy measures are being taken to beat corona but also salute the warriors who have fought and come out strong as warriors after being infected with COVID-19. UAE's Covid-19 warriors can enjoy a free visit to Abu Dhabi's Umm Al Emarat Park, along with discounts on select food and beverage outlets. This is a great way to motivate people and create a hope of survival for the people who have already contracted the virus. And the government has also decided to celebrate the frontline--doctors and nurses, who can avail this process.   "UAE's frontline healthcare professionals will be granted 10 complimentary entry tickets to the park, valid until the end of this year, in addition to a 25 percent discount at select food and beverage (F&B) outlets as a gesture of gratitude for their services during the Covid-19 pandemic," the park said.   According to Khaleej Times, Rasha Kablawi, head of Umm Al Emarat Park's corpor

Dubai airports see strict health safety implications as the emirate plans to welcome the tourists here on. The emirate felt that the timing was right to let tourists visit the place with keeping the precautionary measures in mind and July 7 being the first day, travellers were found to be maintaining a safe distance from one another as they wait to clear immigration and other travel formalities. These precautions were not only seen from the side of Dubai airport officials but the travellers were also seen taking extra precautions as some passengers could be figured with an added layer of protection in the form of face shields. Airports have been careful to remind the travellers of the situation and hence posters and digital interfaces have been put all over the place for passengers about the need to maintain a 2-metre social distance and practise good hand hygiene. Visitors have also been advised to undergo a PCR test with a maximum validity of four days (96 hours) ahead of the date of

India and China are barely holding on their own but what will happen if these countries go on a trade war? Indian has already banned 51 of chinese applications. The picture of a full blown trade war does not look nice. The deadly broder battle between both the countries last month has left the countries sour and has led to taking some drastic measures from both the ends. While India took an aggressive stance against China, the most populous country seems to be in no mood for retaliation. Chinese officials last week said that they were "strongly concerned" about the app ban, for example, but they did not threaten any kind of retaliation. And on Friday, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed that the two countries should work together, adding that barriers to cooperation "will harm India's interests." But given the interests of both the countries in line, India has more to lose. China has been a critical tarde partner for India and as of last

On July 4, 2020, HH Sheikh Mohammed announced that it will issue certain laws regarding drone regulations. This is with the aim to reduce drone activity and specifies the duties and responsibilities of relevant authorities. This is with regards to boosting the business of drones, including manufacturing and logistics. It will also help promote Dubai as a hub for drone manufacturing, smart transportation, and innovation, as well as enable public and private entities to use drones and provide drone-related services. According to the law, the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority is tasked with overseeing the implementation of the law and managing all related operations and activities in line with federal legislation and international treaties and conventions, under which controlling and managing droning activities within the emirate. Dubai Police has a big role to play in this matter as they will be the ones who will be looking after all the illegal activities that are being conducted with the

In a historic move taken by Kuwait’s Attorney General, Dirar Al Asousi, eight female prosecutors were promoted to the position of judge in an effort to empower women, reports Kuwaiti media. “In support of the judiciary, a group of prosecutors, including eight women, were promoted for the first time, after they had been involved in the prosecution service for more than five years, and involved in investigating various cases,” Al Asousi told Al Qabas. To adapt to the system and to gain more knowledge about the law, the new judges will go through a one and half month course at the Kuwait Institute of Legal and Judicial studies. Four heads of prosecution were promoted to be judges along with 54 prosecution officials including Lulwa Al Ghanem, Fatima Abdel Moneim, Fatima Al Kandari, Fatima Al Farhan, Bashayer Al Rakdan, Rawa Al Tabtabae, Sanabel Al Houti, and Bashayer Abdul Jalil, reports gulf news. This was in the interest of boosting females' rights in a country where women have alrea