Sharjah Charity distributes 20,000 Iftar meals on Day of Arafat
Commitment to social responsibility
Abdullah Sultan bin Khadem, Executive Director of the Association, stated that the initiative reflects the association's commitment to supporting vulnerable communities during the blessed first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah. He highlighted that the meals were thoughtfully prepared to meet the nutritional needs of beneficiaries, reinforcing the values of dignity and respect.
Efficient coordination and delivery
Meals were distributed by volunteer teams and staff under the direct supervision of the association's field units. The initiative ensured timely delivery, preserved privacy, and took into account the population density of each target area.
Part of a broader Dhul-Hijjah initiative
Bin Khadem noted that this project is one component of a larger seasonal program, which includes supporting Hajj pilgrims, treating medical cases, distributing Eid clothing and sacrificial meat, and implementing various construction, water, and health projects both within the UAE and abroad.
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Middle East Eye
24-07-2025
- Middle East Eye
Gaza: This 12-year-old dreams of combing her hair again after surviving an Israeli attack
Twelve-year-old Hala Shukri Dehliz was playing with her friends on a swing in Gaza one evening during Ramadan, even as the constant sounds of war raged in the background. Suddenly, an Israeli air strike detonated near the swing. Its force twisted the metal chains around her head, tearing off parts of her scalp along with her hair. 'My hair got stuck with the swing,' she recalls. 'The skin of my head was removed. I was rushed to the hospital. I stayed there for two months, but they couldn't treat me. The inflammations and ulcers only got worse.' The first day they did surgery, they used 175 stitches to close her scalp. 'I woke up and saw myself without hair. I had a breakdown and fainted. My parents tried to reassure me. They said, 'Don't be afraid. You'll travel and get treatment. Your hair will grow again.' But I kept crying.' New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Before the bombing, Hala had prepared for Eid with excitement. 'I had bought ties for my hair and Eid clothes,' she says, her voice breaking. 'But I spent Eid in a hospital bed. I didn't feel the joy. I didn't wear the clothes. I was just... there.' 'We have been displaced six times' Hala's father, Shukri Omar Eid Dehliz, speaks with the fatigue of a man shouldering the unbearable. 'We are originally from Rafah. We have been displaced six times. Our home was bombed and demolished. Each place we went, we could only stay for 20 days, a month, sometimes two. Now, we're in Khan Younis, al-Mawasi, living in a tent near the sea.' Their tent stands on rented land they can 'barely afford'. Hala Shukri Dehliz in Gaza with her siblings (Eman Alhaj Ali/MEE) 'Winter brings floods inside the tent. Summer is unbearable. There's no electricity, no solar panels. Even basic food is missing,' he said. There is no bread. No medicine. No safety. 'Hala can't even take painkillers,' he says. 'She needs to eat before taking them, but there's no food. We survive on aid - mostly lentil soup. Every child gets one small plate per day. That's it. 'We are a family of seven. Some days we have only two pieces of bread. We divide them among us. The children cry for food. I have nothing to give them. It's a cruelty no parent should face. My child begs for bread, and I can't provide it. Sometimes, we just want to die instead of continuing this life in Gaza.' A mirror without reflection Hala's daily routine is now confined to the interior of a suffocating tent. She isolates herself from other children who react to her scarred head with confusion and fear. 'When I try to go outside, the children ask why I don't have hair. They get scared. So I stay inside. I play alone. I try to write and draw myself,' she says softly. 'When I try to go outside, the children ask why I don't have hair. They get scared. So I stay inside. I play alone' - Hala Shukri Dehliz 'Every day, I stand in front of the mirror trying to comb my hair. But there is no hair to comb.' Hala was a top student, dreaming of becoming a doctor - dreams now paused by trauma and the physical pain of untreated wounds. 'I was always the first in my class,' she remembers. 'I used to wake up early, comb my hair, go to school, then play with my friends. Now, I don't go to school. I look in the mirror and I just see loss.' She still keeps a lock of her long brown hair, holding it as a reminder of who she was, and who she hopes to become again. 