Sultanshoulders Jerusalem wall renovation expenses
The old Jerusalem wall, which now shows signs of collapsing, is to berenovated at the expense of Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy PrimeMinister. Sheikh Sultan, who announced the gesture today, promised to giveall the necessary support to save what he termed as 'the gem which is undoubtedlyone of the most popular landmarks of humanity's heritage.' 'The least wecan offer to 'Al Quds Al Sharreef' is to save its wall from collapsing,'Sheikh Sultan said, adding that reports by the agencies on the near collapseof the wall had shocked him. He expressed the hope that the renovationwork, to be done in collaboration with the Palestinian Awqaf and the UNESCO,starts as early as possible. Reports by agencies had revealed the dangerssurrounding the wall of the holy city which shows signs of collapsing dueto deep cracks in the wall as a result of total neglect. The agencies blamedIsrael for not heeding to the repeated calls on the need for renovationworks to be done on the wall. The reports also drew attention to the excavationworks being done under the wall, which contributed to the weakening ofthe old wall. Sheikh Sultan's gesture coincided with the opening yesterdayof the 1st International UAE Archaeology Conference, being organised bythe Zayed Centre for Heritage and History, affiliated to the Emirates HeritageClub. It also comes prior to the Arab Archaeologists Conference to be heldon April 24, 2001 at the Arab League Headquarters, to find ways to protectArab heritage sites, especially those in Jerusalem. (The Emirates NewsAgency, WAM)
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UAEhistory and culture highlighted at conference
More papers dealing with the UAE ancient history and culture were presentedon Monday at the International Conference on UAE Archaeology currentlyunder way in the capital. The four-day conference has been organised bythe Emirates Centre for Heritage and History, part of the Emirate HeritageClub, in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Culture. DrSabah Jassim of Sharjah Archaeology Department spoke about UAE culturein the third millennium BC. 'New findings have proven the existence ofa culture in the Mudam Plain in Sharjah dating back to 3,000 BC. They includedthree tombs similar to those found in Jebel Hafit,' he said. Jassim alsotouched on the contents of tombs discovered recently at Jebel Buhais andMeleiha sites and their significance to UAE history. Dr Soren Blau fromAustralia National University presented a paper on burying practices in3,000 BC. She gave an in-depth analysis of a tomb belonging to the UmmAl Nar civilisation, along with a description of the architecture and commoditiesof that era. (The Emirates News Agency, WAM)
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TracingBronze Age marine trade route
A number of archaeological sites has been discovered on the islandsand shorelines of Abu Dhabi and Qatar, indicating a Bronze Age route takenby merchant ships, a conference was told in the capital yesterday. Dr RobertCarter of the Institute of Archaeology, University College of London, whois also Ceramic Specialist of the Abu Dhabi Islands Archaeological Survey,ADIAS, said numerous coastal and island sites have now been identifiedin Abu Dhabi and Qatar, with ceramic and carbon analysis showing featuresbelonging to the Bronze Age era. Dr Carter disclosed this in his paper'Tracing Bronze Age Trade on Coastal Island Sites in Abu Dhabi and Qatar',on the second day of the First International Conference on Archaeologyof the UAE, which was opened by Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Sultan binZayed Al Nahyan. Sheikh Sultan also opened an exhibition of archaeologicalfinds made in the UAE. The conference, held by the Zayed Centre for Heritageand History in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Culture,aims to throw light on the entire history of the country from the LateStone Age, about 7,500 years ago, to the Late Islamic Period. Dr. Cartersaid: 'What I believe we have is a series of way-stations located on islandswhich were otherwise uninhabited in the Late Third and Early Second MillenniumBC. My hypothesis is that these sites delineate the route taken by BronzeAge merchant shipping between Bahrain and the Northern Emirates duringthe Qalat Al Bahrain City II period, probably enroute to the Harappan andlate Harappan world.' He also added that the choice of location for theway-stations was determined by the presence of sheltered by accessibleanchorage, the navigational techniques of the time, and probably the availabilityof water and wood. 'If this hypothesis is accepted, we are in a positionto make inferences regarding sailing and navigational techniques of thetime, the distance and likely the length of time taken for journey andperhaps and the seasons travelled,' Dr Carter concluded. Dr. Soren Blau,of the Australian National University, Canberra, who had worked in theUAE previously presented a paper on Third Millennium BC graves found inthe UAE. She described the architectural designs of tombs and associatedgrave goods. Dr Blau said relatively little attention has been paid tohuman skeletal remains within the tombs, and the burials and tombs haveyet to be view in contextual manner. Dr Sabah Jassim, of Sharjah Directorateof Archaeology, discussed Third Millennium BC culture in his paper. Heexamined the contents of the newly-identified tombs at Jebel Buhais andMileiha and considered the implications of their discovery. The conferenceends tomorrow. (The Gulf News)
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AbuDhabi Fund disburses US$1.64b
Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has disbursed US$1.64 billion throughprojects spread across 45 countries as at en-1999. Funds committed totalUS$2.19 billion. During the year, it disbursed US$50.4 million, while commitmentsin the form of project loans totalled US$217.8 million. Authorised capitalwas placed at US$544 million, paid-in capital at US$581 million, reservesat US$319 million. The fund was established by the Abu Dhabi Governmentin 1971 to offer economic development aid to Arab, African, Asian and othercountries in the form of loans or capital participation in projects. Asectoral distribution of project loans as at end-1999 shows the industrialsector being the biggest recipient, with 32.8 per cent, followed by energywith 20.7, transportation and telecommunications with 18.4, agricultureand agro-industry with 17, social sectors with 5.7, and others with 5.4.(The Gulf News)
