dignitaries on Eid al Adha · 1 day ago · resume on the third day of Eid as decided earlier, it...

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THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 DHUL HIJJAH 9, 1441 AH ESTABLISHED IN 1981 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI VOL. 39 NO. 259 | PAGES 18 OMAN DAILY Be Careful, Be Responsible! #Living_with_COVID19 www.omanobserver.om [email protected] MUSCAT: THis Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik on Wednesday received a cable of greetings on the occasion of Eid al Adha from His Highness Sayyid Shihab bin Tarik al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for Defence Affairs. In his cable HH Sayyid Shihab said: “Your Majesty, Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, Supreme Commander. May the Almighty Allah protect you! Peace be upon you. Upon the dawn of the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, all Muslims will rejoice as they celebrate the happy occasion of Eid Al Adha. “On this sacred religious occasion, I am honoured —and so are Your Majesty’s triumphant Armed Forces, the Firaq Forces and all personnel of the Ministry of Defence — to extend to Your Majesty the most heartfelt expressions of greetings and best wishes of blessings, praying to the Almighty Allah to protect you as Sultan and leader of this dear homeland and to grant you good health and wellbeing. “Your Majesty, celebration of this religious occasion evokes many lessons, and Your Majesty’s Armed Forces derive examples from the days of Great Pilgrimage — concepts of patience, loyalty hard work and sacrifice that they adopt in their firm resolve to protect this resourceful country, its edifices and its achievements. “Your Majesty, the Supreme Commander, as they celebrate this occasion, your Armed Forces, Firaq Forces and all personnel of the Ministry of Defence proclaim their allegiance to Your Majesty and renew the pledge of loyalty and self-denial. They pray to the Almighty Allah to bestow His full bounty on Your Majesty and grant you good health and a long life. “May Allah protect Your Majesty and support you with absolute victory! May He bless your reign! “Happy Eid, Your Majesty.” MORE GREETINGS His Majesty exchanged Eid al Adha greetings over a phone call on Wednesday with Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayid al Nahyan, Heir Apparent of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). During the call, Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayid conveyed greetings of President Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan of the UAE. TURN TO P2 TODAY IS THE DAY OF ARAFAH MUSCAT: e auspicious day of Arafah, the ninth day in the month of Dul Hijja is on ursday. e Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs has urged believers not to step out or pray together and to avoid personal contacts. Day of Arafah is followed by Eid al Adha which is on the 10th of Dul Hijja. Speaking to the Observer, a senior scholar at the religious office, Ibda’a, said abiding by the rule of a nation is Islamic way and one must keep away from spread- ing the pandemic. “Everyone living in the country, those who want to celebrate Eid al Adha, should do so at the comfort of their homes, and one shouldn’t take the festivities outside their home which is not al- lowed as per the law,” he said. TURN TO P2 HM greeted by leaders, dignitaries on Eid al Adha Pilgrims are required to wear masks and observe physical distancing during a series of religious rites during Haj. — AFP STRICTLY NO FAMILY GATHERINGS KABEER YOUSUF

Transcript of dignitaries on Eid al Adha · 1 day ago · resume on the third day of Eid as decided earlier, it...

Page 1: dignitaries on Eid al Adha · 1 day ago · resume on the third day of Eid as decided earlier, it added. MUSCAT: Sayyid Badr bin Hamad al Busaidi, Secretary-General of the Foreign

thursday, july 30, 2020 dhul hijjah 9, 1441 ah

ESTABLISHED IN 1981 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI VOL. 39 NO. 259 | PAGES 18

Oman Daily Be Careful,Be Responsible!

#Living_with_covid19

[email protected]

Muscat: THis Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik on Wednesday received a cable of greetings on the occasion of Eid al Adha from His Highness Sayyid Shihab bin Tarik al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for Defence Affairs.

In his cable HH Sayyid Shihab said: “Your Majesty, Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, Supreme Commander. May the Almighty Allah protect you! Peace be upon you. Upon the dawn of the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, all Muslims will rejoice as they celebrate the happy occasion of Eid Al Adha.

“On this sacred religious occasion, I am honoured —and so are Your Majesty’s triumphant Armed Forces, the Firaq Forces and all personnel of the Ministry of Defence — to extend to Your Majesty the most heartfelt expressions of greetings and best wishes

of blessings, praying to the Almighty Allah to protect you as Sultan and leader of this dear homeland and to grant you good health and wellbeing.

“Your Majesty, celebration of this religious occasion evokes many lessons, and Your Majesty’s Armed Forces derive examples from the days of Great Pilgrimage — concepts of patience,

loyalty hard work and sacrifice that they adopt in their firm resolve to protect this resourceful country, its edifices and its achievements.

“Your Majesty, the Supreme Commander, as they celebrate this occasion, your Armed Forces, Firaq Forces and all personnel of the Ministry of Defence proclaim their allegiance to Your Majesty and

renew the pledge of loyalty and self-denial. They pray to the Almighty Allah to bestow His full bounty on Your Majesty and grant you good health and a long life.

“May Allah protect Your Majesty and support you with absolute victory! May He bless your reign!

“Happy Eid, Your Majesty.”

MORE GREEtINGsHis Majesty exchanged Eid al Adha greetings over a phone call on Wednesday with Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayid al Nahyan, Heir Apparent of Abu Dhabi, Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

During the call, Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayid conveyed greetings of President Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan of the UAE. tuRN tO P2

tOday is thE day OF araFah

muscat: The auspicious day of arafah, the ninth day in the month of Dul Hijja is on Thursday. The ministry of Endowments and Religious affairs has urged believers not to step out or pray together and to avoid personal contacts.

Day of arafah is followed by Eid al adha which is on the

10th of Dul Hijja. Speaking to the Observer, a senior scholar at the religious office, ibda’a, said abiding by the rule of a nation is islamic way and one must keep away from spread-ing the pandemic.

“Everyone living in the country, those who want to celebrate Eid al adha, should do so at the comfort of their homes, and one shouldn’t take the festivities outside their home which is not al-lowed as per the law,” he said. turn to P2

HM greeted by leaders, dignitaries on Eid al Adha

Pilgrims are required to wear masks and observe physical distancing during a series

of religious rites during haj. — AFP

StRictLy no fAMiLy gAtHERingSK A B E E R Y O U S U F

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His majesty tHanked by emir of kuwait MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik has received a cable of thanks from Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jabir al Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait in reply to His Majesty’s congratulatory cable on the success of his recent surgical operation.

In his cable, Sheikh Al Sabah expressed his utmost thanks for His Majesty’s good feelings and sincere supplication, praying to Allah the Almighty to perpetuate good health and well-being on His Majesty and to fulfil for the Sultanate and its people all progress and prosperity under the wise leadership of His Majesty. — ONA

His majesty congratulates king of morocco MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik has sent a cable of congratulations to King Mohammed VI of the Kingdom of Morocco on the Anniversary of his Ascension to the Throne.