'I want to travel abroad and get treatment. I want to have my hair again. I want to play with my friends. I want to feel pretty again.' 'Gaza is starving to death' Hala's father speaks in anguish about the daily torment and mounting famine which has in recent weeks led to a growing number of deaths from malnutrition and dehydration. 'There's no flour, no rice, no milk or vegetables. Even when there's food in the market, the prices are too high for us. My four-year-old cries for bread. I can't bear it.' He recounts how their lives have shrunk into a punishing cycle of fear, hunger and helplessness. Former UN aid chief: Israel committing 'worst crime of the 21st century' in Gaza Read More » 'The bombs fall constantly. The children scream in terror. Gaza is in a state of disaster. We are unemployed. The borders are closed. No aid is coming in. As parents, we demand the world to act. This genocide must stop. 'We are not asking for luxury. We are asking for the basics - bread, water, medicine. We are asking for a chance for our children to live.' Hala's story is not an isolated tragedy. She is one of tens of thousands of children injured or killed in a war that has erased homes, schools and playgrounds, as well as whole families. Border closures have blocked any attempt to evacuate her for treatment. Her parents - both injured in separate attacks - desperately try to find sterile gauze, clean water and food to support her healing. 'She needs daily medical care,' says her mother, Mayada. 'She cries every day, remembering her hair. Her head is still full of ulcers and infections. If she doesn't get out soon, it will get worse.' Despite everything, Hala said she still dreams of a hospital bed in a foreign country where doctors will help her scalp heal. She dreams of brushing her hair and even one day becoming a doctor. 'I hope the world hears me. I hope someone helps me travel. I want my hair back. I want to be beautiful again.'
Middle East Eye
23-07-2025
- Middle East Eye
Gaza: A young girl tries to live with devastating injuries
Twelve-year-old Hala Shukri Dehliz was playing with her friends on a swing in Gaza one evening during Ramadan, even as the constant sounds of war raged in the background. Suddenly, an Israeli air strike detonated near the swing. Its force twisted the metal chains around her head, tearing off parts of her scalp along with her hair. 'My hair got stuck with the swing,' she recalls. 'The skin of my head was removed. I was rushed to the hospital. I stayed there for two months, but they couldn't treat me. The inflammations and ulcers only got worse.' The first day they did surgery, they used 175 stitches to close her scalp. 'I woke up and saw myself without hair. I had a breakdown and fainted. My parents tried to reassure me. They said, 'Don't be afraid. You'll travel and get treatment. Your hair will grow again.' But I kept crying.' New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Before the bombing, Hala had prepared for Eid with excitement. 'I had bought ties for my hair and Eid clothes,' she says, her voice breaking. 'But I spent Eid in a hospital bed. I didn't feel the joy. I didn't wear the clothes. I was just... there.' 'We have been displaced six times' Hala's father, Shukri Omar Eid Dehliz, speaks with the fatigue of a man shouldering the unbearable. 'We are originally from Rafah. We have been displaced six times. Our home was bombed and demolished. Each place we went, we could only stay for 20 days, a month, sometimes two. Now, we're in Khan Younis, al-Mawasi, living in a tent near the sea.' Their tent stands on rented land they can 'barely afford'. Hala Shukri Dehliz in Gaza with her siblings (Eman Alhaj Ali/MEE) 'Winter brings floods inside the tent. Summer is unbearable. There's no electricity, no solar panels. Even basic food is missing,' he said. There is no bread. No medicine. No safety. 'Hala can't even take painkillers,' he says. 'She needs to eat before taking them, but there's no food. We survive on aid - mostly lentil soup. Every child gets one small plate per day. That's it. 'We are a family of seven. Some days we have only two pieces of bread. We divide them among us. The children cry for food. I have nothing to give them. It's a cruelty no parent should face. My child begs for bread, and I can't provide it. Sometimes, we just want to die instead of continuing this life in Gaza.' A mirror without reflection Hala's daily routine is now confined to the interior of a suffocating tent. She isolates herself from other children who react to her scarred head with confusion and fear. 