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Dubai Expo 2020 opening ceremony to be broadcast around the world

The star-studded opening ceremony for Dubai Expo 2020 will be streamed live to more than 430 locations across the UAE, giving everyone the chance to participate in the spectacle, wherever they might be. This will be followed a night later by three spectacular fireworks displays in Dubai, marking the first full day of the Expo in a spectacular visual celebration commemorating the journey from winning the bid in 2013 to the opening. On Thursday, nation-wide opening ceremony viewing parties will take place across the country, thanking the nation for its support and inviting everyone to come together to celebrate this momentous occasion. Screens will be set up in locations ranging from airports and shopping malls to hotels and other landmarks, relaying the incredible music and cultural performances as they happen. Among those slated to perform are world-famous tenor Andrea Bocelli; Grammy-nominated, Golden-Globe-winning actress, singer and songwriter Andra Day; platinum-selling British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding; international mega-star pianist Lang Lang; and four-time Grammy winner Angelique Kidjo. The fireworks displays will take place on Friday evening, kicking off at 20:20, at Dubai Festival City, the Frame and the Pointe, Palm Jumeirah, with each presenting their own unique celebrations. The star-studded opening ceremony for Dubai Expo 2020 will be streamed live to more than 430 locations across the UAE, giving everyone the chance to participate in the spectacle, wherever they might be. This will be followed a night later by three spectacular fireworks displays in Dubai, marking the first full day of the Expo in a spectacular visual celebration commemorating the journey from winning the bid in 2013 to the opening. On Thursday, nation-wide opening ceremony viewing parties will take place across the country, thanking the nation for its support and inviting everyone to come together to celebrate this momentous occasion. Screens will be set up in locations ranging from airports and shopping malls to hotels and other landmarks, relaying the incredible music and cultural performances as they happen. Among those slated to perform are world-famous tenor Andrea Bocelli; Grammy-nominated, Golden-Globe-winning actress, singer and songwriter Andra Day; platinum-selling British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding; international mega-star pianist Lang Lang; and four-time Grammy winner Angelique Kidjo. The fireworks displays will take place on Friday evening, kicking off at 20:20, at Dubai Festival City, the Frame and the Pointe, Palm Jumeirah, with each presenting their own unique celebrations. Both the Pointe and Dubai Festival City will incorporate their fountains into a dazzling light and sound show themed on Expo 2020, while The Frame façade will be lit up in Expo colours. The flags of participating countries will also be displayed at each, with booths on the ground for purchasing Expo 2020 tickets. The roster of streaming locations for the opening ceremony includes more than 240 hotels nation-wide, including Emaar’s Rove, Armani, Address Hotels & Resorts, and Vida Hotels & Resorts, as well as Accor, Marriot, Hilton, IHG, Rotana, Jumeirah, Hyatt International and Atlantis the Palm. Expo 2020 Partners are also offering their invaluable support, with many, including Dulsco, Terminus Group, L’Oreal and Nissan, hosting Opening Ceremony viewing parties for their staff. Emirates, the official airline partner of Expo 2020 Dubai, will also stream proceedings across its first and business class lounges, both local and international.