In his cable, His Majesty the Sultan expressed his sincere congratulations along with his best wishes of good health, happiness and a long life to King Mohammed VI, praying to Allah the Almighty for the return of this and similar occasions on the King of Morocco while the brotherly Moroccan people realise aspirations of further progress and prosperity. — ONA

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oman

Hm receives eid greetings from royal office minister MUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik on Wednesday received a cable of greetings on the occasion of Eid al Adha from Gen Sultan bin Mohammed al Numani, Minister of the Royal Office, Head of the Office of the Supreme Commander.

His Majesty also received a cable of greetings from Lt Gen Hassan bin Mohsin al Shraiqi, Inspector-General of Police and Customs. — ONA

From Page 1He expressed his sincere greetings along with his best wishes of good health, happiness and long life to His Majesty the Sultan, praying to Allah the Almighty for the return of this occasion on His Majesty and the Omani people to achieve all aspirations of progress and prosperity. He wished the Arab and Islamic nations plentiful blessings and welfare. On his turn, His Majesty the Sultan expressed his sincere greetings and best wishes to Shaikh Mohammed, praying to Allah the Almighty to perpetuate on all good health, happiness and long life, and for the return of happy occasions on the Emirati brotherly people at a time they achieved all aspirations of progress and prosperity. His Majesty the Sultan also wished all Muslim nation plentiful bounties, progress and prosperity. — ONA

From Page 1He further added that any group prayers in a house with people from outside their homes is not allowed, and prayers are allowed within those who are living inside the same house.

“Numerous family gather-ings flouting the prevailing rules are behind high inci-dence of infections among Omanis.”

“In the past few weeks, some people took eased restrictions for granted and travelled to meet their family and friends,” he said, adding that human

contact is the sole reason and with the today’s diminish-ing number of cases and with strict social distancing and other polices, we will win over the pandemic,” he added. The Supreme Committee on COVID-19 has stopped all so-cial and family gatherings and group prayers. Prayers should be conducted individually or just within family members.

“Group prayers should be conducted individually and not otherwise. No one from outside one’s home should be encouraged to pray together in view of the contagion”, he said.

HM greeted by leaders, dignitaries on eid al adHa

strictly no family gatHerings

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www.omanobserver.om thursday, july 30, 2020 3

MUSCAT: Sayyid Hamoud bin Faisal al Busaidy, Minister of Interior and Chairman of the Supreme Committee entrusted with handling the developments resulting from the spread of COVID-19, on Wednesday visited a number of the control check-points jointly manned by person-nel from the Sultan’s Armed Forces (SAF) and Royal Oman Police (ROP).

The minister of interior was accompanied during the visit by a number of committee mem-bers, the Chief of Staff of the Sultan’s Armed Forces, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police and Customs for

Operations.The chairman and the mem-

bers of the Supreme Committee reviewed the efforts exerted for the enforcement of the complete lockdown decision of the gover-norates and the night-time pre-vention of movement.

The Minister of Interior con-gratulated the SAF and ROP on the advent of the blessed Eid al Adha, commending the great national role they undertake to prevent the spread of the coro-navirus. He urged the citizens and expatriates to continue their compliance with the lockdown and movement prevention deci-sions. — ONA

Moh temporarily halts announcement of COVId-19 cases

MUSCAT: The Ministry of Health (MoH) on Wednesday stated that it will temporarily stop announcing the daily registered cases of COVID-19 from Friday, July 31 until Tuesday, August 4. The announcement of daily cases will resume on Wednesday, August 5.

The ministry called upon all citizens and expatriates to avoid social and familial gather-ings unless for individuals and in a limited manner while observing the 2-metre physical distancing rule, wearing face mask all the time and maintaining hand wash and avoiding touching the face unless after washing hands.

hM condolences to ChinaMUSCAT: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik has sent a cable of condolences to President Xi Jinping of China on the victims of the floods and landslides which affected several provinces due to torrential rains.

His Majesty expressed his heartfelt condo-lences and sympathies to the president, the vic-tims’ families and the friendly Chinese people, wishing the injured speedy recovery. — ONA

oman

Supreme Committee inspects checkpoints

MOH Statement 153

Today's Total Cases

Omanis Non-Omanis

Deaths TestedRecoveries

Newlyadmitted

Currentlyadmitted

CurrentICU admissions

Total Total Total

Admitted Cases

Total Cases

412 30371160240

665

10 13141653

52 522 184

78569

618 47

@omanobserver

Together, we shall overcomeOMAN OBSERVER

@OmanObserverNews

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omanSlaughtering

during Eid needs

precaution

MUSCAT: With Eid al Adha around the corner, the authorities concerned are asking people to go for ani-mal sacrifices only in the s l a u g h t e r h o u s e s . Veterinary supervision of animals before the slaugh-tering ensures that sick ani-mals are disposed of in a proper way by the special-ists.

This is to rule out the con-fusion of many who are not clear about performing slaughter at home or slaugh-terhouses at a time when there is spread of COVID-19.

In case of slaughtering at home, many precautionary measures issued by the Animal Health Research Center affiliated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries need to be fol-lowed. Those measures have to be followed before, during and after the slaugh-ter.

It stated that it is a must to ensure the animal’s general health and that it is free from external parasites such as tick insects. The person who would do the slaughter must be in good

health, should not have any injuries or wounds, and must be wearing protective clothing.

After slaughter, it is advised to leave the meat chilled for two hours before starting the cutting process to elimi-nate many pathogens due to the so-called stiffness process. As for the comple-tion, it is advised to dispose of the waste in a healthy and safe manner and not to throw it in open spaces.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued a set of conditions for the prevention of com-mon diseases between the animals and humans, espe-cially during the period of Eid al Adha. The WHO has warned against slaughter-ing seemingly sick animals and recommended ade-quate veterinary checks for livestock to alleviate diseas-es and other infections.

MUSCAT: The National Museum’s conservation and preservation team completed the restoration of the Sinaw treasure, the largest cur-rency treas-ure unearthed in the Sultanate to date, as part of the muse-um’s endeavour to highlight the Omani cultural heritage since ancient time till present day.

The treasure was found inside a pottery vessel in September 1979 in Sinaw area in the Wilayat of Al Mudhaibi, Governorate of

North Al Sharqiyah. The glazed vessel is distin-guished by turquoise blue and handles on both sides. In all, 962 pieces of silver

dirhams, dat-ing from the early Sassanid and Islamic peri-ods were found in the vessel.

The oldest dirham in the treasure dates to the

reign of Hormuz IV – Khosrow ll (589-623), more than 1400 years. The most recent dirham in the treas-ure was struck during the reign of the Abbasid caliph Al Mu’tasim in the year (840-841).

