More than a happy hour: Dubai rang in the new year by ending its 30% tax on alcohol sales and making it possible to obtain personal liquor licenses without charge in a bid to boost its status as the Gulf’s leading business and tourism hub. The move was announced in ads (here and here) by the city’s two state-linked alcohol distributors and official suppliers of police-issued liquor licenses that non-Muslims are legally required to hold in order to purchase alcohol. The AP has more.

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