Create: Sep 30, 2021 Edit: Sep 30, 2021 International News

Residence Inn by Marriott Bogotá Debuts in Colombia

Residence Inn by Marriott, part of Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of 30 extraordinary brands, announced today the opening of its newest property, Residence Inn by Marriott Bogotá. Marking Residence Inn’s debut in Colombia, the hotel is located at Calle 90 # 16-30, just a few steps from 93rd Street Park and in the middle of the most vibrant and cosmopolitan area in the Colombian capital. Operated by oxoHotel — a company specialized in the conceptualization, development and operation of multi-brand and multi-segment accommodations — the new Residence Inn by Marriott Bogotá welcomes business and leisure travelers with upscale design and architecture that enhances the guest experience with open spaces to relax and live without constraints. Residence Inn by Marriott Bogotá provides direct access to Chicó Market (Mercado del Chicó), an innovative gastronomic complex with more than 30 gastronomic offerings, located adjacent to the hotel, as well as to Bodytech Calle 90, one of the best medical sports clubs in Colombia. “We are very pleased to introduce the Residence Inn by Marriott brand for the first time in Colombia,” said Diane Mayer, Vice President & Global Brand Manager of Classic Select Brands, Marriott International. “We’ve seen increased demand for longer stay brands that offer modern amenities, open room layouts and sophisticated design to spread out, recharge and maintain a healthy balance while on the road, whether for business or for fun. Travelers can make the most of their stay by choosing the Residence Inn by Marriott Bogotá.” The hotel offers 131 all-suite, flexible guest rooms including studios and one- or two-bedroom suites. Guests will feel right at home with separate areas for living and sleeping with plush bedding and linens, providing an intimate atmosphere that invites connection and productivity. The hotel design makes use of organic materials and textures combined with warm colors, transition palettes, as well as textiles and ancestral Colombian goldwork that feature crisp and inspiring details, offering comfort the moment a guest enters the hotel lobby. LONGER STAY Designed for stays of five nights or more with maximum benefits in mind, Residence Inn stands out for its modern residential decor based on the idea of ‘travel the way you live.’ It is a concept where openness, freedom and love for life translate into personalized service and unrestricted experiences. Fully equipped kitchens in each suite – complete with a refrigerator, cook top, microwave, dishwasher, residential-size appliances, and dishes and cookware – set the stage for home-cooked meals, paired with Residence Inn’s complimentary grocery delivery. Guests will also appreciate large in-suite workspaces with a well-lit desk, ergonomic seat and high-speed wireless internet access. Residence Inn offers a wide variety of healthy and natural options on rotation for its daily complimentary breakfast, included in the room rate. We are delighted to open the first Residence Inn in Colombia in an area surrounded by impressive shops, restaurants and experiences that invite business and tourism. Each suite has been developed to create sensations of being close to home with personalized welcoming moments,” said Juan Carlos Galindo, CEO of oxoHotel. “With this opening, we are not only reaffirming our intention to offer enhanced experiences to our guests, but also to reignite tourism and new hotel projects in Colombia.”