Zainab al nassriVeterinary superVision of animals before the slaughtering ensures that sick animals are

disposed of in a proper way by specialists

MuseuM restores sinaw treasure

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www.omanobserver.om thursday, july 30, 2020 5

oman

MUSCAT: With the Sultanate gearing up for Eid al Adha celebrations under strict lockdown measures, Muscat Municipality said that arrangements have been completed to ensure avail-ability of enough fruits and vegetables to consumers.

“Traders have been told to import enough quanti-ties of fruits and vegetables from the country of origin directly, in addition to pur-chasing from the local pro-ducers,” the municipality said in a statement on Wednesday.

Authorities at the Central Market for Vegetables and Fruits confirmed availabil-ity of different types of fruits, demand for which increases during festivals like Eid.

According to the munici-pality, the number of trucks arriving daily to the Mawaleh market reached an average 35 shipments during the period from July 1 to July 27 while the volume of imports com-prising various types of vegetables and fruits crossed over 19,600 tonnes. The ports of the Sultanate are connected by direct shipping lines with more than 86 ports in 40 countries, besides more than 200 direct weekly flights. The munici-pality said officials from its health department have intensified inspections at shops, food establish-ments and stores.

“The checks are being done to ensure a suitable environment for handling vegetables and fruits, and confirm that all market facilities including refriger-ation devices are working in accordance with the standards set by the municipality,” the state-ment said.

The officials will also check all the details of the products being traded on the market including the dates of packing and expi-ry, it said. According to the statement, the market will now work from 6 am to 1 pm and will remain closed in the evening until further notice with the business limited to wholesale.

Retail stores will contin-ue to be closed.

According to the state-ment, entry permission will be given to refrigera-tors that obtain customs clearance, and the number of trucks allowed is one with a maximum of two persons.

“Local producers must register their data with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries,” it said, adding, “agricultural and cus-toms checks will continue in the logistics city or through the border out-lets.” Trading will be sus-pended in the market on the first and second days of Eid al Adha, and will resume on the third day of Eid as decided earlier, it added.

MUSCAT: Sayyid Badr bin Hamad al Busaidi, Secretary-General of the Foreign Ministry, held a meeting via video conferencing on Tuesday with Marina Sereni, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Italian Republic.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed aspects of the bilateral relations and means of enhancing them to serve the mutual interests and expand the foundation of the economic partnership, as well as cultural and scientific cooperation.

The two sides also touched on the health, economic and social impacts of the coronavirus

pandemic (COVID-19) and the necessity to address them through international and multilateral cooperation.

At the political and security levels, Sayyid Badr and the Italian official discussed a number of regional and international issues and developments.

The Omani and Italian sides stressed the importance of supporting all peaceful efforts to achieve and sustain pillars of security and stability through dialogue and understanding, in addition to coming up with fair solutions for the current issues and conflicts in the world. — ONA

Relations, economic tie-up discussed with Italy

S A M U E L K U T T Y

Enough stocks of fruits and

vEgEtablEs

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MUSCAT: Even though the normal airport services in Oman are unlikely to resume before September, airline authorities are planning to operate flights and restore some degree in the Sultanate and the rest of the world.

Budget airline SalamAir

has announced two-way flights to Dubai on July 31, August 3, 8, 11 and 15.

The airline is also operat-ing two-way flights to Doha on August 3 and 9.

It is operating a flight to Khartoum, Sudan, on July 30, apart from flights to Pakistan on July 30 (Islamabad) and Lahore

(August 2).Oman Air is operating

three flights between Muscat and Tunisia between August 15 and 30, apart from a flight to Karachi on July 31, to London on August 1, Istanbul on July 31, Lahore on July 31 and Peshwar on August 5.

It will operate special

flights to Beirut on August 2, Kathmandu on August 2.

It may be noted that Oman’s airspace has seen a gradual growth with the daily number of transit air-craft exceeding 500 after it dropped to less than 180 during the period of travel restrictions across the world.

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oman

Vinod nair

national airlines to boost frequencies in august

Fuel available in all Filling stations: MoCi

MUSCAT: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has affirmed that fuel and its deriv-atives are available in all 652 filling stations in all the wilayats and gov-ernorates of the Sultanate, affirm-ing that they are fully prepared for the entire period of total lockdown.

This comes within the framework of the efforts being made by the ministry to make fuel and its deriv-atives available for citizens and residents as well as companies and institutions during the lock-down and to ensure the smooth flow of services in all wilayats of the Sultanate is maintained.

The ministry has coordinated with oil product marketing companies including Shell Marketing Company that runs 199 filling stations, Oman Oil Company which operates 226 stations, and Al Maha Petroleum Products Marketing Company which runs 227 stations to make the fuel remain available and to ensure that it’s trucks keep moving

during the lockdown. The Ministry of Commerce and

Industry has emphasised that the current situation must be dealt with caution in accordance with the instructions given by the COVID-19 Supreme Committee and to take all the necessary precau-tions. It said that the fuel would remain available during this peri-od. — ONA

MUSCAT: In coordination with the Supreme Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic, Muscat Municipality has announced that all the com-mercial activities in Ruwi market will be allowed during the weekend while sticking to the designated opening time during the normal days from 7 am to 6 pm taking into

consideration that the shops should close by 7 o’clock.

The municipality noted that the condition for the continuity of these commercial activities is basically subject to the working hours set previously as well as the compli-ance with the precautionary meas-ures and health guidelines.

ruwi market to reopen on weekend

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www.omanobserver.om Thursday, July 30, 2020 7

World

57 per cent Mumbai slum dwellers had coronavirus NEW DELHI: More than half of the residents of the slum areas in three densely-populated districts of Mumbai have been infected with the coronavirus, a study published on Wednesday suggested. The random survey looking for antibodies in nearly 7,000 residents of the three districts showed that in slum areas far more people — 57 per cent of those tested — had contracted coronavirus. In non-slum areas, prevalence of the virus fell to just 16 per cent, Mangala Gomare of the Greater Mumbai Municipal Corporation said. India’s financial hub has emerged as one of the epicentres of the coronavirus with more than 110,000 infected and 6,184 deaths.

Philippines takes ‘major step’ towards using N-powerMANILA: The Philippines has taken a big step towards tapping nuclear power, its energy minister said on Wednesday, after President Rodrigo Duterte created an inter-agency panel to study the adoption of a national nuclear energy policy. As power demand soars in what has for years been among the world’s fastest-growing economies, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi has been passionately advocating use of nuclear power, despite public concern over safety in a country hit frequently by natural disasters. Nuclear power is seen as a potential answer to the Philippines’ twin problems of precarious supply and Southeast Asia’s highest electricity costs, but Duterte has yet to express full support for Cusi’s proposal.

