Amira Tahri: 12-Year Old Dutch-Moroccan Kickboxer Retains World Champion Title for 5th Time : November 2021

Amira Tahri (aka) Wonderkid, The Wonder Girl. Athlete. Kickboxer.

The kickboxing star won the title after she defeated her French rival, Shaina Moniek in the Abu Dhabi World Cup final.

Amira Tahri also made international headlines in 2019, when she was only 9 years old.

During the 2019 competition, Tahri defeated Moneik, the same opponent she faced during Friday’s fight, to secure her world championship for the fourth time.

The Dutch-Moroccan kickboxing star also shared a photo of her wearing a COVID-19 mask, with Morocco’s flag.

source/content: moroccoworldnews.com

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Amira Tahri 12-Year Old Dutch-Moroccan Kickboxer Becomes World Champion for 5th Time. Photo: Amira Tahri Instagram / pix: moroccoworldnews.com

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DUTCH (NETHERLANDS) / MOROCCO

Hakim Alileche Wins Global Awards in Producing Organic Olive Oil – Dahbia, Algeria

Hakim Alileche. Algerian Organic Olive Oil Producer. Brand – Dahbia.

Hakim Alileche left a successful career in graphic design and moved to the Algerian countryside to produce organic olive oil that has won him international recognition.

The 48-year-old says he chose the Ain Oussera plateau for its cheap land and water supply.

“In Algeria, it’s a sacred tree.”

His oil won first prize at the Dubai Olive Oil Competition in the Extra Virgin Early Harvest category in February 2021 and in May he won silver at the Japan Olive Oil Prize.

He has labelled his oil Dahbia, the name of both his mother and his wife.

source/content: english.aawsat.com

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pix: bestoliveoilsorganic.com/pages/dahbia

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ALGERIA

Moroccan Swimmer Hassan Baraka Sets Guinness World Record

With a swimming time of 8 hours and 30 minutes, Baraka secured a Guinness record for setting the “fastest time to swim the length of the Aqaba Gulf.”

Moroccan swimmer Hassan Baraka has set a Guinness World Record for being the first person in the world to swim across the Gulf of Aqaba, northeastern arm of the Red Sea between Saudi Arabia and the Sinai Peninsula. 

source/content: moroccoworldnews.com

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pix: moroccoworldnews.com

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MOROCCO

Damietta’s Winning UNESCO Learning City Award 2021, Egypt : November 2021

UNESCO announced Damietta city is among the ten cities to receive cities  the UNESCO Learning Cities Award 2021

“Whether they are megacities or smaller urban areas, all of the awardees have shown how learning opportunities empower citizens of all ages when suitable policies and programmes are put in place,” said the UNESCO on the official website of the United Nations in Egypt.

UNESCO added that Damietta seeks to promote sustainable development, advance basic skills among adults, and improve public health for a population of over 330,000.

source/content: egypttoday.com

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A bridge in Damietta city, Egypt – Photo via Wikimediacommons / pix: egypttoday.com

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EGYPT

Abdullah Mohammed Al Maainah the Emirati Diplomat who Designed UAE’s Flag

Abdullah Mohammed Al Maainah 

UAE Flag Day – November 03rd.

It is commemorated every year on the anniversary, which is, however, not a public holiday.

The day is marked by schools, government offices, businesses, and individuals hanging the national flag outside their homes and workplaces.

The veteran Emirati diplomat, Abdullah Mohammed Al Maainah, had designed the symbol of the country’s unity, pride and dignity when he was only a teenager 19 years old.

Al Maainah’s design was chosen among more than 1,030 entries submitted as part of a nationwide contest.

Later, the winning flag was raised on December 2, 1971 — the Foundation Day of the UAE.

On December 2, it will be exactly 50 years since the UAE flag was first hoisted to mark the country’s union.

Curiously, he did not know his design had been selected until he saw the flag fluttering at Mushrif Palace in Abu Dhabi with his own eyes.

“It was an overwhelming feeling. All of us were happy because we had unified as one country. However, I was overjoyed the most,” said the veteran diplomat, as he recalled how he found out about the contest and prepared for it with barely any time or resources.

“One of the arrangements related to declaring the establishment of the UAE at that time was to design a flag for it. A committee was formed to look into the matter and an advertisement was put out in the Al Ittihad newspaper inviting submissions from various artists,” he reminisced.

Al Maainah said he stumbled upon the advertisement just three days before the deadline was to expire.