Create: Aug 1, 2021 Edit: Aug 1, 2021 International News

IHG Welcomes Australia’s First Next-Generation Holiday Inn to Melbourne’s West

IHG’s Holiday Inn brand, one of the most iconic and trusted brands in the world, has undergone a global transformation over the last 18-months and its next-generation design includes innovative open lobbies and incredible F&B. Opening in Melbourne’s West this week, Holiday Inn Werribee boasts these new brand hallmarks and is a great example of how vibrant and stylish the new-look Holiday Inn hotels have become. An exciting addition to one of Melbourne’s fastest growing suburbs, the brand new, purpose-built hotel in central Werribee, Victoria features 150 contemporary and modern rooms, an open lobby, onsite bar and restaurant and versatile meeting spaces. Encompassing the top four floors of 22 Synnot Street, Werribee, the hotel offers striking, unparalleled views over Werribee and towards Melbourne’s city skyline. A first for the Holiday Inn brand within Australasia, Holiday Inn Werribee features an Open Lobby concept that transforms the traditional hotel lobby and is based on understanding how people use space at home to give guests the most flexibility, to eat, relax, work, or socialise in one space. Designed with the needs of the modern traveller in mind, the public spaces feature a contemporary lounge area and an e-Bar for those who need to catch up on the day’s news or work, whilst still being part of the social vibe of that space. Guests along with members of the public can enjoy all-day-dining at Rosana Bistro & Bar, which serves up modern Australian cuisine with a menu full of fresh local produce, sourced from within the Werribee region. Offering comfortable and modern short stay accommodation, guests will feel right at home in Holiday Inn Werribee’s spacious, modern light-filled rooms, each featuring comfortable bedding, large TVs and free unlimited high speed WIFI. Families are well catered for with family rooms and interconnecting suites and the Holiday Inn signature promise that Kids Stay & Eat Free.* Conveniently located in the heart of Werribee, the hotel offers easy access to the world class tourism attractions which can be found within the Werribee Park Precinct, such as the Werribee Open Range Zoo, Werribee Mansion, Victorian State Rose Garden and the National Equestrian Centre. It is also located within easy walking distance of the burgeoning foodie hub of Watton Street and is a short drive away from Werribee Mercy Hospital. Preston Miskelly, General Manager of Holiday Inn Werribee said his team was excited to open their doors and welcome their first guests to Werribee. “Reliably familiar, yet refreshingly different, Holiday inn Werribee is a comfortable and inviting home away from home. Our open lobby with its floor to ceiling windows and amazing views, not only gives our guests a warm and welcoming place to relax, work or socialise, it is also home to our modern restaurant and bar. It is the ideal location to enjoy dinner or drinks with family and friends as you watch the sun go down.” The opening is the first in an exciting period of growth for the Holiday Inn brand in Australasia with other new build hotels in the pipeline – including the opening of Holiday Inn Remarkables Park, Queenstown in October 2021 and Holiday Inn Melbourne Bourke Street Mall in 2022. These hotels will join the 41 open or pipeline Holiday Inn brand family hotels in Australasia & Pacific. Globally, it’s the world’s largest brand family with more than 4,100 open and over 1,000 in the pipeline, continuing to create many more destinations for the moments that matter.

Create: Aug 1, 2021 Edit: Aug 1, 2021 International News

17 hotels, apartment hotels under construction in Qom

A total of 17 hotels and apartment hotels are being constructed across the central province of Qom, adding 2894 beds to the province’s hospitality sector. Over 16 trillion rials (about $381 million at the official exchange rate of 42,000 rials per dollar) has been invested in the hotel projects, the provincial tourism chief has said. Upon their completion in the near future, these hotels are expected to generate 936 job opportunities, Alireza Arjmandi announced on Saturday. In parallel with the growth of tourism, related industries, such as transportation, souvenir, and handicraft supply centers, will also expand, which could lead to economic prosperity, the official added. The second-holiest city of the country after Mashhad, Qom is home to both the magnificent shrine of Hazrat-e Masumeh (SA) and the major religious madrasas (schools). Apart from sightseers and pilgrims who visit Qom to pay homage at the holy shrine, the city is also a top destination for Shiite scholars and students who come from across the world to learn Islamic studies at its madrasas and browse through eminent religious bookshops. The antiquity of Qom goes back to the Sassanid era (224 CE–651) and several historical mosques, mansions, and natural sceneries have been scattered across the city as well as towns and villages nearby.

