Steve Royston

Is Saudi Encouraging its own Brain Drain?

Is Saudi Encouraging its own Brain Drain?

STEVE ROYSTON: Could it be that the next wave of migration will come from the very class of people that Saudi Arabia sees as its future?

 David Westley

The Totally Bonkers $11 Million Christmas Tree

The Totally Bonkers $11 Million Christmas Tree

DAVID WESTLEY: From the same hotel that has given us the gold bar vending machine comes what must be the world’s most expensive Christmas tree.

 Alexander McNabb

Total Confusion: The UAE National Identity Card

Total Confusion: The UAE National Identity Card

ALEXANDER MCNABB: The ‘application application’ has been removed. Typing centres have been closed. And the clock is ticking towards the end of year deadline.

 Sultan Al Qassemi

Edward Said – A Threat or an Asset?

Edward Said – A Threat or an Asset?

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: Public intellectuals reflect the conscience of society and should not be regarded as a threat, but as part and parcel of the community.

 Alexander McNabb

There are Bad Days, and then there are…

There are Bad Days, and then there are…

ALEXANDER MCNABB: Adding to that, we have finally had it confirmed that, in the UAE, ‘freehold’ actually means ‘usufruct’. What the hell is ‘usufruct’..?

 James M. Dorsey

Qatar WC 2022: A Middle East Game Changer?

Qatar WC 2022: A Middle East Game Changer?

JAMES M. DORSEY: So deep-seated is soccer passion that governments would be acting at their own peril and would likely conclude that they have no alternative but to allow their teams to play Israel.

 Arianna Huffington

Facebook, Twitter Driving Change in the MidEast

Facebook, Twitter Driving Change in the MidEast

ARIANNA HUFFINGTON: No longer is our best hope for change governments. If change happens, it’s going to be social media fuelling the transformation.

 Sultan Al Qassemi

GCC Cooperation Key to Tomorrow’s Challenges

GCC Cooperation Key to Tomorrow’s Challenges

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: Recently I attempted to capture some of these aspirations. On Twitter, I asked: “What do Gulf citizens want from the summit?”

 Alexander McNabb

The Future’s Coming, Please Tell the UAE’s Telcos

The Future’s Coming, Please Tell the UAE’s Telcos

ALEXANDER MCNABB – Technology has allowed us to speak to each other in ways unimaginable five years ago. The telco operators in the Middle East, however, don’t appear to have caught on yet.

 Matt J. Duffy

Wikileaks – Where is the UAE Media?

Wikileaks – Where is the UAE Media?

MATT J. DUFFY: I suggest that one—or preferably all—of the UAE’s press outlets compile a simple report analyzing the leaked cables. The report should be published without a byline so no single reporter can be sued.

 Alexander McNabb

An Incredible Journey behind the UAE’s 39th National Day

An Incredible Journey behind the UAE’s 39th National Day

ALEXANDER MCNABB: I have some old video footage of Sheikh Rashid, a man that used to take 5am tours around his city as it was being built, in true Arabian Nights style…

 James M. Dorsey

The Booming Voice of Pent-Up Middle East Anger

The Booming Voice of Pent-Up Middle East Anger

JAMES M. DORSEY: As dark as that moment was for Casablancan rockers, the trial was a turning point setting Morocco on a path to becoming one of the Arab world’s more liberal societies when it comes to alternative lifestyles.

 Sultan Al Qassemi

The UAE and the UK – a Special Relationship

The UAE and the UK – a Special Relationship

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: Today, there are approximately 240,000 British citizens living in the UAE, with another one million plus visiting the country every year and up to 40,000 Emiratis visiting Britain annually.

 Sultan Al Qassemi

Entrepreneurs to leave mark for next generation

Entrepreneurs to leave mark for next generation

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: Arab governments need to understand that without pan-Arab initiatives, true prosperity will not be achieved. We must capitalise on our strengths as a region with a population larger than the United States…

 Shelina Zahra Janmohamed

Why we Need to be More Than Armchair Environmentalists

Why we Need to be More Than Armchair Environmentalists

SHELINA ZAHRA JANMOHAMMED: This is especially sad in places such as the Gulf where until 50 years ago people were adept at living in harmony with their environment and efficient in their use of resources. That sensitivity has been lost.

 Alexander McNabb

Privacy and the Law

Privacy and the Law

ALEXANDER MCNABB: One month in jail and deportation for filming an actual incident and posting it online may appear madly draconian, but the UAE (and the Gulf in general, actually) has always had a fraught relationship with photography…

 Sultan Al Qassemi

A more balanced federal budget benefits us all

A more balanced federal budget benefits us all

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: But how can the country cover a federal budget shortfall of Dh18.2 billion, which is now carried by only Abu Dhabi and Dubai? A tax regime…

 Alexander McNabb

UAE Media Shame and ‘The Tent Next Door’

UAE Media Shame and ‘The Tent Next Door’

Gulf News deserves to be held to a higher standard than Gulf Today, though. And in this, it has failed. Its silence is nothing less than shameful – and its shame is clearly exposed by The National.

 Sultan Al Qassemi

A Monument of Tolerance in the Heart of Dubai

A Monument of Tolerance in the Heart of Dubai

SULTAN AL QASSEMI: Nestled in one of Bur Dubai’s older districts is one of the emirate’s best kept architectural secrets: the Ismaili Centre of Dubai.

 James Mullan

‘If it bleeds, it leads’. Agendas, bias, ‘poppycutting’

‘If it bleeds, it leads’. Agendas, bias, ‘poppycutting’

The UAE finds itself in the international spotlight again – and for all of the wrong reasons. So why do the Western media ‘accentuate the negative’ and forget the positive when reporting events in the Arab world?