From the Editors: Iraqis came together to make Pope visit a success

Iraqis come together to make Pope’s trip a success: As expected, the famed Iraqi generosity and welcoming spirit was in full display in the course of Pope Francis’ visit to the war-torn country. The Pope deserves praise for defying the naysayers, and going ahead with a trip such as this, in times such as these. On one hand was the chance to visit one of the world’s oldest Christian communities, and on the other, an opportunity to bring communities together. Iraqis calculate their history in millennia, not decades or centuries. And for thousands of years, several religious and ethnic communities have lived together in the land between two rivers. There’s no reason why they cannot continue to do so. - Omar Shariff, International Editor

Avoid crowding in shopping malls: Closure of a shopping mall in Ajman not only raises alarms about the degree of violation of COVID-19 safety guidelines by some shopkeepers but also points a finger at the callous attitude of customers who lower their guard and continue to crowd shops to benefit from ‘discounts’. The violator was slapped with a Dh50,000 fine and the authorities have advised the shopping malls to adhere to all preventive measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic and reduce the number of infected cases. It is also imperative for customers to follow the COVID-19 protocol and alert the authorities concerned in case of any violations in shopping malls. - Ashfaq Ahmed, Senior Assistant Editor

Disneyland to reopen…on April Fools’ Day: Disneyland and other theme parks have been given the go-ahead by California health officials to reopen. The date selected for this is April 1st… It sounds like it should be a bad joke, what with COVID-19 still wreaking havoc. Having been closed for a year in a bid to curb the spread, it seems a risky move to allow large crowds to gather at theme parks as we are still battling to beat this virus. There is a fine line between safety and economic security but things should only be opened up once we know for sure that people are not at risk anymore. The last thing we need is to create another hotspot which could set us back by months. - Imran Malik, Assistant Editor

Lone battle for Joe Root in India: For all his efforts, Joe Root was fighting a losing battle in the Test series against India. India crushed England inside three days of the fourth Test to clinch the series 3-1. Root batted, bowled and led by example, but the England captain was on his own against an inspired Indian side on home turf. Root scored 218 in his 100th Test as England won the opening game convincingly. But the remaining matches were a struggle for the touring side. Off-spinner Root even turned up with the ball to claim his maiden five-wicket haul in the day-night third Test but England went down inside two days. He topped the series batting chart with 368 runs but said: “I can get better.” - Matt Smith, Sport Editor