Create: Aug 1, 2021 Edit: Aug 1, 2021 Regional News

Five Ways Tech Builds the Next Stage of Local Authenticity for Hotel

Coming out of the pandemic, guest demands have irreversibly changed. They don’t want cookie-cutter rooms; they want experiences. This harks back to the push over the previous decade to make our properties more ‘locally authentic’. Now, with lean teams and skeleton crews, the only way to effectively meet this demand is through technology.For the post-pandemic travel landscape, local authenticity means more than just a cursory immersion in the arts, culture and heritage of one’s locale. It also equals peace of mind because, in light of the residual anxiety over COVID-19, guests need to feel as though their specific requests are being handled.As a simple leisure scenario, picture yourself going on an international vacation with your loved one for the first time since the virus struck. You have all the new airport procedures to contend with. You’ve been wearing a mask for hours on end, which is inherently uncomfortable. And now you’re in a foreign city and country and don’t know what attractions and stores have reopened or what the local safety guidelines are, on top of a myriad of other questions that would require some digging online. Instead, wouldn’t it be great to know that your host hotel has your back the whole way?In the past, luxury brands have provided this kind of omniscience by deploying an army of staffers, but this model won’t jive in the post-pandemic, hyper-labor-efficient market conditions. Moreover, hotels must be proactive in the pre-arrival stage to ensure incoming guests have everything that they need and to make arrangements on their behalf. This sets the pace for a great onsite experience in lieu of the outdated ‘reactive’ process of waiting for guests to reach out to you with their inquiries. Done right, hotels can utilize integrated platforms and build a versatile CRM to connect the entire guest journey that also offers a clear counterargument to the largely self-serve nature of home-sharing accommodation providers such as Airbnb. Here are five ideas to help you incorporate this newfangled, full-service model. 1. Home-sharing platforms offer a direct, two-way messaging service with the accommodation host, and hotels must do the same. Brands should be using a chatbot to immediately respond to the simpler questions –which represent the majority of inquiries – then bouncing the more complex ones onto your front desk or concierge. Ditto for the voice channel where booking engines are available 24/7 and so too must your intake team be ready at all hours in order to win the business. 2. Speaking of booking engines, these should no longer be only for rooms, particularly if we want to continue to push guests towards our websites from the OTAs. Customers should be able to plan their entire trip itinerary from these portals, starting with dining reservations and spa appointments through to arrival amenities and perhaps a few ‘surprise and delight’ freebies such as their preferred, complimentary welcome refreshment or departure gift. With so much confusion about what’s open and what’s not, being an ambassador means guiding guests through this uncertainty as early in the customer journey as possible. 3. Physically getting to an accommodation booked through a home-sharing platform is mostly a laissez-faire ordeal. So, why can’t hotels offer bespoke, point-to-point guidance on transportation to and from the rail station or airport, as well as recommendations on how to get to the city or region? As a guest’s perception of your arrival experience can depend on the agony of how one arrives at the hotel, why leave this to chance? Besides better integrations to flight trackers so that you know exactly when your guests are expected to arrive, such innovations as autonomous vehicles are just around the corner, which could drastically bring down the costs of shuttle services. Grandiose for now, perhaps a present-day possibility would be a flight tracker integration so that you know when guests are expected to arrive and can be ready with a warm welcome. 4. The future of travel will be more purpose-driven. Namely, with so many anxiety-riddled barriers following COVID-19, guests will want to maximize their time while aboard. Planning a guest’s itinerary or making local recommendations has traditionally fallen under the purview of the concierge, but the time is right for building a ‘pick your own adventure’ program of bundled, turnkey half-day and full-day activities. This will require deeper integrations with third-party operators as well as a rethink of what onsite or offsite services are most meaningful for guests based upon their given travel purpose. For instance, a late-afternoon, post-meeting relaxation package with a whiskey tasting, revitalizing nosh and back massage will have vastly different appeal from a daylong sightseeing tour that includes timed entrances to exclusive local events. 5. The post-stay relationship is where home-sharing hosts are weakest. The platform does the brunt of this, focusing more on exploring new destinations rather than return visits. For hotels, traditionally the last interaction between guest and staff was often a checkout at the front desk where the final bill was confirmed, representing an emotionless, transactional touchpoint. Now with contactless checkout, hotels can transform this into a meaningful ‘thank you’ gesture followed by a series of one-to-one messages based upon what a guest utilized while onsite. With a fully integrated CRM, this messaging can be sentient insofar as knowing when to push for additional sales and when to simply keep past guests up to date on the latest happenings.

