Rahul Gandhi strikes a chord with Indian expats in UAE

Abu Dhabi, Apr 21: The UAE has reported a further 490 new coronavirus infections, after conducting more than 30,000 new tests, bringing the total number of COVID-19 patients to 7,755.

According to the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), three more coronavirus deaths have been confirmed, taking to 46 the country’s death toll.

The ministry revealed that it conducted more than 30,000 additional COVID-19 tests among UAE citizens and residents, using state-of-the-art technology in line with its plans to intensify virus screening in order to bring COVID-19 under control.

The accelerated investigative measures resulted in the detection of 490 new coronavirus cases among various nationalities, all of whom are in a stable condition and receiving the necessary care.

The deceased are of Asian nationalities and had pre-existing conditions coinciding with being infected with coronavirus, which resulted in complications that led to their death.

The ministry 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.

The ministry also announced the full recovery of 83 new cases after receiving the necessary treatment, taking to 1443 the total of those now recovered from the virus in the UAE.

Dubai, Jul 10: Saudi Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan has appointed Dina Amin as CEO of the Visual Arts Commission.

She will take the lead in implementing the ministry’s vision and directions in promoting and developing visual arts in the Kingdom and empowering practitioners in the field.

Amin is a leading Saudi specialist in visual arts and the international contemporary art field. She gained a bachelor’s degree in art history and architecture from Wellesley College, in the US, and also attended a collaborative program in architecture at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

During her career, spanning more than two decades, she has held senior positions in prominent international arts companies, including most recently Phillips, a global auction house for art, design, watches, jewels, and more.

She has also worked at Christie’s, one of the world’s most famous auction houses, employed in senior roles at the company’s international offices including New York, Dubai, and London.

The Visual Arts Commission is one of 11 new cultural bodies recently launched by the Ministry of Culture in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 reform plan to manage the empowerment and development of the Kingdom’s cultural sector. The commission will be responsible for managing and developing the visual arts sector to help achieve the ministry’s goals.

Riyadh, Mar 24: General Directorate of Passports (Jawazat) on Tuesday asked all expatriates in the Kingdom, who have a final exit visa or an exit and reentry visa, to quickly cancel them before their expiry. This is to avoid the prescribed fines for not availing of these visas before their expiry date, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The new measure was taken following the Saudi government’s suspension of international flights as part of the preventive and precautionary measures to stem the spread of new coronavirus. The Jawazat asked expatriates to verify the validity of such visas and cancel them through Ministry of Interior’s electronic service portals of Absher or Muqeem.

It underlined the need to adhere to the regulations and instructions in order to avoid fines prescribed by law against the violators.