'When I try to go outside, the children ask why I don't have hair. They get scared. So I stay inside. I play alone. I try to write and draw myself,' she says softly. 'When I try to go outside, the children ask why I don't have hair. They get scared. So I stay inside. I play alone' - Hala Shukri Dehliz 'Every day, I stand in front of the mirror trying to comb my hair. But there is no hair to comb.' Hala was a top student, dreaming of becoming a doctor - dreams now paused by trauma and the physical pain of untreated wounds. 'I was always the first in my class,' she remembers. 'I used to wake up early, comb my hair, go to school, then play with my friends. Now, I don't go to school. I look in the mirror and I just see loss.' She still keeps a lock of her long brown hair, holding it as a reminder of who she was, and who she hopes to become again. 'I want to travel abroad and get treatment. I want to have my hair again. I want to play with my friends. I want to feel pretty again.' 'Gaza is starving to death' Hala's father speaks in anguish about the daily torment and mounting famine which has in recent weeks led to a growing number of deaths from malnutrition and dehydration. 'There's no flour, no rice, no milk or vegetables. Even when there's food in the market, the prices are too high for us. My four-year-old cries for bread. I can't bear it.' He recounts how their lives have shrunk into a punishing cycle of fear, hunger and helplessness. Former UN aid chief: Israel committing 'worst crime of the 21st century' in Gaza Read More » 'The bombs fall constantly. The children scream in terror. Gaza is in a state of disaster. We are unemployed. The borders are closed. No aid is coming in. As parents, we demand the world to act. This genocide must stop. 'We are not asking for luxury. We are asking for the basics - bread, water, medicine. We are asking for a chance for our children to live.' Hala's story is not an isolated tragedy. 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Zawya
17-07-2025
- Zawya
How businesses incur losses due to prevalence of marine debris?
It is not unusual to see debris floating along the nation's inland waterways, impacting marine life, habitats, and human activities through hazards to navigational safety and others. In this report, TOLA ADENUBI looks at how businesses suffer due to marine debris prevalence. Marine debris refers to human-caused waste that has deliberately or inadvertently entered the marine environment. It includes plastics, fishing gear, packaging materials, glass, metals, electronic waste, and even derelict vessels. In Nigerian waterways, from Lagos Lagoon to the Bonny Channel, the Escravos River to Onitsha River Ports, this debris is growing not just in volume, but in complexity and consequence, checks by the Nigerian Tribune revealed. Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune on the impact of marine debris to seafaring, President of the Nigerian Association of Master Mariners (NAMM), Captain Tajudeen Alao, stated that navigational hazards, equipment damage, loss of time and earnings and threat to small crafts are just few of the issues that marine debris pose to seafaring. According to the NAMM President, 'Sometimes, large plastics, abandoned fishing nets routinely entangled the vessels propellers, rudders, and thrusters. Vessels have had to execute emergency stops midstream due to debris sightings, thus jeopardizing safety, cargo, and schedules. 'Equipment Damage: During marine engine cooling operations using the medium it floats on, water, marine debris are pull-into the strainers by suction, impellers, ballast pumps, or air-conditioning intakes; and the result is overheating, mechanical failure, or total system shutdown. 'For ferry and fishing boat operators, especially those with outboard engines, plastic bags, ropes wrapped around propeller shafts often mean ruined gearboxes and costly repairs. 'Loss of Time and Earnings: Each stoppage for cleaning strainers, untangling ropes, or making emergency dry-docking for fouling costs valuable man-hours. For operators paid by voyage or charter time, marine debris translates directly to loss of income. A recent Lagos Inland Waterways report logged over 380 ferry delays caused by propeller entanglements in 2024 alone. 