??More than 1,100 children of UAE women married to foreigners have officially become Emirati citizens.
The President, Sheikh Khalifa, has today formally granted citizenship to the children after approving a list of 1,117 names provided by the Ministry of Interior on January 31, according to state news agency WAM.
Sheikh Khalifa decreed that the children would be granted the full rights of an Emirati - including education, health benefits and employment - on the UAE's 40th National Day.
A previous law passed in 2007 granting UAE women the right to marry foreigners included rules that prospective husbands must be educated, have a job and be able to support their families, must have valid citizenship from a country and must reside in the UAE.
The children of such unions previously grew up as Emiratis but officially were not.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