Create: Jul 28, 2021 Edit: Jul 28, 2021 Hotel Management

Driftwood Hospitality Rebranding Former Red Lion Hotel Paper Valley to Hilton Appleton Paper Valley

Today, Driftwood Hospitality and Hilton Hotels & Resorts announce the rebranding of the former Red Lion Hotel Paper Valley to Hilton Appleton Paper Valley. After a property refresh, the hotel will open its doors under Hilton’s flagship brand in late 2021. Located in a premier location in the heart of downtown Appleton, the 388-room hotel is poised to welcome leisure and business travelers with well-appointed accommodations, while boasting 38,000 square feet of flexible, customizable event space making it the ideal location for downtown meetings and celebrations. Connected to the Fox Cities Exhibition Center, the hotel offers unparalleled access to all that downtown has to offer such as performing arts, museums, and shopping. Renovated as recently as 2018, the property will undergo a full Hilton refresh, including guestrooms, public areas, and event space, prior to the official conversion. “The complete renovation of the hotel is a great indication of the strength of our hotel and is welcomed by our employees and guests alike,” remarked Linda Garvey, general manager. “We remain committed to serving our community as a major anchor to the downtown area and also an exceptional employer in the hospitality sector of our city.” Offering 38,000 square feet of meeting space, Hilton Appleton Paper Valley will allow meeting planners to choose from 26 function rooms and an outdoor courtyard area to accommodate important board meetings, business conferences, banquets, or wedding receptions. The well-appointed space can host up to 2000 guests and is the perfect venue for weddings, receptions, conventions, business conferences, small meetings, banquets, trainings, birthdays, and other social, educational, governmental, and corporate events. While staying at the hotel, guests can choose to dine at any of the five restaurants and lounges on site, including the award-winning Vince Lombardi’s Steakhouse. Boasting sizzling steaks, superb wines and a one-of-a-kind atmosphere decorated with more than 400 pieces of the Green Bay coach’s personal memorabilia and classic photos, Vince Lombardi’s Steakhouse is a dining icon in the Fox Cities. The Clubhouse and The Orchard Cafe are also perfect dining choices for guests in search of a more casual atmosphere. Jo a la Mode offers grab and go options and coffee, while the Blaze Bar is perfect for social gatherings, unwinding, business meetings, and happy hours at the end of a busy day. Additional amenities such as a heated indoor swimming pool and a beautiful outdoor courtyard with comfortable seating create a relaxing space for guests to unwind. A 24-hour, state-of-the-art fitness center is also available offering guests weights, treadmills, ellipticals and stationary bicycles, to keep up with their workout routine. With the property’s complimentary shuttle, visitors can travel to and from the airport stress free. To emphasize its commitment to the health and safety of guests, Hilton Appleton Paper Valley is participating in the Hilton CleanStay Program to deliver an industry-defining standard of cleanliness. Hilton’s elevated processes and Team Member training have been developed with Reckitt, maker of Lysol and Dettol, to help guests enjoy an even cleaner and safer stay from check-in to check-out.

Create: Jul 28, 2021 Edit: Jul 28, 2021 International News

Noble Acquires the Hampton Inn and Home2Suites by Hilton Tampa Downtown | Channel District

Noble Investment Group today announced the acquisition of Hampton Inn and Home2Suites by Hilton Tampa Downtown | Channel District and Starbucks Coffee Channel District. Opened in July 2019, these newly built dual-brand hotels and retail Starbucks Coffee store are located in Tampa, Florida’s rapidly growing Downtown Channel District.Tampa is a vibrant metropolitan city that enjoys a depth and breadth of leisure, corporate, healthcare, and government demand. The market is anchored by 6.5 million square feet of office space, the 1,000-bed Tampa General Hospital, and the 600,000 square foot Tampa Convention Center. Tampa’s Channel District is connected to Water Street, a $3 billion, 9 million square foot development that has delivered a 350,000 square foot campus for the University of South Florida School of Medicine and will ultimately deliver more than 2.3 million square feet of new office space and 3,500 residential units. The hotels are central to the Tampa Cruise Port, Sparkman Wharf, Florida Aquarium, and Amalie Arena.