Flooding hits 4.5 million people in BangladeshDHAKA: Widespread flooding triggered by monsoons rain is worsening in Bangladesh, officials said on Wednesday, as they noted that the waters had affected more than 4.8 million people. The country’s Flood Forecasting and Warning Center (FFWC) reported that the situation may worsen further as major rivers in the central districts around Dhaka are set to rise in the next couple of days. After starting in late June, the flooding left more than 1 million people marooned at their homes and at least 41 people, including 31children, dead, Disaster Management Ministry spokesperson Tasmin Ara Azmiri said. Drowning caused most of the deaths, she added. — Agencies

KABUL: Top US officials on Wednesday hailed a three-day ceasefire proposed by the Taliban and agreed by Kabul, raising hopes that the long-delayed peace talks between the two foes could begin next week.

The Taliban declared that the truce would start from Friday, the first day of Eid al Adha, and continue for the duration of the holiday.

The ceasefire offer, the second such truce proposal from the militants in just over two months, came soon after President Ashraf Ghani signalled progress in a contentious prisoner exchange that has delayed the start of peace talks.

A top US official who nego-tiated a deal with the Taliban in February to help with-draw foreign forces from Afghanistan by May next year hailed the ceasefire offer.

“We welcome the Taliban announcement of an Eid ceasefire and the Afghan government’s reciprocal announcement,” Zalmay Khalilzad said on Twitter on Wednesday.

“Our hope is this Eid brings all Afghans together in understanding and mutual respect and one step closer to a sustainable peace.”

The top US diplomat in Kabul, Ross Wilson, also voiced hope that the two sides would move quickly to the negotiating table.

“Afghans deserve to cele-brate the holiday in peace,” he wrote on Twitter late on

Tuesday.The Taliban proposed the

ceasefire after Ghani said his government was ready for talks next week.

“To demonstrate the gov-ernment’s commitment to peace, the Islamic Republic will soon complete the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners,” Ghani told offi-cials, referring to the number of insurgent

inmates the government originally pledged to free under the auspices of the US-Taliban deal.

“With this action, we look forward to the start of direct negotiations with the Taliban in a week’s time.”

Ghani’s spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said that Kabul would observe the cease-fire, but cautioned it did not go far enough. — AFP

US hails Afghan truce as hopes for peace talks rise

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ANALYSISA ‘Waqf’ for training and skill development

It is the testing time for the entire world due to the current economic and social situation. The Sultanate of Oman cannot remain aloof from its surroundings. What is happening everywhere

had implications on development of human resourc-es. The training and skill development programme of all sorts which could help in the employment of the citizens of the country is facing massive challenges. The sustainability of state financing of this crucial programme is now a massive issue. Despite this, it is one of the economic priorities due to its importance to the society. The government has been doing mas-sive service through National Training Fund. Devel-opment of human resources and training is not an easy task. It requires proper planning so that the youth of the country are trained and their skills are developed so that they can become assets for the country which is most important. This training fund helps in this regard. This results in largescale em-ployment of the youth. Any suspension of such serv-ice would have adverse implications. We expect that this will be avoided.

The country has been running this skill develop-ment programme since many years. It has helped in development of most precious wealth in the country in the form of skills. But it is natural that such pro-gramme could face financial obstacles at certain point of time. The drop in oil prices and the corona pandemic has paralysed many economic sectors. Therefore, obstruction in the way of the training pro-gramme cannot be ruled out. This programme has supported job-oriented training of the youth of the country. Therefore, it is important. We need to come up with certain ideas to come out of this crisis. Per-haps setting up of a ‘Waqf’ or endowment fund under any name can be important for future. We must think about having sources of sustainable financing of this programme so that the plans and objectives which we aspired for are achieved and we see citizens of the country at all levels of jobs and employment.

The endowment or ‘Waqf’ is part of Islamic juris-prudence and has a historical legacy in Oman. This can be used for the skill development of the citizens of the country and empower them to be employed.

There are many welfare and financial means which are used for building mosques in the country. The number of mosques and grand mosques in the country has reached 16,000. Some of these means could also be used for social upliftment, social secu-rity and skill development of people. All these servic-es have rewards from Almighty Allah. It is commonly said that a piece of bread in the mouth of a hungry is better than building thousand grand mosques.

Moroccan farm-er Hamid had pinned his hopes on sell-ing his sheep for the Eid al

Adha feast, to make up for a year of drought and the economic pa-ralysis linked to the novel coro-navirus pandemic.

But snap domestic travel re-strictions imposed by the North African country’s authorities on Sunday after a surge in new in-fections has cast a pall over trade ahead of the festival on Friday. While the Moroccan countryside has seen fewer infections than the kingdom’s cities, it has been hit hard by the economic reper-cussions of the crisis.

“We lowered our prices in re-sponse to weak demand,” Hamid said, a mask slung under his chin. For the 54-year-old farmer, who heads to market every year ahead of Eid to sell his livestock for slaughter, “the most impor-tant thing is to earn money af-ter months of hardship when we had zero income.”

According to a study by the High Commission for Planning (HCP), in charge of official statistics, the drop in income has affected 70 per cent of the rural popula-tion compared to 59 per cent of urban dwellers, and 77 per cent of farmers have seen their rev-enues fall in recent months.

This is in part because people from rural areas “who work in the city and transfer a good part of their income to their families have stopped doing so after los-ing their jobs,” agronomist Larbi Zagdouni said.

The lockdown imposed for around 10 weeks from mid-March compounded problems for farmers already facing a se-vere drought in a country heav-ily dependent on agriculture.

In difficult times, many farm-ers rely on selling their livestock to “reduce losses and pay off debts,” 34-year-old farmer Ab-dellatif said.

Eid al Adha will still be cel-ebrated this year even though mosques will not hold public prayers and travel restrictions will limit the traditional family gatherings held during the holi-day. — AFP

Hit by virus and drought, Moroccans tighten belts for Eid

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this page are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the opinion of the Observer.

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I s m a I l B e l l a o u a l I

A Moroccan farmer sells livestock ahead of Eid al Adha at a market. — AFP

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MUSCAT: The Tax Card, which became effective from July 1, 2020, is a manda-tory filing requirement for all taxpay-ers in the Sultanate, according to a key Muscat-based tax expert.

Gaurav Kapoor, Tax Director – PwC Oman, warned that failure to obtain a valid tax card could potentially war-rant a fine from the Tax Authority ranging from RO 200 to RO 5,000.

“The concept of the Tax Card was first introduced by amendments to the Income Tax Law (promulgated by Royal Decree 9/2017),” said Kapoor. “Amendments to Executive Regulations of the Income Tax Law (issue via Ministerial Decision 12/2019) provided further details on the Tax Card but were not yet effective. Ministerial

Decision 27/2020 was issued to make the provisions related to Tax Card effective from 1st July 2020 onwards,” the tax expert stated during a webinar hosted by PwC, a leading provider of assurance, tax and consulting servic-es, earlier this week.