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Ministryto launch new smart card
Buoyed by the response to the pioneering e-dirham card, the Ministryof Finance and Industry is launching the 'Reload Double Card' or GovernmentCustomer Card from today to enable corporates/individuals make paymentsat government departments. Also, the General Postal Authority, GPA willsoon permit the use of these cards for payments and will be tying up withministries. Two more banks will the list of banks selling the cards. Thenew Government-Customer Card with a validity of three years is designedfor organisations that have large volumes of transactions with the government.Corporates can have multiple cards and depending on their use, the amountswill be debited. Once the GPA allows the use of cards, transactions relatedthe postal department can be conducted through the cards. Users of thenew card will also have access to a dial service to check their balanceor change their pin number. The card has also Internet capabilities. Twomore banks will join other banks such as the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank,National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Union National Bank of Dubai, Commercial Bankof Dubai and MashreqBank. ATMs at banks are likely to dispense the cardsat a later date. (The Gulf News)
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DubaiPolice says oil leakage from sunken ship under control
An official from Dubai Police said that effects of the vessel 'Zainab'that sank off the coast of Jebel Ali was brought under control. Major Humaidal Ansari, Director of the Crisis Management Department, said that theleaking areas of the eight holds of the vessel had been completely pluggedand the oil slick had been dispersed broken up. The ship was carrying 1,300metric tons of oil when it sank off the Jebel Ali coast on Saturday. Hesaid that 80% of the effects of the incident had been contained due tothe contingency plans taken from the beginning had contributed to the successof the efforts. Meanwhile, Major General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commanderof Dubai Police, praised relevant local authorities for their concertedefforts in bring the oil slick under control. He said that the quick andco-ordinated action of the local authorities led by the Federal EnvironmentalAgency, FEA, had shown the country's preparedness for such emergencies.The Sharjah Electricity and Water Department said that it had temporarilyclosed the Liya desalination plant as the oil slick from the sunken shipdrew closer to the plant's water sources. A statement by the Departmentsaid that the closure was a precautionary step and aimed to keep the watersafe and to safeguard public health. The statement added that the Departmentwill watch the situation carefully through constant testing of water samples.The plant will remain close until the oil patches are completely treated.(The Emirates News Agency, WAM)
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World-classsignboards for Sheikh Zayed Road
Dubai¹s golden boulevard -- the distance between the World Trade Centreand Intersection 1 of Sheikh Zayed Road -- will soon be adorned with elegantand impressive signs. Dubai Municipality has awarded BackLite Internationalthe exclusive rights to build twelve gantry signs of international standards,six on each side of the highway. 'The twelve new Golden Signs with double-sidedback-illuminated vinyl panels on uni-poles will be installed during Mayand June,' said BR Bendeus, chairman, BackLite International, after launchingthe prestigious project on Monday at Burj Al Arab Hotel. No outdoor advertisinghas been allowed on this stretch of Sheikh Zayed Road, often called theGolden Highway, with all its skyscrapers, he said. The new signs on theSheikh Zayed Road will blend with the modern surroundings and will makethe area more attractive to both local residents and visitors. The messageson the signs will be subject to prior approval from the Advertising Section.(The Gulf Today)
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DSSorganising committee reviews campaign, roadshow and new events
A meeting of the Organising Committee of Dubai Summer Surprises 2001on Monday discussed the media campaign, road-shows and some of the newevents to be organised during this year's event which begins on June 21.Representativesfrom various government departments organising the different 'surprises'assured that full details of their respective activities would be readyin two weeks, ahead of the road-shows in GCC countries. The committee,presided over by Ibrahim Saleh, Deputy CEO of DSS, also reviewed the newTV commercial for DSS 2001 and the advertising campaign. It was also decidedthat details of the 'Dubai For Free' travel package would be ready by nextweek. Modalities of the Modhesh Fun City, a key attraction of DSS whichwill be located on a larger area at the Dubai World Trade Centre, werealso discussed. DSS 2001, to be held from June 21 to August 31, will offer10 surprises organised by 10 different government departments, in associationwith shopping malls, hotels and sponsoring companies. Two new themes --Art Surprises and Sports Surprises -- have been added to the list. Theother themes are Ice Surprises, Food Surprises, Techno Surprises, WaterSurprises, Global Surprises, Flower Surprises, Sports Surprises, HeritageSurprises and Back-2-School Surprises. (The Gulf Today)
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DepartmentExternal Information Ministry of Information and Culture P.O. Box 17, AbuDhabi E-Mail: mininfex@emirates.net.ae Tel: 009712-4452922 Fax: >009712-4450458
PLEASENOTE: The items covered in this bulletin do not necessarily reflect theofficial view of the UAE Government. Rather, they form a UAE-related digestof reports from the local press and publication
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