“It was a race against time, as I didn’t have any drawing tools or colouring pencils. I rushed out to get them and worked all night to come up with the design. It was a happy feeling staying awake for the sake of designing the flag for my beloved country,” he added.

Only two flags were raised on December 2, 1971, to mark the formation of the nation – one in Abu Dhabi, the other at Union House in Dubai.

Al Maainah said the colours of the UAE flag were not chosen randomly.

“Every colour has an innate meaning. White symbolises peace, goodness and purity, black represents solidarity, green stands for hope, prosperity and development while red denotes bravery and courage,” he added.

Later, he was awarded 4,000 riyals as prize money, as the UAE dirham was yet to be introduced as the legal tender.

Al Maainah, who has travelled around the world as the UAE’s ambassador to several foreign missions, cherishes the honour bestowed on him by the country’s wise and visionary leadership for his design of the flag.

source/content : khaleejtimes.com

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pix: khaleejtimes.com

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UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E)

Qatar’s Nasser Al Attiyah Wins Morocco Desert Rally and Leads Cross Country World Cup : October 2021

Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah.

Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah won the 21st edition of the Moroccan Desert Rally, the fourth round of the 2021 World Cup for Cross Country Rallies, which lasted for seven days amid the participation of the most prominent rally drivers, and topped the general ranking of the world championship.

The coronation of Al Attiyah and his navigator French Mathieu Baumel in a Toyota Hilux, came after taking first place in the general standings at the end of the five stages with a total time of 15.52.10 hours, 15.58 minutes behind of his nearest competitor, the Saudi driver Yazid Al Rajhi, accompanied by his British navigator Michael Oro in a Toyota Hilux, who came second with a total time of 16.08.08 hours, while Argentine driver Lucio Alvarez, accompanied by his Spanish navigator Armand Monleon in a Toyota Hilux, came third with a total time of 17.03.02 hours.

The title is the sixth for the Qatari rider in the Morocco Rally after 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018, topping the general standings of the World Cup for Cross Country Rally Championship, before competing in the last two rounds, the Emirates Challenge Rally and the Hail Rally in Saudi Arabia during the coming months of November and December respectively.

source/content: iloveqatar.net

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pix: QNA / iloveqatar.net

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QATAR

Moroccan-Spanish Sarah Loinaz Crowned Miss Universe Spain 2021 : October 16th, 2021

Sarah Loinaz. Model. Beauty Queen.

Moroccan-Spanish model Sarah Loinaz was crowned Miss Universe Spain 2021 at the Los Olivos Beach Resort in Costa Adeje, Tenerife, Canary Islands, on October 16.

The gala was hosted by Sofia del Prado, the former crowned Miss Universe Spain in 2017, and finalist of Miss Universe 2017.

Sarah Loinaz will compete at the Miss Universe 2021 pageant, which will be held in Israel, in December 2021.

The Moroccan-Spanish model made her runway debut for a fashion show for VIDDA in April 2019 in Las Palmas, Spain.

In 2017, she represented Spain at the Miss Universe Spain 2017 competition where she placed second behind model Sofia del Prado.

source/content: moroccoworldnews.com

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pix: elespanol.com / El Espanol

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SPAIN / MOROCCO

Egypt’s 5th edition ‘CineGouna Platform announces 20 Winners : October 2021

The CineGouna projects awarded cash and other prizes this year were 13 projects in development, 6 films in post-production, in addition to one guest film in post-production.

The CineGouna SpringBoard jury included Mohamed Soueid, the Lebanese producer and film critic; Nina Lath Gupta, former CEO of the NFDC; and Ismaël Ferroukhi, the Moroccan director and screenwriter.

The jury gave a special mention to Abo Zabaal 1989 (Egypt) by Bassam Mortada for its ability to create a home for memories and surpassing the filmmaker’s own understanding of his life’s events, which were portrayed from the perspectives of his parents. 

A Quarter to Thursday in Algiers (France) by Sofia Djama won the Best Project in Development award with a cash prize of $15,000; a CineGouna Platform certificate; and US $2,000 worth of in-kind services from Clackett.

They Planted Strange Trees (Palestine) by Hind Shoufani won the Best Film in Post-Production award with a CineGouna Platform certificate; a cash prize of $15,000; and The Indie Deer’s cash grant of $10,000.