'Threat to Small Craft and Local Transport: Speedboats, wooden canoes, sports crafts, and water taxis in coastal towns suffer disproportionately. Large floating debris as submerged logs which are barely visible in tidal waters have been known to cause capsizing, hull puncture, and loss of control which have led to unnecessary loss of lives on our waterways. These are not hypothetical risks, they are daily realities in places like Epe, Badagry, Yenagoa, and Calabar.' Effect on fishing Aside affecting the seafaring business, fishermen are not left out of the menace that marine debris can unleash. Also speaking on the impact on fishing, the Second Vice President of NAMM, Captain Olajide Olugunwa ,stated that marine debris lead to reduced catch for fishermen. In the words of Captain Olajide Olugunwa, 'In Akwa Ibom, Rivers, and Bayelsa, fishermen report increasing instances of reduced catch, fish with plastic content in their stomachs, or fish exhibiting deformities and toxic odor. This undermines marketability, compromises protein sources, and collapses rural incomes. 'Scientific studies in Nigerian coastal states now confirm the presence of microplastics in commercially consumed fish and shellfish. This presents a long-term public health hazard through biomagnification, potentially linked to hormonal disruptions, gastrointestinal diseases, and cancer. 'From torn nets caught on submerged scrap metal to destroyed traps and blocked fish channels, artisanal fishers are losing hundreds of millions of naira annually. Larger industrial trawlers incur greater dry-docking frequency and fuel costs to avoid debris-heavy zones. 'Also, Sea turtles, dolphins, manatees, and juvenile fishes are often found entangled in ghost fishing nets or suffocated by ingestion of plastic. These events are not rare; they are now endemic. What was once an ecological concern has become a commercial catastrophe.' ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE: Nigeria's inflation rate eases to 22.22% — NBS Tourism implication The NAMM President further revealed that marine debris cause major degradation to the nation's coastline, leading to losses in the tourism space. 'Marine debris wash up on Nigeria's beaches, from Tarkwa Bay to Oguta Lake, turning tourist zones into unsightly dumps. Once-pristine resort areas now host plastic-laden coastlines, eroding our tourism potential, property value, and coastal livelihoods. 'Aside effect on tourism, it also comes with health implications for Nigerians. Decomposing garbage in water harbors bacteria, releases methane and leachate, and creates breeding grounds for vectors, leading to cholera outbreaks, skin infections, and respiratory illness among riverside communities. 'Foreign shipping lines now raise operational concerns when approaching Nigerian ports. Images of floating debris near Apapa Anchorage, warped quay aprons, or clogged port approaches discourage long-term investment and lower our competitiveness in West Africa's maritime corridor. 'We risk handing our children a coastline littered with synthetic waste, poisoned waters, and lifeless estuaries. Without systemic change, marine debris may become one of Nigeria's most challenging environmental legacies. This is an urgent call for action,' Captain Tajudeen Alao warned. Way forward With marine debris threatening to take over Nigeria's maritime space, the following solutions via a multi-tiered approach is urgently recommended. National Marine Debris Act: Establishment of a legislative framework backed by NASS for marine debris regulation, clearly defining categories of debris, offenses, penalties, and institutional responsibilities. Mandatory Debris Management Plans: Make it compulsory for Shipping lines, Terminals, and Offshore Platforms to file and implement Marine Debris Mitigation Plans, like the oil spill response protocols. Integrated Coastal Waste Governance: Empower a joint taskforce of NIMASA, NIWA, NESREA, and state environmental agencies to monitor, enforce, and coordinate coastal cleanup operations. Enforcement/Sanctions: Impoundment and fines (minimum of ₦5 million) for any operator caught disposing off waste into water bodies. Community Waste-to-Wealth Incentives: Encourage local recovery and recycling initiatives through grants, maritime youth engagement, and training programs. Surveillance Technology Investment: Deploy satellite-based marine surveillance, drone sweeps, and radar-augmented buoys to detect and monitor debris zones in real time. Public enlightenment: Build a coalition of schools, churches, mosques, market associations and transport unions around a unified message: 'Protect Our Waters. Preserve Our Future.' Also, part of the public enlightenment effort should include integration of ocean literacy and anti-littering education into primary and secondary curricula across coastal states. Private Sector Responsibility: Food and beverage multinationals must be accountable for their packaging waste – via Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mechanisms. 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