Standard Club released a statement according to which direct trade between Qatar and seven states, also known as ‘restricted states’, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Yemen, Libya and the Maldives remains restricted or prohibited.
Human Rights at Sea published the first of a series of case studies on the families of Indian seafarers that are still abandoned for more than 33 months, offshore the UAE. HRAS’s latest publication ‘Abandonment. A Pattern of Human Rights Abuse’ aims to alert the public’s awareness of the consequences to those who suffer, including the family members left behind.
In order to attract liners, Qatar is providing financial incentives. Namely, shipping lines that will have direct services at Hamad Port will receive those incentives. However, one of the conditions to get them, is for these lines not to transship within a range of 250 Nm from the Port. Sources report that this is an attempt by Qatar to use its financial strength to undermine throughput at nearby ports, and attract more liners.
Abu Dhabi Ports, Fujairah Terminals, Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) and network operator Etihad Rail signed an agreement to connect Khalifa Port with the UAE’s national railway network. The facility will ensure the safe navigation of vessels around ports in Abu Dhabi and will provide a variety of services for an efficient access and departure from territorial waters.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the latest state to endorse the IMO instrument providing rules for the prevention of air pollution from ships and energy efficiency requirements. The overall number of ratifications of MARPOL Annex VI is 93, and reflects the 96.6% of the global merchant shipping tonnage.
UAE-based ADNOC Logistics & Services signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China’s Wanhua Petrochemical, to explore the creation of a joint venture to pave the way for the transport of greater gas volumes in line with market demand.
David Jacoby, senior security researcher at Kaspersky, reported that data hacking is a major threat and this applies at both an individual and societal level. In light of cyber attacks, some companies have taken novel steps to try to thwart credential stuffing attacks against their users by obtaining the breached data themselves and cross referencing it against their own database.
The UAE has eased a ban on the shipping of goods between it and Qatar, enforced under a political and economic boycott of Doha, according to port circular. An Abu Dhabi Ports circular cancelled previous directives that banned cargoes of Qatar origin from UAE waters and ports, and those of UAE origin from Qatar.
According to National Advisor Bureau Limited (NABL) the project is an underwater train tunnel, that is planned to connect the UAE and the other GCC countries for the first time in India. The project will consist of a subsea Tunnel and an Ultra Speed subsea railway line.
British human rights charity ‘Justice Upheld’ has started a petition for 40 seafarers from India, Sudan, Tanzania, Eritrea and Ethiopia, who have been deliberately abandoned at sea on ships owned by an UAE-based shipping company for over 27 months without pay.