The tax card number, said Kapoor, is required to be mentioned on all corre-

spondences, invoices and contracts entered into by the taxpayer.

“The Tax Card certificate contains information such as: taxpayer’s name, Tax Card number, TIN and CR number, date of expiry (valid for two years from issuance). The fee for issuance is RO 10.

In his presentation, the PwC execu-tive also traced measures introduced by the Tax Authority to ease the impact of COVID-19 on taxpayers.

In addition to an extension in the deadline for the filing of tax returns for the year ended December 31, 2019 and the payment of tax, the Authority also waived additional taxes and fines liable to be paid by taxpayers for delays in the timely filing of tax returns and payment of tax. It also made it possible for taxpayers to settle outstanding tax payments in instalments.

J O M A R M E N D O Z A

www.omanobserver.om THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 9

BUSINESS

Tax Card mandatory for all taxpayers: Expert

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10 THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 www.omanobserver.om

BUSINESS

MUSCAT: Bank Muscat, the leading financial services provider in Oman, in keeping with its vision ‘To serve you better, everyday’ and commitment to customer-cen-tric services has launched a new feature in its Mobile Banking app, which will allow a custom-er to make Eidiya (Eid gift) transfers within the bank to multiple accounts with just a single click.

Using the new option, a customer can make trans-fers up to 10 bene-ficiary accounts at a single time. Customers can download the lat-

est version of the Bank Muscat Mobile Banking app from the Apple App Store, Google Play or Huawei AppGallery to take advantage of the Eidiya feature.

Commenting on the new feature Amjad al Lawati (pictured), AGM - Cards and eBank-ing, said: “Eidiya is an important Omani tradition that spreads joy and happiness in

the hearts of chil-dren during festive occasions and Bank Muscat is happy to share with our valued custom-ers the joy of Eid Al-Adha by offering them the option to offer Eidiya through the bank’s mobile application. This feature is par-ticularly useful during the current circumstances to transfer Eidiya electronically, with-out receiving cash. The bank is proud of its customer-centric approach and continues to launch new prod-ucts and services for the benefit of its customers as per changing times.”

Bank Muscat unveils Eidiya gift feature in Mobile Banking

Mushroom exports are a source of pride for Oman

Oman’s flour-ishing agro s e c t o r includes the cultivation of mushrooms –

a commercial activity dom-inated by a solitary Omani firm.

Today, 90 per cent of its mushroom production is exported overseas, and while it has faced some challenges on this front due to the flight disruptions due to the coronavirus pan-demic, it hopes that export levels will soon return to pre-pandemic trends.

Mushrooms are a healthy product. They contain vita-min D, which contributes to reducing harmful choles-terol, and is thus recom-mended for those who not eat fresh meat.

Nutrients in mushrooms have benefits in tackling osteoporosis and strength-ening teeth. In particular,

its ‘Omani’ brand of mush-rooms is being well-received as a source of Vitamin D amid current lockdown measures when many peo-ple are confined to their homes and are not exposed to the sun, which is a natu-ral source of the vitamin.

Established in October 1999, Gulf Mushroom Production Company was established in October is a public shareholding com-pany specialising in the pro-duction, proessing and marketing of mushrooms.

Its high-tech Barka farm, covering an area of 80,000 sq metres, is the largest in the Middle East.

Featuring 42 cold rooms for the cultivation of fresh

mushrooms, the farm uti-lizes Dutch technology to produce various types of white and brown mush-rooms using fertilizer sourced from its facilities at Thamrait in Dhofar Governorate.

The cultivation and processing is done in a set-ting governed by quality controls, involving the use of high-quality natural raw materials sourced from reputable suppliers, under the supervision of experts.

Besides the RO 30 million capital cost of the project, every aspect of its con-struction and operation is quality controlled.

Workers wear special clothes, hygiene and hand

washing are constant fea-tures, while the farms, processing rooms and labs are governed by quaran-tine measures aimed at keeping harmful organisms and pests away.

Unpleasant odours asso-ciated with the use of ferti-liser are carefully managed as well.

Last year, the company exported $20 million worth of fresh mushrooms to a number of Arab and Asian countries, including Singapore and Malaysia. These products are con-sumed by hotels and the tourism sector.

Today, growing numbers of people are being aware of the health benefits asso-ciated with mushroom con-sumption, thanks in part to marketing campaigns con-ducted by the company in educational institutions, commercial centres and other venues.

HAIDER AL [email protected]

MUSCAT: Local Omani firm Muscat Livestock & Trading Co LLC (MLS) has opened an online storefront on the Shopify platform to deliver quality red meat directly to homes in the Sultanate. MLS is one of Oman’s leading pro-curers, processors, and marketers of premi-um quality beef, lamb, and mutton. The com-pany has also partnered with Visa to offer cardholders an exclusive offer of 25 per cent off all products until August 23, 2020.

Naveed Ahmed, Managing Director, MLS said, “We had already begun to see an increase in demand and potential for online sales for our healthy red meat. COVID-19 was the cata-lyst to take our product direct to the consum-er, offering nature’s finest red meat online on the Shopify platform. Now, consumers can get the finest cuts delivered to their door.”

“With COVID-19, we had to pivot to adapt and evolve our business. Moving forward we plan a balanced approach, both virtual and real. We will elevate our digital presence to reflect our physical presence in Oman. At the end of the day, it’s about elevating customer experi-ence excellence, where digital is the new nor-mal,” added Nadeem Ahmed, Director, MLS.

Omani firm launches online store for home delivery of red meat

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Heathrow calls for UK airport virus tests after £1 bn loss

LONDON: London’s Heathrow airport on Wednesday urged the government to create a coronavirus testing pro-gramme for travellers to replace quar-antines, as it announced more than a billion pounds in losses in 2020.

The air hub, usually the busiest in Europe, said it had recorded a pre-tax loss of £1.1 billion ($1.4 billion, in the first six months of the year, as the pandemic decimates the aviation sector.

Revenues halved year-on-year while passenger numbers dropped 96 per cent in the second quarter, as air travel came to a virtual standstill due to COVID-19 lockdowns around the world, it said. “Today’s results should serve as a clarion call for the government — the UK needs a passenger testing regime and fast”, Chief Executive John Holland-Kaye said in a statement.

“Without it, Britain is just playing a game of quarantine roulette”.

Heathrow has been among the critics

of the British government’s controver-sial weekend decision to quarantine all travellers arriving from Spain, following a recent spike in virus cases there.

It follows the introduction earlier this month of a so-called traffic light quar-antine system, in which passengers from countries deemed high-risk are ordered to self-isolate for 14 days.

Critics would like the UK to follow the lead of countries like France and

Germany and screen passengers from such places.

“Testing offers a way to safely open up travel and trade to some of the UK’s biggest markets which currently remain closed”, Holland-Kaye added.

