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Angela Merkel arrives in Saudi Arabia without headscarf

May 1, 2017

Riyadh, May 1: German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in Saudi Arabia without a headscarf for talks with the oil-rich kingdom's monarch.

Angela

Ms Merkel was greeted by King Salman and other top officials upon her arrival at the western city of Jiddah.

Like other recent female Western visitors, the German Chancellor did not cover her hair upon arrival in the conservative Islamic kingdom.

Prime Minister Theresa May also eschewed the strict dress code for women when she arrived in Riyadh, after saying she hoped to be an inspiration to oppressed women in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia enforces a conservative dress code in public, requiring women to wear a full-length robe and cover their hair, in keeping with other restrictive laws including a guardian system limiting women's movement and a ban on driving.

Foreign visitors have not always followed the protocol, and Ms Merkel follows the footsteps of Ms May, Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama.

Ms Merkel has called for the burqa to be banned in Germany, saying it was "not acceptable in our county". "It should be banned, wherever it is legally possible," Ms Merkel said.

Last week, the German parliament voted for a draft law banning women working in the civil service, judiciary and military from wearing full-face veils. Burqas and niqabs will be prohibited in selected professions as part of the legislation, once approved by the Bundesrat state parliament.

The German leader is expected to press Gulf leaders to do more to take in refugees and provide humanitarian relief for refugees fleeing conflict in Muslim-majority countries.

Her country has provided refuge to hundreds of thousands of people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan in recent years.

She is scheduled to travel to the neighbouring United Arab Emirates after visiting Saudi Arabia.

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News Network
May 19,2020

Abu Dhabi: The United Arab Emirates today reported 873 new coronavirus cases, pushing the total number of COVID-19 infections in the country to 25,063.

Three more people have died from the virus, bringing the total death toll to 227, the ministry revealed, adding that a total of 1,214 COVID-19 patients have made full recovery, which takes the overall number of patients recovered to 10,791.

The latest coronavirus patients, all of whom are in a stable condition and receiving the necessary care, were identified after conducting more than 38,000 additional COVID-19 tests among UAE citizens and residents over the past few days, the ministry said.

It expressed its sincere condolences to the families of the deceased and wished a speedy recovery to all patients, calling on the public to cooperate with health authorities and comply with all precautionary measures, particularly social distancing protocols, to ensure the safety and protection of the public.

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News Network
April 25,2020

Riyadh, Apr 25: Saudi Arabia announced nine deaths and 1,197 new cases of the COVID-19 virus on Saturday.

Of these cases, 120 were recorded in Madinah, 364 in Makkah, 271 in Jeddah, 170 in Riyadh and 43 in Dammam.

The number of people who had recovered from the coronavirus in the Kingdom increased to 2,214 after 165 patients were reported to have recovered.

A total of 136 people have died of the disease in the Kingdom so far.

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Khaleej Times
June 7,2020

Dubai, Jun 7: Emirates airline on Sunday confirmed that it extended the period of reduced pay for its staff for another three months as airlines around the world struggle to preserve cash due to the grounding of fleets.

An e-mail has been sent across to Emirates employees about extending the wage cuts till September 30. In some cases, the salary will be reduced by 50 per cent.

Emirates had previously reduced basic wages by 25 to 50 per cent for three months from April, with junior employees exempted.

The Dubai-based world's largest international carrier employs around 60,000 people across its spectrum. While the parent Emirates Group employs over 100,000 workers.

On Thursday, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways confirmed to Khaleej Times that it also extended salary cut of its employees till September 2020.

"Regretfully, Etihad has extended its salary reduction until September 2020, with 25 per cent reduction for junior staff and cabin crew, and 50 per cent for employees at manager level and above. Housing allowance and a number of benefits continue to be paid," the airline's spokesperson said in a statement last week.

In March, Etihad had announced temporary reduction of basic salaries for the month of April to all staff, including executives, between 25 to 50 per cent.

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