Waxing Lyrical: Madame Tussauds to Open Museum in Dubai

A picture taken on July 19, 2020 shows Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure and building in the world. (AFP)
A picture taken on July 19, 2020 shows Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure and building in the world. (AFP)
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Waxing Lyrical: Madame Tussauds to Open Museum in Dubai

A picture taken on July 19, 2020 shows Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure and building in the world. (AFP)
A picture taken on July 19, 2020 shows Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure and building in the world. (AFP)

London's renowned wax-work museum Madame Tussauds will open its first outpost in the Arab world in Dubai later this year, the group's owner Merlin Entertainments said Tuesday.

The brand, which began life in London where it boasts 250 wax sculptures that draw millions of visitors annually, also has smaller branches in the United States, Europe and Asia.

"Today, Merlin Entertainments Ltd, the second largest attraction operator in the world, has officially announced the opening of the world-famous wax attraction, Madame Tussauds in Dubai," the company said in a statement.

"The iconic attraction is set to open its doors later this year," it said.

The Dubai branch would display 60 sculptures of "global stars", 16 of them from the region including Lebanese pop stars Nancy Ajram and Maya Diab, it added.

Dubai was one of the first destinations to reopen its doors to international visitors amid the pandemic in July 2020.



Sunken WWII Japanese Warship Found Off Solomon Islands

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
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Sunken WWII Japanese Warship Found Off Solomon Islands

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust
A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki. Photo: Ocean Exploration Trust

An international research team has located a Japanese World War II destroyer on the deep seabed off Solomon Islands as the 80th anniversary of the war's end approaches.

A team from the US non-profit Ocean Exploration Trust discovered the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Teruzuki at a depth of more than 800 meters (2,625 feet) off the small island nation northeast of Australia, AFP reported.

A video image of the wreck shows parts of the 134-meter (440-foot) Teruzuki, which was torpedoed by the US military in 1942, illuminated by lights from the research team's underwater drones.

The footage shows red paint on the hull, corroded gun barrels and the warship's massive stern.

Commissioned in 1942, the Teruzuki was designed for screening aircraft carriers from aerial attacks, the exploration group said.

However, the Teruzuki, which means "Shining Moon" in Japanese, was hit by US torpedoes just months into its service.

Nine sailors were killed but most of the crew members survived, the Ocean Exploration Trust said.

Teruzuki's stern was found more than 200 meters (660 feet) from the hull and was located by high-resolution sonar scans, it said.

The discovery was made while the team used drones to survey the area in the hope of finding unidentified shipwrecks or other items.