Gunman killed after deadly attack at Jeddah palace gate

Agencies
October 8, 2017

Jeddah, Oct 8: A gunman on Saturday drove up to a gate of the king's palace in the Saudi city of Jeddah and opened fire, killing at least two security guards and wounding three others before being shot dead, according to officials.

The attacker, identified by the interior ministry as Mansour al-Amri, a 28-year-old Saudi national, was armed with a Kalashnikov rifle and three Molotov cocktails.

Amri disembarked from his vehicle at a checkpoint outside the western gate to the Al-Salam Palace and started shooting, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

Royal guards shot him dead on the spot.

The palace, where the royal family conducts official business during the summer months, is located next to the King Abdulaziz Road and Andalus Road on the waterfront of the Red Sea coastal city.

Saudi King Salman is currently outside the kingdom on a state visit to Russia.

Embassy warning

Amri did not have a criminal record or any known connection to armed groups, said Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki, speaking by phone to al-Arabiya television.

An investigation was under way to determine his motive for the attack, added Turki.

Earlier on Saturday, the United States Embassy in Saudi Arabia had warned US citizens to exercise caution in the area around the palace after reports on social media of an attack there.

"Due to the possibility of ongoing police activity, American citizens are advised to exercise caution when travelling through the area," the embassy had warned.

Groups such as al-Qaeda and more recently Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) have carried out a number of attacks in Saudi Arabia.

Attackers have targeted Shia mosques in the country's eastern provinces where much of its Shia minority is based, as well as security forces.

This week, Saudi police raided hideouts of a "terror" cell linked to ISIL, killing two people and arresting five, according to the national security agency.

The State Security Agency said police raided three hideouts in the capital, Riyadh, and exchanged gunfire in one of them, the SPA news agency reported on Thursday.es in the country's eastern provinces where much of its Shia minority is based, as well as security forces.

In July this year, Saudi authorities said they foiled an attack on the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, which they blamed on ISIL.

Hundreds of Saudi

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coastaldigest.com news network
October 17,2024

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Great news for Indian nationals! If you hold a tourist visa for the European Union (EU), United States (US), or United Kingdom (UK), you no longer need a pre-entry visa to visit the UAE.

Here’s a simple breakdown of what you need to know:

Who’s Exempt?

Indian nationals who:

Have a valid tourist visa for the EU, US, or UK.

Previously, only those with residence permits from these countries were exempt.

How Long Can You Stay?
 

14-Day Entry Visa: For Indian travelers (and family members) with ordinary passports and a valid tourist visa, residency, or green card from the US, EU, or UK.

> Fee: AED 100 (about INR 2,250)

Extend Your Stay: You can stay an additional 14 days.

> Fee: AED 250 (about INR 5,600)

60-Day Visa: If you plan to stay longer, you can opt for a 60-day visa.

> Fee: AED 250 (same as above)
 

Important Requirements:

Your tourist visa for the EU, US, or UK must be valid.

Your passport must have at least six months of validity.

This update, announced by the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs, and Ports Security, makes travel easier for Indian tourists. Enjoy your visit to the UAE!

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News Network
October 21,2024

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The UN’s special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories has described Israel’s ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip as “the collective shame of the century” amid the failure of the international community to protect Palestinians’ rights.

Francesca Albanese made the remarks in an X post on Sunday, as more than a year of the Israeli onslaught has flattened Gaza, killed tens of thousands of innocent people, and displaced almost the entire population in the besieged territory, often multiple times.

“In Gaza, the collective shame of the century continues unabated and unstopped, in defiance of every norm of international law and morale,” she said.

“The Palestinians, exhausted by relentless attacks on their bodies and souls are abandoned to their tormentors.”

Albanese also noted that “summary executions, mass forced displacements, and other egregious abuses” that are being perpetrated by the occupation forces against Palestinians in Gaza are all “a disgraceful testament to our global failure to protect basic human rights.”

“The United Nations, once a believed beacon of hope and a force for peace, are crumbling under the weight of this shame - and the pressure of the inaction or complicity of its most powerful member states,” she emphasized.

Israel unleashed its brutal Gaza offensive on October 7, 2023, after the Hamas resistance group carried out its historic operation against the usurping entity in retaliation for the regime’s intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

The Tel Aviv regime has so far killed at least 42,603 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 99,795 others, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

In a violation of international law, Israel has issued mass evacuation orders in Gaza and deliberately targeted schools and hospitals, used as shelters by displaced Palestinians.

The US and its allies, which have been supporting Israel, have prevented the UN from putting an end to the brutal aggression against the Gaza Strip despite an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe there.

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News Network
October 28,2024

Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate on Monday undertook fresh searches in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) linked money laundering case in which it has booked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, official sources said.

About seven-eight premises in Bengaluru and Mysuru are being covered, the sources said.

The federal agency had conducted the first round of raids in this case on October 18 when it searched the MUDA office in Mysuru and some other locations.

It also questioned some lower-rank officials of the MUDA at its Bengaluru zonal office last week.

The ED has filed a enforcement case information report (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to book the CM and others taking cognisance of a Lokayukta FIR.

Siddaramaiah is facing Lokayukta and ED probes into alleged irregularities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife by the MUDA.

Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi B M, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy, Devaraju -- from whom Mallikarjuna Swamy purchased land and gifted it to Parvathi -- and others are named as other accused in the case by the two probe agencies.

Parvathi was recently questioned by the Lokayukta.

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