Arab celebrities at the Noble Awards Ceremony

Abu Dhabi: Leading celebrities from around the Arab world - from Egyptian actress Yousra to Lebanese singer Roula Saad - turned out in full force to lend their support to the Noble Awards on Saturday at a gala dinner in the Emirates Palace Hotel.

The evening's host, Yousra, highlighted the link between celebrity and charity.

"I believe that every human being has an obligation to continue to raise awareness about the different issues affecting our world," she told Gulf News on the red carpet ahead of the awards ceremony.

"That is why I am not only an Ambassador for the UN’s development programme…but have also been working closely with a cancer hospital in Egypt for the last three years."

Guests included ten charitable and philanthropical organisations from across the UAE who were honored for their continuous efforts to raise awareness and address the issues they represent.

“I’m in the media business and I feel that we tend to focus too much on the superficial things celebrities do and not recognise them or honour them for their humanitarian work and the charities they work for aren’t being recognised," said the founder of the Noble Awards, Janeen Mansour.

"So I that that it would be important to put these two groups together to hopefully put that out there and create awareness… and also to inspire people to get stand up and get involved, be it in a big or small [way],”.

Throughout the evening, celebrities not only entertained attendees but also presented trophies to highlight the efforts of organisations and individuals in the UAE.