“Our European competitors are rac-ing ahead with passenger testing, if the UK doesn’t act soon global Britain will be nothing more than a campaign slo-gan”. — AFP

TEXAS: US oil refiners in coming days are expected to report the worst second-quarter results in a decade, with production outrunning demand while pandemic-related closings have sapped summer travel.

Fuel consumption has tumbled, with latest US data showing a 25 per cent drop on auto travel from a year earlier and a 75 per cent decline in passengers at airports. Refiners get the bulk of their profits from domestic fuel sales, with the June quarter among the biggest for travel.

The seven top independ-ent refiners, including Valero Energy Corp, Phillips 66, PBF Energy Inc and Marathon Petroleum Corp,

are expected to post losses.Valero on Thursday is

expected to report a per share loss of $1.41, accord-

ing to IBES data from Refinitiv, compared to a profit of $1.51 a year earlier. The group’s average per

share deficit will be $1.05, according to Refinitiv, com-pared to a $1.65 profit a year-ago.

Refinery crude process-ing rates remain about 2.8 million bpd, or 17 per cent below the seasonal average over the past five years, according to the US Energy I n f o r m a t i o n Administration. Profits also were hurt by high invento-ries, as refiners ramped up in anticipation of business reopenings.

Refiners with retail net-works could receive a boost from sales of tobacco and beer, which ticked up in the quarter and could offset lower year-on-year vol-umes, according to Credit Suisse. — Reuters

PDVSA’s US unit Citgo Petroleum refinery is pictured in Sulphur, Louisiana. — Reuters

Passengers arrive from international flights at Heathrow Airport in London. — Reuters

BUSINESSwww.omanobserver.om THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 11

THE AIR HUB, USUALLY THE BUSIEST IN EUROPE, SAID IT HAD RECORDED A PRE-TAX LOSS OF £1.1 BILLION ($1.4

BILLION, IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THE YEAR, AS

THE PANDEMIC DECIMATES THE AVIATION SECTOR.

US refiners to post worst Q2 results in a decade

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12 THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 www.omanobserver.om

WASHINGTON: In a fast-changing glo-bal pandemic, this was not the turn US Federal Reserve officials hoped for in early June, when their forecasts showed guarded optimism for a sharp-ish early economic rebound and steady slow growth to follow.

In the ensuing seven weeks, much has gone downhill.

The coronavirus pandemic has intensified and prompted new eco-nomic restrictions. Data has pointed to a possible slowdown in business and hiring. And so-far stalled talks in Washington about further govern-ment relief have pushed the country to the brink of a spending cliff.

The risks to the US recovery, in short, have grown substantially, and the new Fed policy statement will show just how seriously US central bankers assess them. On Tuesday the Fed already made one nod to the outlook, extending from September 30 to December 31 the availability of the emergency credit programmes it set up early in the pandemic when hopes of a quick “V” shaped recovery were still strong.

Fed officials “always feared a rushed reopening would lead to a virus resur-gence that would cap the recovery”, said Krishna Guha, Vice Chairman of Evercore ISI. Now that the disease has raced back over the summer, the Fed “is grappling with whether this is a short-term or longer-range setback

and what the implications are for its policy”.

No new economic projections will be issued at this meeting.

Nor is the Fed expected to announce any major policy decisions. Officials may point to a pending shift this fall in how it views its inflation target, or begin setting explicit goals for the job-less rate or inflation to be met before it considers raising interest rates from the current near-zero level.

That goal-based guidance seemed to be favoured by policymakers accord-ing to minutes of the June Fed meet-ing, and several Fed analysts have said they expect it to be announced at the September Federal Open Market Committee session.

But with a dozen new programmes rolled out since March to fight the

economic fallout from the pandemic, the Fed is now watching to see how the economy and events evolve.

Those measures were meant largely as emergency support for an econo-my that likely registered a historic nosedive in the April through June quarter. First estimates of growth in gross domestic product for that peri-od will be issued on Thursday, and the median estimate of economists polled by Reuters is for an annualised decline of 34 per cent.

In addition, recent data suggest the hoped-for rebound, which started with an unexpected round of hiring in May and June, may have plateaued - a motivation for the Fed’s extending its emergency programs at least through the end of the year.

The official jobless rate fell from 14.7 per cent in April to 11.1 per cent in June, for example, but a survey by the Dallas Federal Reserve since then, as well as a new employment forecast by the St Louis Federal Reserve, both suggest employment dipped this month. Last week new claims for unemployment insurance rose for the first time since March.

“The spike in virus cases is indeed sucking the oxygen out of the robust economic recovery” that seemed to be taking shape in May and June, wrote Bank of the West chief economist Scott Anderson in a July 24 analysis.

— Reuters

A cyclist passes the US Federal Reserve in

Washington. — Reuters

BUSINESS

The risks to the US recovery, in short, have

grown substantially, and the new Fed policy

statement will show just how seriously US central

bankers assess them.

Fed faces viral wave, mounting risks to recovery

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sportswww.omanobserver.om Thursday, July 30, 2020 13

SYDNEY: This year’s Australian Open Golf Championship was post-poned on Tuesday because of the coronavirus pan-demic but officials said they were hoping to restage the event early in 2021.

Melbourne’s Kingston Heath Golf Club had been due to host the 105th edi-tion of the historic champi-onship, the world’s fifth old-est professional golf tour-nament, in November.

But with the country bat-tling a surge in COVID-19 cases and the game’s stars facing major tournaments moved to later in 2020, Golf Australia operations man-ager Simon Brookhouse said they would instead look at a “January to March 2021 window”.

The US Masters, original-ly scheduled for April, will now be played in Augusta from November 12-15.

Coupled with COVID-19 travel restrictions and

quarantine measures, that means it would be almost impossible to assemble a world-class field in Melbourne.

“Unfortunately, it is not a simple matter of whether or not we could co-ordinate any international stars to visit,” Brookhouse said.

“The uncertainty of the quarantine requirements

for any players coming from outside Australia needed to be considered,” he said, noting that the restrictions would also impact Australian players currently overseas.

“These are very challeng-ing times for all Australians and the uncertainty the global pandemic has caused makes it very diffi-

cult to be definitive in rela-tion to future dates at this time,” Brookhouse said.

Australia closed its bor-ders to most international travellers in March to curb the spread of COVID-19, although exceptions have been made for some pro-fessional athletes who agree to quarantine for 14 days.

While most of the country has successfully contained the epidemic, Melbourne is struggling to control a sec-ond wave of the virus, clos-ing nearly all travel into the city and surrounding Victoria state.

Last year’s Australian Open in Sydney was plagued by smoke from unprece-dented bushfires. It was won by Australia’s Matt Jones.

The postponement means 2020 will be the first year since World War II in which the Australian Open will not be held. — AFP

Brussels to host Diamond League behind closed doors

BRUSSELS: The Memorial Van Damme in Brussels, the fourth meeting of the coronavirus-hit Diamond League ath-letics season, will be staged behind closed doors on September 4, organ-isers have said.

