From the Editors: Green Pass in Abu Dhabi yet another significant step in fight against COVID-19

GREEN PASS IN ABU DHABI YET ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT STEP IN FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19: Today, Abu Dhabi has rolled out the Green Pass to make sure its public places are safe from the pandemic. These colour-coded passes will let the authorities know the exact condition of a person entering a mall or a hypermarket or a restaurant, with regard to his or her latest COVID-19 status. Based on PCR test results and their time-bound validity periods, these passes will help ensure that no person who is or can be a potential threat to spread the virus can enter any of the 11 types of venues that will be under the purview of these passes. No doubt this is yet another step by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention to keep the country safe and offer maximum possible protection against the pandemic. [COMMENT BY: Sanjib Kumar Das, Assistant Editor]

LEBANON HAS CROSSED PATH OF NO RETURN: Just when you think the situation in Lebanon can’t get any worse, a shocking new statistic emerges. The pound, which is still pegged to the US dollar at 1,507, is actually selling at 15,500 to the greenback on the black market - 10 times the official rate. No one, except the Lebanese political elite, has access to the dollar at the government rate. The pound has lost 90 per cent of its value since 2019. In other words, if your salary was $1,000 a month in 2019, it is $100 now. Such a huge hit on people’s buying power means hundreds of thousands have been pushed into extreme and humiliating poverty; many have resorted to the medieval barter system, exchanging medicines for diapers, rice for wheat. Most people cannot afford petrol, and those who can have to wait for hours or days in lines at gas stations running short on fuel. Meanwhile, the politicians, who live in a parallel world, can’t even agree on forming a government for the past 10 months. [COMMENT BY: Omar Shariff, International Editor]

GOOD AND BAD NEWS FOR THE ENGLISH: First the good news: Britain’s unemployment rate dipped to 4.7 per cent in the three months to the end of April as the UK economy began to emerge from its lockdown. Data showed more employers were seeking to hire, with strong growth in job offers in sectors such as hospitality as lockdown measures began to be eased. And the bad news, which in the best interest of the country, could lead to lifting of all restrictions: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a four-week delay to the full lifting of restrictions in England owing to a surge in infections caused by the Delta variant. The delay comes as hundreds gathered outside Downing Street to protest against lockdown and vaccinations. [COMMENT BY: Stephen N R, Senior Associate Editor]

GOAL-DROUGHT HAUNTS SPAIN DESPITE DOMINATING SWEDEN: Spain Coach Luis Enrique was left with more questions than answers after his side dominated Sweden in their Group E opener late on Monday but ended up being held to the first goalless draw of Euro 2020. According to Opta Stats, Spain attempted 917 passes and enjoyed 85% possession - the highest numbers seen at a European Championship since 1980 but the match-winner eluded them. Much like their World Cup exit against Russia in 2018, when they recorded very similar figures, the Spanish displayed a worrying lack of cutting edge that will boost the Poland and Slovakia camps who face Spain next in the group.[COMMENT BY: Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor]

CHRISSY TEIGEN’S FALL FROM GRACE: The skeletons falling out of Chrissy Teigen’s closet certainly put one thing into perspective: the model and TV personality appears guilty of bullying people on social media. Ironically, cyber bullying was also the reason why Teigen took a hiatus from Twitter recently, while calling out the negativity harvested on social media by trolls. Yet, the stories that have been shared by former reality star Courtney Stodden, actor Lindsay Lohan’s mother, and now ‘Project Runway’ designer Michael Costello paint Teigen in a new light that isn’t quite flattering. In a public post of her own, Teigen has acknowledged her mistakes and issued a blanket apology to those she’s hurt with her comments. While her intentions appear sincere, for people such as Costello, who confessed that he was nearly driven to suicide following Teigen’s campaign against him, words probably hold little meaning compared to the emotional trauma he’s endured. [COMMENT BY: Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor]