From the Editors: Let all of us make a pledge to keep our children safe

LET ALL OF US MAKE A PLEDGE TO KEEP OUR CHILDREN SAFE: Yet again, there are reports of children falling to their deaths from high-rises in the UAE. On Wednesday, there were twin incidents of a five-year-old and an eight-year-old falling from the balcony of their residential apartments in Sharjah and Fujairah, respectively. Both the incidents are currently under investigation. While it is true that we humans have no control over fate, fact still remains that there is almost always an element of negligence on the part of us parents, elders and guardians in such heart-rending mishaps. The UAE is one of the safest countries in the world when it comes to child safety, with its elaborate legal statutes and social safeguards to protect the interests of minors. However, no amount of legal and social safeguards can be effective unless we the community members are responsible and responsive enough in caring for our children and other minors. There have been repeated alarms and warnings sounded by the law-enforcement agencies in UAE, reminding parents and guardians not to leave children unattended at any time, whether at home or outside. Yet, incidents such as the ones at Sharjah and Fujairah last Wednesday keep happening. It is indeed unfortunate and regrettable how we adults and guardians often fail to keep our children safe owing to our inattentiveness and negligence. Therefore, let us all come forward and make a pledge to keep our young ones safe at all times because it is infinitely better to be safe than sorry.[COMMENT BY: Sanjib Kumar Das, Assistant Editor]

KILLING OF DAESH LEADER HAS COME AT RIGHT TIME: The US raid that killed Daesh leader Abu Ibrahim Al Hashimi Al Qurayshi in Syria has come nearly two weeks after the terror group attacked a prison to free its comrades that left more than 500 dead. It’s a big blow to the group and yet another victory for war on terrorism. Al Qurayshi’s death has come at a time when Daesh was trying to regroup and carry out attacks. The US had blamed Al Qurayshi for the prison strike and mass killings of Yazidis in Iraq and had placed a $10 million reward on his head soon after he took over the helm of Daesh following the death of his predecessor Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi. He met his end in the same rebel-held Idlib province where Al Baghdadi was hunted down by the Americans more than two years ago.[COMMENT BY: Stephen N R, Senior Associate Editor]

THE UAE IS NOW IN THE BUSINESS OF DESTINATIONS: Be the all-encompassing destination for global travelers, whether for business or pleasure. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are scripting strategies that build on their past successes as travel hotspots. On Thursday, Abu Dhabi announced its ambitions to play host to big on scale corporate and conference events – not just by local or regional businesses, but global ones. A ‘business events fund’ has been launched, and emerging in-city destinations such as Yas Island offer up opportunities to play host to just the sort of high-profile meetings that Abu Dhabi wants. On the same day, Dubai announced that visitor numbers for 2021 were up 32 per cent, as the city-emirate leverages its brand and its airline connectivity. Dubai’s 2022 meetings and conferences calendar has already got off to a busy start with Arab Health and to soon be followed by Gulfood. And visitors keep streaming into the city. Shaking off the pandemic’s disruptions will still take time, but these cities are preparing for a post-pandemic world where travel, meetings, tourism, conferences, and events still figure as prominently as in the years before 2020. That future will be dictated by creating destinations – the emirates are doing just that. [COMMENT BY: Manoj Nair, Business Editor]

BEIJING WINTER OLYMPICS: STAGE SET FOR OPENING CEREMONY: The stage is set for the 24th Winter Olympic Games to open on Friday afternoon which will see nearly 3000 athletes being a part of Beijing 2022. Russian President Vladimir Putin is the high profile guest to arrive in Beijing in what is his ‘first overseas visit of the year,’ with the Russian leader set to meet China's President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Games – which is going to endorse the Chinese capital’s stature as a winter sports hub. US and Canada, the two North American neighbours, are expected to be the frontrunners in the race for medals. Let the Games begin…[COMMENT BY: Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor]

STREAMING SERVICES PULL OUT THE BIG GUNS: Netflix has announced plans to debut a whopping 68 movies in 2022 — and they’ve not held back paying big bucks on stars such as Ryan Gosling, Ryan Reynolds, Daniel Craig and more. This might only add fuel to the fire where cinemas are concerned. Theatres have raised issue with big-ticket movies never getting a cinematic release, thus depriving them of customers. Some people in the movie business have even complained about movies from streamers being nominated for major cinematic awards. The battle between streaming and cinema has only be exacerbated by the pandemic. However, it seems audiences will end up the winners as they’re getting more content to watch than ever before.[COMMENT BY: Jennifer Barretto, Assistant Editor – Features]