Strict adherence to curbs for Eid imperative: NCEMA
Elderly, kids advised to avoid mosques; don’t shake hands, greet from far; UAE sends 500,000 vaccine doses to Tunisia; WHO slams senseless ‘greed’ prolonging the pandemic; Modi warns against overcrowding at tourist spots.
The National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA) on Tuesday announced that all the mosques and open-air spaces (musallahs) across the UAE are allowed to conduct Eid Al Adha prayers.
It also announced strict protocols to be followed by all going for the prayers.
The NCEMA during the weekly briefing on the coronavirus situation in the UAE stressed that the requirements of the Eid Al Adha prayers will be applied in all regions of the country.
The authorities said, “Please avoid gatherings and handshakes before and ater the Eid prayer in all its forms, and greet and congratulate each other from a distance only.”
The doors of the mosques and musallahs will open 15 minutes before the start of the prayer.
The NCEMA added that the total duration of the Eid sermon, including the prayer, is limited to 15 minutes.
The authority advised the elderly, people suffering from chronic diseases and children under 12 years to avoid going to the Eid Al Adha prayers in order to preserve their health and safety.
The UAE has dispatched an aircrat carrying 500,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to Tunisia to curb the spread of the virus.
This urgent response comes in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to enhance the health conditions of the Tunisian people during the pandemic.
The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) has registered 1,522 new cases and six deaths due to the virus.
MOHAP also noted that an additional 1,485 individuals had fully recovered from COVID-19. The Ministry of Health also announced that 73,831 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were given in the past 24 hours.
The total number of doses provided up to Tuesday stands at 16,042,491 with a rate of vaccine distribution of 162.20 doses per 100 people.
World hunger spiked last year, outpacing population growth and probably reaching the highest since 2005, as the COVID-19 pandemic curbed incomes and access to food, according to the United Nations.
A report issued jointly by five UN agencies said hunger outpaced population growth in 2020, with nearly 10% of all people estimated to be undernourished.
UN Secretary-general Antonio Guterres said the new “tragic data” shows that between 720 million and 811 million people in the world faced hunger last year — as many as 161 million more than in 2019.
Children paid a high price, with 149 million of those younger than 5 estimated to have stunted growth since they are too short for their age, and more than 45 million children are too thin for their height, the report said.
The World Health Organisation ( WHO) blasted the senseless “greed” of rich countries considering COVID-19 booster vaccinations while the most vulnerable in other nations were let exposed to the virus.
The UN’S health agency also scolded vaccine manufacturers prioritising deals for booster third doses rather than first and second shots for the completely unvaccinated healthcare workers and elderly people in poorer nations.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned on Tuesday against overcrowding at tourist sites and called for faster vaccinations against the coronavirus even as official figures indicated a slower spread of new infections.
“I will say very emphatically that it is not OK to have huge crowds in hill stations, markets, without wearing masks,” Modi said in comments posted on Twiter while acknowledging the tourism industry has been badly hit by lockdowns.
The traditional practice of handshakes and hugs ater the prayer is forbidden. Worshippers are not allowed to gather at the places of worship before or ater the prayer.
More than 1 million people in France made vaccine appointments in less than a day, figures showed on Tuesday, ater the president cranked up pressure on everyone to get vaccinated to save summer vacation and the French economy.
Some bristled at President Emmanuel Macron’s admonitions to “get vaccinated!” immediately, but many people signed up anyway for a jab, accepting the idea that it’s the only way to return to some semblance of pre-pandemic life.