Author: Editor

JEDDAH, 22nd September, 2026 (WAM) — The UAE modern sailing team topped the overall standings at the 2026 Arab Optimist Sailing Championship, hosted by the Jeddah Sailing Centre on the southern Abhur coast in Saudi Arabia. The championship concluded yesterday (Monday) with the participation of 51 sailors from 13 Arab countries. The national team won three gold medals and secured two silver medals. Sheikh Ahmed bin Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE Sailing and Rowing Federation, congratulated the national team athletes and their technical and administrative staff, commending the efforts made by the Ministry of Sport and…

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — The Government of Maldives and Eagle Hills have signed a commercial terms agreement for the development of Maldives Waterfront and Marina, a major new integrated island destination in the Ras Malé area, marking one of the most ambitious development initiatives in the country’s history. The commercial terms agreement sets out the shared vision and principal commercial terms of the project, with detailed terms to be developed as the project progresses. With an overall development scale envisioned in the region of US$12 billion over its various phases, the project represents a transformational long-term vision…

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Dr. Salem Suhail Al Neyadi, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Institution (NHRI), met with Hamad Ali Mohammed Al Kaabi, Director-General of the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), to explore ways to strengthen institutional cooperation and discuss a number of issues of mutual interest in areas related to human rights and nuclear safety. The meeting addressed areas of complementarity between the mandates of the two entities, with a view to strengthening the protection of human rights in the context of nuclear and radiological applications, particularly the rights to life, health, and safety.…

BRUSSELS, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Belgium’s Prime Minister Bart De Wever has three more weeks to find €10 billion to fill the federal budget deficit, as the Federal Government fears being hit with a snowball of compounding interest in 2030. The Belgian deficit sits at 5.2% of GDP, the highest in the eurozone, with the debt rising to over 110% of GDP this year. Across the eurozone, only France (116%), Italy (137%) and Greece (146%) have a higher relative debt than Belgium. In the coming days, the discussion will continue “in depth,” but within working groups. The core cabinet…

Parents across the UAE are being urged to keep children at home if they develop flu-like symptoms, as some schools report influenza cases across different year groups and remind families about measures to limit the spread of infection. Messages being sent to parents are asking them to monitor children for symptoms including fever, cough, sore throat, a runny or blocked nose, body aches and fatigue. Some children may also experience vomiting or diarrhoea. Schools are stressing that students experiencing flu-like symptoms should stay home and avoid contact with others “until they have been free of fever for at least 24…

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Abdullah bin Bayyah, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Forum for Peace, called for making peace a daily priority and a sustainable institutional undertaking, stressing that peace should not be confined to an annual occasion but treated as an ethical and strategic responsibility requiring genuine and sustained investment. In a statement marking the International Day of Peace, observed on Sept. 21 under this year’s United Nations theme, “Invest in Peace: For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day,” Bin Bayyah said the theme moves peace from the margins of aspirations to the heart of priorities, and from…

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC), a leading company in the integrated coordination of planning, purchasing, supply, and system despatch services of water and electricity across the UAE, today marked Zero Emissions Day by outlining its long-term outlook for a larger, cleaner and more efficient water and power system, building on the profound progress achieved to date. Observed each year on 21 September, Zero Emissions Day calls on individuals and organisations to set aside a single day without emissions from energy use and to make greater use of renewable energy. EWEC systematically advances…

NEW YORK,21st September, 2026 (WAM) – Organisations from across the global AI ecosystem today announced a joint commitment to help close one of AI’s most significant access gaps: providing safe, effective AI services in the languages people speak around the world. A group of 60 signatories are uniting behind a shared five-year goal: for an estimated 3.4 billion people who speak languages currently underrepresented in today’s AI models to be able to use AI tools in their own language and voice, African Media Agency (AMA) reported. Initial signatories reflect the range of expertise needed to make progress, from locally led…

ABU DHABI, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Jarwan, President of the Global Council for Tolerance and Peace, affirmed that the International Day of Peace, observed worldwide on 21st September each year, is a global occasion to renew commitment to rejecting violence and hatred and promoting dialogue, understanding, and peaceful coexistence among peoples. In a statement issued by the Council on the occasion of the International Day of Peace, Al Jarwan said that this year’s United Nations theme, ‘Invest in Peace – For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day,’ underscores that peace should not remain merely a slogan raised…

BRUSSELS, 21st September, 2026 (WAM) — Between June and August 2026, there were more than 2 million commercial flights in the EU. Figures released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, showed that August 2026 saw 708,980 flights, a 2.3% increase compared with the previous year and a 5.7% increase compared with 2024. July was the busiest of these 3 months with 709,931 flights, marking a 2.8% annual increase and a 5.7% increase compared with 2024. In June, there were 662,480 flights, a 2.1% growth compared with 2025 and 4.9% compared with 2024. In August 2026, compared with…