Officials explained that as a decision has still not been made by the Belgian government on whether fans can return to stadiums from September, they were erring on the side of cau-tion.

“The health and the safety of the spectators, the athletes and the staff are our highest concern and priority,” Brussels meeting director Cedric Van Branteghem said in a statement on Tuesday.

“From a practical point of view the best thing to do was to decide now and to clearly communicate with our fans and our audience on ticketing issues.”

The Diamond League season is set to belatedly get underway on August 14 in Monaco, but meetings in Eugene, London, Paris, Rabat, Gateshead and China have all been cancelled.

The Brussels meet will feature four-time Olympic champion Mo Farah and

Belgian Bashir Abdi attempting to break the track hour record set by Haile Gebrselassie in 2007.

Sweden’s pole vault world record holder Armand Duplantis will also compete at the King Baudouin Stadium.

Olympic heptathlon champion Nafissatou Thiam is set to go head-to-head with rival Katarina Johnson-Thompson, the world champion, in a triathlon featuring the 100-metre hur-dles, high jump and shot put. — AFP

2020 Australian Open golf postponed

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14 thursday july 30, 2020 www.omanobserver.om

SPORTS

MUSCAT: The recently set up, Oman Table Tennis Association (OTTA), held their first board meeting on Tuesday through video conferencing.

The meeting was chaired by Abdullah bin Mohammed Bamakhalef in presence of all the board members. During the meeting, the board approved formation of seven sub-committees.

The national teams and junior centres com-mittee will be led by Sajjad al Lawati while the competitions com-mittee is headed by Masoud al Shaqsi. The umpires committee is led by Moahmmed al Jassasi while Mohammed al Aufi will be in charge of the financial committee. Adil al Balushi will lead the media committee while Maryam al Alawi will take charge of the wom-en’s sports committee. The marketing and sponsorship committee will be headed by Abdullah Bamakhalef. All the head committees should provide a detailed plan with imple-

mentation mechanisms for achieving the desired goals of the association.

The OTTA chairman and the board members reviewed the statutes of

the association and the roles to be taken by the chairman, vice-chair-

man, general sec-retary, treasurer and the other board members. The meeting dis-cussed the clubs’

membership at the association as the

OTTA board believes that the clubs’ have a significant role in imple-menting the associa-tion’s objectives.

In another agenda, the OTTA chief requested some board members to prepare a medical pro-tocol which should be ready during

the resumption of the table tennis activities based on the Supreme Committee directions and decisions. He advised that the medical plan should be in full compliance with the ITTF and the local gov-ernment health entities.

On Sunday, Shaikh Saad bin Mohammed al Saadi, Minister of Sports Affairs, issued a ministe-rial resolution No 146/2020 granting asso-ciation status to the Oman TT body. The sec-ond article of the deci-sion referred to the adoption of the statutes of the association.

The board of OTTA is headed by Abdullah bin Mohammed Bamakhalef as chairman and Sajjad al Lawati is vice-chair-man. Adil al Balushi is the general secretary while Mohammed al Oufi is the board treasurer. Mohammed al Jassasi, Masoud al Shaqsi and Maryam al Alawi are the

board members.

Oman TT body holds first meeting after getting association status

New Otta bOard apprOves sub-paNels

Adil Al BAlushi

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www.omanobserver.om thursday, july 30, 2020 15

SPORTS

MANCHESTER: Stuart Broad wants to follow “idol” James Anderson by being a force for years to come after taking his 500th Test wicket during England’s series-clinching win over the West Indies.The 34-year-old Broad was contro-versially left out of the series opener — the first time he had been omitted from a home Test in eight years — which the West Indies won by four wickets at Southampton.

During that match, Broad revealed how “angry” he felt at being on the sidelines but the Nottinghamshire seamer was included for the final two Tests of the series, both at Old Trafford.

His 16 wickets, at under 11 apiece, were the most by a bowler on either side and pivotal to England’s eventu-al 2-1 win against the West Indies as international cricket returned from the coronavirus lockdown.

He rounded things off in style by taking his 500th wicket during England’s 269-run win in the third Test completed Tuesday, a match that also saw Broad return his first 10-wicket haul at this level since 2013.

“A couple of weeks ago I was in a bit of a thinking place — I couldn’t leave a cricket ground where I’d been left out of the team. I thought ‘where am I going here?’” said Broad.

“But I’m glad I stayed strong because I’m very happy two weeks later.

“You always hear ex-sportsmen saying they knew when it was time to go, that they’d lost that feeling. Well, I’ve still got it in abundance.”

‘IMpRovINg’Broad, who has now joined long-time England new-ball colleague Anderson as one of just seven bowl-ers, and four pacemen, to have taken 500 Test wickets, added: “Jimmy is my idol on that.

“He turns 38 soon and he’s some-one who I have watched very closely, a great friend of mine for many years.

“Over the last few years, he has maintained himself and kept upskill-ing himself to be able to not only compete but get better at this level.

“If you look at both of our records over the last few years, we are actu-ally improving. Compare my last 18 months to my career record and it’s way better, which is always a great sign.”

Anderson, on 589 Test wickets,

suggested before play on Tuesday that Broad, who now has 501 scalps, could surpass his tally, which is already an England record.

“I’ve never even thought about that,” said Broad. “I’m not particular-ly a goal-setter, so it’s not as though I

sit here and say, ‘I want 600 wick-ets’.”

But, having insisted he felt fitter than ever at 34, he added: “If I keep bowling the way I am for the next few years then I wouldn’t rule any-thing out.” — AFp

ENglANd pACER TAkES 500TH TEST wICkET duRINg SERIES-ClINCHINg wIN ovER wINdIES

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www.omanobserver.om thursday, july 30, 2020 16

SPORTSInter stay second ahead of atalantaMILAN: Inter Milan eased past Napoli 2-0 to hold on to second place in Serie A on Tuesday ahead of Atalanta who earlier fought back to beat Parma.Juventus have already sealed their ninth straight league title, but three teams are fighting for sec-ond spot — Inter Milan, Atalanta and Lazio — going into the last round of matches in Italy.

Antonio Conte’s Inter have a one-point lead on Atalanta with the two teams set to go head to head in their final match this season on Saturday.

Lazio, in fourth, will play Brescia on Wednesday, with Simone Inzaghi’s side also still in with a chance of finishing second, with their final game against Napoli at the week-end.

Danilo D’Ambrosio put Inter ahead after 11 minutes at the San

Siro with Lautaro Martinez adding a second with 15 min-utes to go against sev-enth-placed Napoli.

Gennaro Gattuso admitted Napoli would need to find goal-scoring solutions before they face Barcelona in the Champions League last 16 on August 8.

