DUBAI // Ramadan and the summer heat will mean subdued independence celebrations today for expatriate Pakistanis.
Pakistan is celebrating its 66th anniversary but most expatriates will mark the day quietly with family and friends.
The country's embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulate in Dubai will hold flag-raising ceremonies this morning, while the Pakistan Business Council in the capital has arranged a celebratory iftar.
Tonight the country's former president Pervez Musharraf will also host an iftar at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Dubai, where he will address members of his All Pakistan Muslim League political party.
For Homa Qamar, a Pakistani fashion designer in Sharjah, Independence Day is traditionally one of the biggest celebrations in the community.
"I will be having an iftar with a couple of my girlfriends and we will be dressed in green for the occasion," Ms Qamar said. "We will also be putting the flags on our cars and visiting our friends."
In Dubai, celebrations took place early, with the Pakistan Association Dubai organising an evening of activities last night.
"We started off with a pre-iftar medical check for labourers and had a Quran recital and speeches from various members of the association," said Rizwan Fancy, the group's community welfare officer.
"With it still being Ramadan and so hot outside it hasn't been possible to organise anything during the day, so we felt this was the best way to do it. I think most people are preferring to have a low-key independence day this time around."
Jamil Ahmed Khan, the Pakistani ambassador to the UAE, said August 14 "marks the realisation of that emancipatory dream of the poet philosopher of the East, Allama Iqbal.
"Lighting up the flare for freedom in the hearts and minds of the south Asian Muslims ultimately set the tone for the struggle by the founder of the nation, Qaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah, thus culminating in the creation of Pakistan."
Mr Khan praised the close ties between the UAE and Pakistan
"Around 1.2 million vibrant Pakistani expatriates are settled in the UAE and playing their role in the phenomenal success story of the United Arab Emirates," he said.
More than 5,000 Pakistani companies are registered in the Emirates and trade between the two stands at US$8 billion (Dh29.38bn).
nhanif@thenational.ae
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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Series information
Pakistan v Dubai
First Test, Dubai International Stadium
Sun Oct 6 to Thu Oct 11
Second Test, Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tue Oct 16 to Sat Oct 20
Play starts at 10am each day
Teams
Pakistan
1 Mohammed Hafeez, 2 Imam-ul-Haq, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Asad Shafiq, 5 Haris Sohail, 6 Babar Azam, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed, 8 Bilal Asif, 9 Yasir Shah, 10, Mohammed Abbas, 11 Wahab Riaz or Mir Hamza
Australia
1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 Mitchell Marsh, 5 Travis Head, 6 Marnus Labuschagne, 7 Tim Paine, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jon Holland
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
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Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
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- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?
The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.
The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.
He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.
He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.
He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.
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