Create: Jul 28, 2021 Edit: Jul 28, 2021 International News

Trans-Iranian Railway gains UNESCO World Heritage status

Trans-Iranian Railway that reaches a length of 1400 km has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. The UN body accepted Trans-Iranian Railway during the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee, which will be running through July 31 in China’s Fuzhou. The railway can be regarded as a turning point for comprehensive developments in Iran. These developments include a wide spectrum of various economical, commercial, social, cultural, and even political aspects in a sensitive and important period of contemporary world history. Under the Pahlavi regime, the process of moving towards modernism gained momentum and the railway became the main pedestal of development in Iran. Consequently, the 1394 kilometers long Trans-Iranian Railway was built with a width of 1435mm and 90 working stations along its route. It starts at a point north of Torkaman port located southeast of the Caspian Sea. After going through Sari and Qaem-Shahr cities, the railway enters the mountainous region of Alborz through the high Firooz-kooh Pass which is linked with Tehran and Varamin Plain by numerous bridges and tunnels. Further on after crossing the flatlands of Qom and Arak, the Trans-Iranian Railway penetrates Zagros highlands in Lorestan Province and passing through a large number of tunnels and bridges reaches Andimeshk situated in the low Kuzestan Plain. Finally extending to the vicinity of Dezful, Ahwaz, and its grand bridge on Karoon, the Trans-Iranian Railway is divided into two branches ending separately at Khoram-Shahr and Imam-Khomeini ports on the Persian Gulf.

Create: Jul 28, 2021 Edit: Jul 28, 2021 Regional News

Male, Female, or X: Argentina to issue gender-neutral passports

Argentina will start issuing gender-neutral passports to non-binary citizens, becoming the first Latin American country to do so. The cards will feature an ‘X’ in place of the traditional ‘M’ or ‘F’ gender descriptors. The issuance of the first gender-neutral passports was announced in a decree by President Alberto Fernandez on Tuesday, with a public announcement expected on Wednesday morning. Argentina’s Gender Identity Law was passed in 2012, and allowed citizens to change their gender without first undergoing psychiatric evaluation or physical transition. It also allowed them to identify as a non-binary third gender, though official documents such as ID cards, passports and tax forms still required them to choose from male or female. According to Fernandez’ decree, the new ‘X’ options will stand for: “non-binary, indeterminate, unspecified, undefined, not informed, self-perceived, not consigned; or another meaning with which the person who does not feel included in the masculine/feminine binomial could identify.” Argentina will be the first country in the region to issue such gender-neutral travel documents, though other countries around the world have done so for some time already. Certain US states allow non-binary people to identify as “X” on driver’s licenses or other forms of ID, and several European countries record the rare percentage of intersex births as a third category on birth certificates. The Netherlands issued its first gender-neutral passport in 2018 to a woman who was born intersex, raised male, and eventually transitioned to female, but still identified as intersex.

Create: Jul 24, 2021 Edit: Jul 24, 2021 International News

Croatia launches pilot project urging hotels to reduce food waste

On 7 July, the Croatian Ministry of Tourism and Sports announced that it has presented a pilot project entitled “Reduce food waste, cook for your guests” at the Park Plaza Histria Hotel in Pula. This project has been created in collaboration with the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, the Faculty of Geotechnics from the University of Zagreb, and the Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency. Environmental impact of hotels During the presentation of this project, the Deputy Director of the Fund Alenka Košiša Čičin-Šain explained that hotels are one of the most important stakeholders in tourism; what is more, their operations have a significant impact on our environment. For this reason, they must reform their way of doing business and turn to more sustainable methods. Košiša Čičin-Šain further commented on the project’s aims noting: “We have been dealing with waste management in the Fund for years. Croatia has obligations that it must achieve in accordance with EU and national legislation, so by 2022, it is necessary to collect 40% of the mass of produced biowaste separately. This pilot project is aimed at reducing food waste, but also at proper separate collection and disposal of waste.” What are the goals of the project? Through “Reduce food waste, cook for your guests” the aforementioned bodies seek to encourage both staff and guests to be mindful of the way their actions impact the environment. More specifically, hotel guests must be inspired to correct their eating habits so that they do not fill their plates with more food than they are planning to consume. In this way and with these simple actions, people can contribute to the significant reduction of food waste. Maja Feketić from the Fund for Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency further highlighted that hotels from other countries have taken up similar projects, achieving a 30% reduction of food waste. Feketić notes that this will not only help reduce the negative impact on the environment but it will also result in large financial savings. The “Reduce food waste, cook for your guests” pilot project will take place during the summer until the end of September in two Croatian hotels in Pula and Osijek. After September, its results will be made public so that people can understand how simple actions can make a difference.

