UAE and Lebanon talk travel, and fires ravage Israel
On this episode of Trending Middle East:
This episode features Mina Al-Oraibi, Editor-in-Chief, and Thomas Helm, Jerusalem correspondent.
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Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
UAE: Visa waiver for some Pakistani passport holders comes into effect at all airports
The UAE and Pakistan have activated a visa waiver for diplomatic and official passport holders, said Ishaq Dar, deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Pakistan. In a statement on social media platform X, Dar said he met Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs earlier this week, where he was informed that the visa waiver has come into effect from July 25, 2025. The two countries signed a visa exemption agreement for diplomatic and official passports in the last week of July during the 12th session of the Pakistan-UAE Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in Abu Dhabi. "In my meeting at Abu Dhabi on June 24, 2025, with my brother Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of UAE, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, we agreed mutual visa waivers on diplomatic and official passports between our two brotherly countries and we both signed a Memorandum of Understanding to make this arrangement effective and operative after 30 days of the signing of the said MoU. "I am pleased to confirm that I have been informed by the UAE authorities that the visa waiver for diplomatic and official Pakistani passports entering the UAE has been activated, effective July 25, 2025, at all UAE airports,' Dar said. On the reciprocal basis, he added that similar arrangements have also been activated for UAE nationals at all Pakistani airports. The UAE and Pakistan have close diplomatic, cultural and trade ties. There are over 1.7 million Pakistanis living and working in the UAE. In addition, hundreds of thousands of tourists from Pakistan visit the Gulf country every year. Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has visited the UAE numerous times ever since he took office. Importantly, this waiver is only for diplomatic and official passport holders and it is not applicable for ordinary passports.
Khaleej Times
3 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
UAE, Jordan planes drop 25 tonnes of aid over Gaza as hundreds die from starvation
Two Jordanian and one Emirati plane dropped 25 tonnes of humanitarian aid over the Gaza Strip on Sunday, the Jordanian army said in a statement. "The Jordanian Armed Forces on Sunday carried out three air drops on the Gaza Strip carrying humanitarian and food aid, one of which was with the United Arab Emirates," the statement said, adding that they were carrying 25 tonnes of aid. On Saturday, July 26, UAE's Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan confirmed the Emirates would immediately resume airdrop operations to Gaza as part of its ongoing humanitarian mission. In a statement posted, the minister said the humanitarian situation in Gaza has reached a critical and unprecedented level, underscoring the urgent need for sustained international aid efforts. Israeli army had said a day earlier that Israel would allow foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza starting on Friday. Meanwhile, the Israeli military announced a pause in military activity in designated areas in Gaza where it is 'not operating' today. It said that the pause will be daily in three areas of Gaza starting on Sunday, starting at 10am and lasting until 8pm.
The National
10 hours ago
- The National
UAE to resume airdrops to Gaza immediately as aid routes open up
The UAE is to resume air drops to Gaza to help the most vulnerable people after restrictions on aid routes into the enclave were lifted. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, said the UAE was responding to a humanitarian situation that had reached a critical and unprecedented level. Since Israel cut off supplies to the territory in March, starvation has claimed the lives of more than 100 people, the Gaza Health Ministry said. On social media, Sheikh Abdullah said the UAE would lead relief efforts alongside Jordan and the UK, that has also been permitted to resume air drops into Gaza. 'Our commitment to alleviating suffering and providing support is resolute and unwavering,' he said. 'The humanitarian situation in Gaza has reached a critical and unprecedented level. The United Arab Emirates remains at the forefront of efforts to deliver life-saving assistance to the Palestinian people. 'We will ensure essential aid reaches those most in need, whether through land, air or sea. "Air drops are resuming once more, immediately.' Up until last year, the UAE dropped thousands of tonnes of humanitarian aid, food and relief supplies into Gaza as part of the country's Birds of Goodness operation. According to the Co-ordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, the life-saving airdrops will be delivered in partnership with the Israeli military. Gaza's 2.1 million inhabitants have been left starving with severe restrictions on humanitarian aid and commercial deliveries. UN nutrition screenings of 15,000 children in Gaza city in July assessed more than 16 per cent of the population as being acutely malnourished, above the 15 per cent threshold the UN uses for famine declarations. It is a rapidly deteriorating situation, with just 4 per cent considered acutely malnourished in February. A total blockade on humanitarian aid has been in place since March 2 after ceasefire talks collapsed. Meanwhile, the Israeli army said it carried out an airdrop of humanitarian aid 'in accordance with the directives of the political echelon'. An aid ship left the UAE from Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi to deliver 7,166 tonnes of supplies for Gaza this month under Operation Gallant Knight 3. The Khalifa will deliver 4,372 tonnes of food, 1,433 tonnes of shelter materials, 860 tonnes of medical supplies and 501 tonnes of health supplies to Al Arish Port in Egypt. Since the humanitarian crisis emerged in Gaza, the UAE has sent 77,266 tonnes of aid supplies to help those most in need.