“We have to work, we’re lacking a bit of soul,” said Gattuso, whose side have noth-ing to play for in the league as they are already assured a place in the Europa League as a result of the Italian Cup win.

“After the Italian Cup we’ve performed well but don’t have the knife between our teeth. Against Barcelona it will be a different story.”

Atalanta reacted well after a difficult start in Parma, with Ruslan Malinovskyi and Papu Gomez’s second-half goals sealing a 2-1 victory.

“That was probably our worst first half of the season,” said coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

“After 12 matches at this rhythm, there could be a drop in pace but if we come back as good in the second half, it’s because we’re in form.” — AFP

ItalIan SerIe a reSultS on tueSday:Parma 1 (Kulusevski 43) Atalanta 2 (Malinovskiy 70, Gomez 84)

Inter Milan 2 (D’Ambrosio 11, Martinez 74) Napoli 0

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FEATURES17 THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 www.omanobserver.om

Everyone loves and treasures the Omani Green Turtle as a national, and

natural, icon of the Sultanate, and for 99% of the tourists who come here, a visit to the Turtle Sanctuary at Ras al Jinz, and enjoying the turtle experience, is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and the highlight of their visit.

Contrary to popular opin-ion, the Green Turtle (chelo-nia mydas) is as often not green, as the name refers to the layer of green fat under the shell which is a result of their herbivorous diet, unlike the Hawksbill, Loggerhead, and Olive Ridley turtles, which are also found in this region, and are carnivorous. The Green turtle’s shell, or cara-pace can be green, but may be brown, black, or even yel-low, and a hundred shades in between. Uniquely too, the Green Turtle cannot pull its head into its shell, unlike the other species.

The female turtle matures at an average age of thirty five years, and is believed to be one of 20,000 that return from their first nomadic travels of thou-sands of kilometers to the beach of their birth, navi-gating by the stars, sure in the knowledge that the beach where they were born is a safe environment for laying their eggs. After mating in the shallows off-shore, the female will crawl up above the tide line and dig a deep hole, laying a hundred or more eggs, which she covers and then after a short rest, crawls back to the sea before

dawn, and will not return for another three or four years. The males though, return every year for the mating ritual.

At about 45 days, the tem-perature of the nest will determine their gender, when it’s cool, they will be males, and females when it is hotter. Fifty-five days after laying, the hatchlings, using their ‘egg tooth,’ break out of the shell, dig their way to the surface, and scuttle across the sand, even at this young age navigating by the light of the moon and stars. But it is a perilous dash to the safety of the sea as seagulls, foxes, dogs, and crabs all lay in wait. Watching these small creatures is heart-rendingly emotional as you ‘will’ the tiny creatures to safety, silently cheering them on, while holding your breath in hope!

Incredibly, the Green tur-tle hatchlings begin life as carnivores, and inhabit the deeper seas, eating jellyfish, fish eggs, shellfish, worms, plankton and algae, but after a few years, growing their carapace, they migrate to the shallow lagoons and bays and live off seaweeds and seagrasses which, while providing sufficient suste-nance, have a low nutrition-al value and only support a very slow growth rate.

The Green Turtle then is an amazing work of nature, weighing more than 100kgs, capable of staying underwa-ter for five hours, and capa-ble of swimming at 30 kph when threatened, they are emphatically unique, ungainly and almost ugly on land, graceful, playful and curious in the sea, certainly prehistoric, and undeniably endangered, but in their way, and because of their story, incredibly lovable.

R A Y P E T E R S E N

The Complex Life of the Omani Green Turtle

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www.omanobserver.om THURSDAY, JULY 30, 2020 18

FEATURES

LOS ANGELES: HBO’s (T.N) dys-topian superhero drama “Watchmen” and the 1960s com-edy “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” on Tuesday led an Emmy nomi-nations list dominated by Netflix and what Variety said was a record number of Black actors.

“Watchmen” scored 26 nods, including best limited series, while Amazon Studio’s (AMZN.O) “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” got 20.

Netflix (NFLX.O) led all plat-forms with a record 160 nomina-tions for shows ranging from “Stranger Things” to “Tiger King.” It was followed by HBO with 107, including a surprise nod for Zendaya, the 23-year-old mixed race star of teen drama “Euphoria.”

“Schitt’s Creek,” the sleeper hit comedy about a wealthy family forced to live in a rundown motel, scored 15 nods, including for

best comedy series and its four main cast members.

Actor Eugene Levy said it had taken people time to fall in love with the show, which aired its final season in April.

“The love and inclusivity that the show had touched people in a meaningful way, particularly now, but (also) in the past year certainly with the mood and tone of what was going on in the world,” Levy told Reuters on Tuesday.

Most of the Emmy-nominated shows completed filming before the coronavirus pandemic shut-tered Hollywood production, but the effects of the disease that has confined millions to their homes was apparent in reac-tions on Tuesday.

“This is the best news I’ve had since getting locked up in the

house five months ago,” quipped Alan Arkin, who was nominated for comedy “The Kominsky Method.”

“We are feeling blessed and hoping our show continues to bring a little, lightness, levity and joy,” said “Mrs. Maisel” nominee Tony Shalhoub.

“Succession,” about a sparring media family, scored 18 nomina-tions including nine for its actors. “Ozark,” the saga of a middle-class family that launders money, also received 18 nods.

COLORFUL WOMENHalf of the nominees for best

comedy series were Emmy new-comers, such as female-driven “Dead To Me” and Issa Rae’s “Insecure” take on 20-something Black women in Los Angeles.

“Women of all ages and color have never had it better,” said

Helena Bonham Carter, who was nominated for playing Britain’s Princess Margaret in “The Crown.”

At a time when Hollywood’s record on diversity is under scrutiny, multiple nominations went to people of color, includ-ing Muslim American Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”), Kerry Washington (“Little Fires Everywhere” and “American Son”), Regina King (“Watchmen”) and returning Emmy champion Billy Porter (“Pose”).

The Television Academy did not give a breakdown but Variety calculated that 35, or 34.3%, of the 102 acting nomi-nations went to Black actors, smashing the previous highest tally of 27.7% in 2018.

“I’m proud to see so many Black artists nominated this year. It gives me hope that sys-temic change in our entertain-ment industry is not only possi-ble, it’s imminent,” said Jeremy Pope, reacting to his nod for playing a Black screenwriter in “Hollywood.”

Jennifer Aniston landed her first Emmy nomination in a dra-matic role for her performance as a TV anchor in the Apple TV+ drama “The Morning Show.”

Among the surprises was a best drama series nod and 14 others for “The Mandalorian,” the popular “Star Wars” spinoff on the Disney+ (DIS.N) streaming platform.

The Emmy Awards will be announced at a ceremony on Sept. 20, although it is not clear what form it will take because of the coronavirus pandemic. — Reuters

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Emmy nominations, from ‘Succession’ to ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ put premium on diversity