Arab designers are not the only ones ramping up the glamour at the Cannes Film Festival. A host of Arab stars are also lighting up this year's event, including Egyptian actress and singer Yousra and Palestinian-Dutch supermodel Bella Hadid.
Various celebrities brought a distinct take on red-carpet style, from a dramatic all-white Tamara Ralph gown to a sharply tailored Berluti three-piece suit. Finished with dazzling jewels – most notably from Cartier – regional stars are once again setting the global standard for evening glamour.
Find out who wore what on the red carpet so far.
Aseel Omran
Wearing a kick-flair Charbel Karam gown in palest blue and Tiffany & Co diamonds, Saudi actress Aseel Omran arrived at the premiere of Nouvelle Vague (New Wave) looking every inch the movie star.
Karen Wazen
Lebanese influencer Karen Wazen and her husband Elias Bakhazi also attended the Nouvelle Vague showing. Wazen wore a dramatic two-tone dress by Schiaparelli, which was pink on the front with a black back.
Amal Clooney
Lebanese-British human rights lawyer Amal Clooney delivered some serious glamour on the Bono: Stories of Surrender red carpet, arriving in John Galliano-era vintage Dior. The off-shoulder gown had a classic V neckline and back, and a separate over train that fell from the waist, and Clooney teamed it with a simple black clutch.
Rawdah Mohamed
Somali-Norwegian model Rawdah Mohamed walked the red carpet for Die, My Love in a pale pink, drop-waist gown by Malaysian label Rizman Ruzaini, perfectly matched to her hijab and finished with a white diamond necklace.
A familiar name in the UAE, Rizman Ruzaini opened Dubai Fashion Week’s spring/summer 2025 season. The day before, Mohamed wore a sculpted, high-necked look by the designer, complete with padded hips and bust.
Hoda El Etreby
Egyptian actress Hoda El Etreby was another Arab star spotted at Cannes, turning heads in a body-skimming white gown by Lebanese couturier Georges Chakra, topped with a sculptural silver loop rising from the neckline.
Balqees Fathi
The Emirati-Yemeni singer took to the red carpet during the premiere of Dossier 137 wearing a fairy tale-gown by Oscar de la Renta. In two-toned grey, the strapless gown was smothered in crystals across the bodice, before falling away into a full net skirt. Looking like entertainment royalty, the singer paired the look with a smooth bob and a necklace of white diamonds.
Sarah Taibah
The Saudi actress attended the Women in Cinema gala, hosted by the Red Sea Film Foundation, in a striking red look by Paris-based Syrian designer Mouthana Alhaj Ali.
The drop-waist, puffball dress stood out for its sculptural shoulder straps, which hovered 20cm above her shoulders.
The evening, a celebration of women in film, also welcomed guests including Catherine Deneuve, Jessica Alba and Alessandra Ambrosio.
Yousra
A Cannes regular, Egyptian actress and singer Yousra has already graced several events this year, including opening night and the premiere of Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.
She chose to showcase Arab talent at both, wearing dramatic red by Rami Kadi and a glittering gold sequin gown by Elie Saab, paired with Cartier jewellery.
Raya Abirached
The Lebanese television host has made several appearances at Cannes this year, attending three premieres so far.
For opening night, she chose a soft caramel gown by Georges Chakra, followed by a striking red Rami Kadi dress with a tightly corseted bodice for the Dossier 137 screening.
She also walked the red carpet at the Mission: Impossible finale, adorned in Cartier diamonds.
Mohammed Al Turki
The Saudi film producer appeared on the Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning red carpet, sharing on social media that he was “representing Arab cinema with pride” and that the magic of Cannes is “diversity, storytelling, and global voices”.
Dressed by Berluti, he wore a sharp midnight blue satin and wool three-piece suit, finished with Cartier accessories.
Razane Jammal
The Lebanese actress attended the Deux Procureurs red carpet in a sophisticated off-white Dior gown by Maria Grazia Chiuri.
The sheer, bead-embroidered bodice was offset by a light, floor-grazing skirt that added an ethereal finish.
Bella Hadid
The Palestinian-Dutch supermodel lived up to her reputation for head-turning looks when she walked the red carpet in a dramatic, backless dress by Saint Laurent.
The following day, she stepped out in a fit-and-flare dress by French label Jacquemus.
Nadine Nassib Njeim
The Lebanese actress and beauty entrepreneur made a striking entrance in an all-white gown by Australian couture label Tamara Ralph.
Strapless, form-fitting and finished with a dramatic train – possibly testing Cannes's new dress code – the look was pared back, save for a single beaded orchid. She completed it with opera-length gloves.
The years Ramadan fell in May
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
THE SPECS
Aston Martin Rapide AMR
Engine: 6.0-litre V12
Transmission: Touchtronic III eight-speed automatic
Power: 595bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh999,563
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The years Ramadan fell in May
CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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CREW
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Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
Engine: two-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 306hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: JCW Clubman, Dh220,500; JCW Countryman, Dh225,500
The Specs
Price, base Dh379,000
Engine 2.9-litre, twin-turbo V6
Gearbox eight-speed automatic
Power 503bhp
Torque 443Nm
On sale now
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Three ways to boost your credit score
Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:
1. Make sure you make your payments on time;
2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;
3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.
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Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
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PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
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Essentials
The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
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Specs%3A%202024%20McLaren%20Artura%20Spider
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
The five pillars of Islam
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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