Create: Jul 24, 2021 Edit: Jul 24, 2021 International News

Hotel fire in southern Iraq kills child

A fire broke out at a hotel in Iraq’s southern city of Karbala on Sunday killing one child, civil defence officials said. Fire fighters and civil defence teams managed to rescue 78 people after the blaze inside the four-story Dai Al Hussain Hotel in the centre of the city. The cause of the fire has not been disclosed, although authorities said an investigation has been opened. “A girl died in hospital due to smoke inhalation which caused her to suffocate despite attempts to resuscitate her,” civil defence statement said. There have been numerous fires in Iraq this year, including in a Covid-19 facility in the southern city of Nasiriyah in Dhi Qar governorate, which killed more than 60 people. Police have said the blaze at Al Hussein hospital earlier this month was due to faulty wiring that caused an oxygen tank to explode. Citizens blame corruption, negligence and mismanagement in various sectors of government for the disasters. Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi ordered the arrest of top health officials last week, following the deadly fire in Nasiriyah. President Barham Salih and Mr Al Kadhimi blamed the fire on negligence cause by corruption and political interference in the management of the hospital, and vowed to take action. Iraq's former health minister, Hassan Al Timimi, resigned in April following a fire in Baghdad's Ibn Al Khateeb hospital that killed at least 82 people. Most of them were Covid-19 patients who needed ventilators to help them breathe. The cause of the fire was also an oxygen tank explosion. The coronavirus pandemic has put a heavy strain on Iraq's health services. Before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic hospitals across the country were already struggling to provide patients with a good standard of care. The healthcare system has been affected by years of mismanagement, a lack of accountability, violence and factionalism since the US-led invasion in 2003, and before that by years of sanctions.

Create: Jul 19, 2021 Edit: Jul 19, 2021 Regional News

Lisbon airport handling strike spurs cancellation of 200 flights

Two hundred flights were cancelled at Lisbon airport on Saturday at the start of a two-day strike by Groundforce handling company workers, with more cancellations likely before the action ends on Sunday evening, the company that manages Portugal’s airports (ANA) said. A spokesman for the Union of Airport Handling Technicians, which called the strike, told local news agency Lusa that about 100 per cent of workers had taken part in the strike in Lisbon on Saturday, the busiest airport in the country. The strike has had a huge impact on Portuguese flag carrier TAP, which uses Groundforce’s handling services, but it has not affected low-cost airlines. Groundforce workers are demanding that the handling company, which is in serious financial difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic, pay wages without any delay, along with this year’s holiday pay. The strike mainly affects the operation of Lisbon airport, and has little impact on the other nine Portuguese airports, ANA chief executive Thierry Ligonnière said. “We still anticipate difficulties tomorrow and a progressive return to normal on Monday,” Mr Ligonnière told reporters. Groundforce is 50.1 per cent owned by the Portuguese firm Pasogal and 49.9 per cent by the TAP-Air Portugal group, which in turn is 72.5 per cent controlled by the Portuguese state. TAP offered to lend the money necessary for Groundforce to pay the holiday pay to its workers, but the proposal was turned down by the handling company.

Create: Jul 18, 2021 Edit: Jul 18, 2021 International News