Blog archive: Uae

  • 20th December 2021
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    On Sunday the Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi began using a new Covid-19 "scanning" system to check people arriving by road from neighbouring Dubai. The system is a local invention and if it lives up to the claims made by its supporters it could revolutionise testing methods. Known as Exponential...
  • 8th January 2021
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    News that an international conference on "Gender Identity and LGBT Rights" is to take place in the United Arab Emirates is causing a stir in the gay media. The idea of holding a conference on LGBT rights in the Emirates is not only surprising but potentially significant. It would be the...
  • 17th September 2020
    By
    Nima Khorrami
    Guest post from Nima Khorrami:  Iran’s angry reaction to the normalisation of relations between Israel and Bahrain and the UAE was to be expected. However, its fury, especially with regard to the UAE, has less to do with the possibility of a future military strike staged from Emirati soil...
  • 10th May 2020
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    Indian citizens have begun returning home from Arab states in the Gulf as part of a massive operation to repatriate them. Migrant workers in the Gulf have been disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and many have been anxious to leave. Some nationalities have been able to do so...
  • 17th April 2020
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    Migrant workers are bearing the brunt of the coronavirus epidemic in the wealthy Gulf states. Often living in over-crowded accommodation, they are at particular risk of infection. Many are now also jobless. Some have been deported. Thousands more want to return home – but can't. India rejects...
  • 11th April 2020
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    While many countries are struggling to raise levels of testing for the Covid-19 virus, the UAE has been pressing ahead and has now carried out almost 600,000 tests. This is far more than any other country in the Middle East and, worldwide, it's surpassed only by the US, Germany, Russia and Italy...
  • 7th April 2020
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    At least three countries in the Middle East are resorting to technology based around mobile phones in their efforts to halt the spread of coronavirus. The three – Bahrain, Israel and the UAE – are using it in different ways but the underlying principle is the same in each of them. Mobile phones...
  • 6th April 2020
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    Residents of the UAE must cover their mouth and nose and wear gloves at all times when outside their home, the government announced at the weekend. But that's the easiest part. Before you can go out, you also have to get permission from the police. The first step before a trip outdoors is to...
  • 21st September 2019
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    Twitter announced on Friday that it has closed down a series of accounts connected with the UAE, Egypt and Saudi Arabia as part of its effort to shed more light on "state-backed information operations". Regarding the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, it said: "We have removed a network of...
  • 30th August 2019
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    Separatist fighters in southern Yemen who appeared to be on the brink of defeat on Wednesday recovered some lost ground on Thursday as the United Arab Emirates launched airstrikes to support them. This direct intervention by the Emiratis in a conflict between two rival factions which are...
  • 1st May 2019
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    The annual Arab Youth Survey is potentially a valuable source of information about the attitudes of Arabs in the 18-24 age range.  Unfortunately, though, its usefulness is marred by a flaw in the methodology which means views from the smaller Arab countries – mainly in the Gulf –...
  • 15th November 2018
    By
    Brian Whitaker
    November 16 is the UN's International Day for Tolerance and to mark this occasion one of the world's less tolerant countries – the United Arab Emirates – is holding a "World Tolerance Summit". About 1,000 people are expected to attend the two-day conference organised by the ...

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