A fund launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to support people in need has already raised more than three times its Dh1 billion ($272.2 million) target.
The Fathers’ Endowment campaign was created to provide "treatment and health care to the poor and needy", said Mohammed Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Secretary General of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI). It was announced on Tuesday that the campaign had raised more than Dh3.3 billion from 160,560 contributors.
The initiative, which coincides with Ramadan, was inspired by the role fathers play in society. People in the UAE have been encouraged to make donations in their fathers' names.
“The Fathers' Endowment campaign, which honours fathers by creating a sustainable endowment fund dedicated to providing treatment and health care for the poor and needy, supports vulnerable populations in a critical area directly impacting their quality of life, stability and ability to contribute to their communities' development," said Mr Al Gergawi, who is overseeing the campaign.
"This initiative will effectively address the medical and health needs of these communities and offer new hope."
The level of public engagement with the initiative demonstrates that a culture of giving is deeply rooted in Emirati society, he said. The UAE has become synonymous with spreading goodwill, easing suffering worldwide and empowering millions to improve their quality of life, he said.
The sum of Dh3.3 billion was the result of broad community engagement, MBRGI said in a statement. Donations have been made by "major contributors, businesses, individuals and public and private sector organisations".
It is the latest initiative launched by Sheikh Mohammed to mark the holy month each year. The Mothers' Endowment campaign was introduced last year to mark Ramadan. It aimed to support the education of millions around the world raising at least Dh1 billion. It surpassed that goal, reaching more than Dh1.4 billion.
Previous campaigns launched to mark Ramadan include the 10 Million Meals initiative of 2020, which secured more than 15.3 million meals for communities affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The 100 Million Meals campaign was launched in 2021, collecting 220 million meals for vulnerable groups, while the 1 Billion Meals of 2022 achieved its goal in less than a month. In 2023, the 1 Billion Meals Endowment raised Dh1.075 billion.
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Company: Rent Your Wardrobe
Date started: May 2021
Founder: Mamta Arora
Based: Dubai
Sector: Clothes rental subscription
Stage: Bootstrapped, self-funded
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Notable cricketers and political careers
- India: Kirti Azad, Navjot Sidhu and Gautam Gambhir (rumoured)
- Pakistan: Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi (rumoured)
- Sri Lanka: Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan (rumoured)
- Bangladesh (Mashrafe Mortaza)
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
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