The Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) announced Wednesday the launch of the fifth Fath Al Khair cruise on July 4. It will start from Malta and including ports in Italy, France and Spain.
Director-General of the Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) Prof Khalid bin Ibrahim al-Sulaiti said during a joint press conference with the captain of the fifth Fath Al Khair Cruise Mohamed al-Sada that the cruise comes within the framework of Katara’s continuous efforts in cultural exchange between Qatar and the Arab Gulf region on one hand, and the Mediterranean countries on the other, in order to raise awareness on the Qatari heritage — especially the maritime culture, as a bridge of communication between peoples.
Al-Sulaiti said the cruise will include three European countries overlooking the Mediterranean coasts, starting from the port of the island of Malta, heading towards Italy, then France, to reach its last stop in Barcelona, Spain.
The cruise also aims to promote the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, present Doha’s preparation to host this championship to the audience from European countries, as well as the huge sports facilities and enormous World Cup stadiums that Qatar has built for this exceptional global championship.
Al Sulaiti praised all the parties that contributed to the success of the trip since the beginning of its launch, namely: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Transport, the Amiri Yachts, the Private Engineering Office, Nakilat, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, in addition to all the various media outlets that contributed to covering the Fath Al Khair trips.
Captain al-Sada affirmed the completion of all the necessary preparations for the launch of the cruise and the readiness of the crew.
On the number of the crew of the cruise, and ways to promote the World Cup, in the ports in which they will stop, al-Sada said that the crew includes 18 sailors who have been carefully selected after passing a series of tests of physical fitness, endurance and navigation, explaining that the cruise course is about 5,700km, departing from the Grand Harbour port of Malta and concluding at the Spanish port of Barcelona.
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He pointed out that the cruise took all means and measures related to security and safety requirements, in addition to finalising all arrangements and co-ordination with the maritime authorities in the European ports that fall on the route, explaining that the cruise programme includes receiving visitors when it stops at European ports within a certain mechanism that guarantees the best results in promoting the World Cup, where meetings will be held aimed at introducing the facilities and sports stadiums that will host the championship matches, in addition to distributing symbolic gifts and introductory brochures to the public in all ports, in addition to holding competitions, in cooperation with the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy.