Fifty Meters (Egypt) by Yomna Khattab won multiple cash prizes: a $10,000 full film promotion package from The Cell Post Production; a $10,000 cash grant from Trend VFX; a $10,000 from Synergy Films; a US $15,000 cash grant for script development from Mariam Naoum and Sard Writing Room; a $5,000 worth of post-production services from BEE Media Productions; a $10,000 from Cult; a $1,000 for locations services from Clackett; and a $7,000 Master’s Degree US scholarship from Gemini Africa.

This project also won a chance from Arab Cinema Center to participate in Rotterdam Film Lab.

Haysh Maysh: False Drama (Morocco) by Hicham Lasri won $30,000 as a minimum guarantee on film distribution from MAD Solutions and Ergo Media Ventures as well as a $5,000 cash grant from Malmö Arab Film Festival.

Aisha Can’t Fly Away Anymore (Egypt) by Morad Mostafa won a $5,000 cash grant from Gemini Africa as well as EGP 50,000 from The Cell Post Production, and was selected for IEFTA’s Global Film Expression initiative. 

Women of My Life (Iraq, Switzerland) by Zahraa Ghandour won a $10,000 cash grant from Maqam Production Films and was also selected for IEFTA’s Global Film Expression initiative. 

Searching for Woody (Egypt) by Sara Shazli won a $5,000 cash grant from BEE Media Productions in addition to $2000 worth of services from Clackett. 

The $50,000 cash grant per sale from OSN prize went to A Song for Summer and Winter (Syria, Denmark, Germany, United States) by Talal Derki and Ali Wajeeh. The film also won $10,000 worth of a full DCP package from The Cell Post Production.

Hanging Gardens (Iraq, United Kingdom, Palestine) by Ahmed Yassin Al Daradji won a $30,000 worth of services and color-grading package from Mercury Visual Solutions, while Hyphen (Lebanon) by Reine Razzouk won a $10,000 cash grant from Clackett. 

Happy Lovers (France, Morocco) by Hicham Lasri won a $10,000 cash grant from Rotana, while Arab Radio and Television Network (ART) gave its $10,000 cash grant to SINK (Jordan, Sweden, Canada, France) by Zain Duraie. 

My Father’s Scent (Egypt) by Mohamed Siam won a $10,000 cash grant from New Black, while The Blind Ferryman – Al Baseer (Iraq, Switzerland) by Ali Al-Fatlawi won a $5,000 worth of post-production services by Hecat Studio.

source/content: english.ahram.org.eg

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pix: english.ahram.org.eg

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EGYPT/ IRAQ / LEBANON/ MOROCCO / PALESTINE/ SYRIA

Anasse Kazib: The French-Moroccan Unionist Running for President in France : October 2021

Anasse Kazib.

With France’s 2022 presidential elections around the corner, Anasse Kazib , a French-Moroccan railroad worker, labor rights activist, and Marxist, has entered the race for the Elysee Palace.

Anasse Kazib was born in 1987 in Sarcelle, the northern suburbs of Paris, to a Moroccan family that emigrated to France in the 1970s to meet the country’s demand for cheap labor.

In July, Kazib, who is an employee of France’s state-owned railroad company (SNCF), announced his “pre-candidacy” for the 2022 presidential elections by launching a “digital campaign” to mobilize support and collect valuable signatures from the electorate.

http://anasse2022.fr/

source/content: moroccoworldnews.com

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Photo credit: Anasse Kazib Facebook / pix: moroccoworldnews.com

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FRENCH / MOROCCAN

Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al Qemzi Secures 3rd World Title ‘UIM F2 World Championship’, Grand Prix of Portugal : October 2021

Rashed Al Qemzi

It was Al Qemzi’s fourth successive Grand Prix win in Portugal

Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al Qemzi secured his third UIM F2 world championship title on Sunday with an emphatic victory in the Grand Prix of Portugal.

Starting from pole position, the brilliant Emirati driver completely dominated the final round of the series at Vila Velha de Ródão, winning by the commanding margin of 8.686 seconds against Duarte Benavente, the defending world champion.

It was Al Qemzi’s fourth successive Grand Prix win in Portugal and his second taste of world title glory this season following July’s endurance championship success in Polamd.

Italian powerboat racing legend Guido Cappellini has now landed 13 world titles since taking charge as Team Abu Dhabi manager in February 2015.

source/content: khaleejtimes.com

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Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al Qemzi. (Supplied photo) / khaleejtimes.com

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ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E)