Middle East

Makkah, April 29: The government has announced new Haj policy for 2012 raising expenses and placing a restriction on performing Haj only once in five years. Religious Affairs Minister Khurshid Shah while spelling out details, said Haj expenses have been increased by Rs21,000 for economy and Rs47,000 for green category. Exchange rate rise on Saudi Rial has led to the increase, Shah said. There will

Sharjah, April 28: A massive fire broke out at around 2:30 am on Saturday morning on the north side of Al Tayer buliding in the Al Nahda area of Sharjah. Panic spread among the residents living in the building when fire broke out but they managed to escape unhurt. But residents fear many pets left behind by them in the 34 floor residential building may not survive the fire. The reason for the

Riyadh, April 28: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah received Qatari Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani at his palace in Riyadh yesterday. The king and the Qatari crown prince discussed the current Islamic, Arab and international developments and reviewed ways to further boost bilateral cooperation between the two countries. Sheikh Tamim also conveyed the greetings of the

Dubai, Apr 27: A 35-year-old Indian driver was sentenced to death here for brutally murdering his former boss, also an Indian, by bludgeoning him with a hammer and stabbing him 30 times following a dispute over salary. The Dubai Court of First Instance on Wednesday sentenced the driver, identified only as N K, to death. The verdict remains subject to appeal within 15 days. The victim allegedly

Cairo, April 27: Cairo Egypt's street children are in worse shape due to violence and political manipulation in the wake of the popular revolt that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak more than a year ago, according to activists. "Since Mubarak's overthrow, the [ruling] military council has been responsible for increasing the abuses suffered by street children," said Ahmad Moshli, a legal

Riyadh,April 27: Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef, former deputy chairman of the Shoura Council, has supported the present system of appointing qualified members to the Saudi consultative body. “Shoura is an important system and it needs people of experience and wisdom to run the show. I think people who call for elections have not taken this important point into consideration,” he said. In an exclusive

Chennai, April 26: It was a torturous homecoming for P Periaswamy, a resident of Karkudi village in Perambalur district, who was enslaved by his employer in Saudi Arabia for 18 years. When the 45-year-old finally landed in Chennai on Wednesday morning, the airport police detained him for a couple of hours suspecting him to be the husband of a deserted woman. Periasamy, who went to Saudi Arabia

Dubai, April 26: Mindless litterbugs, gum-chewers and smokers beware. Dubai authorities have unleashed an 869-member legion of litter swatters to curb spitting, littering and throwing of cigarette butts anywhere, XPRESS has learnt. The litter inspectors are armed with receipts and legal authority to note down car plate or labour card numbers of people caught on the spot, a senior official said

Chennai, April 26: Two Indian workers promised construction work in Saudi Arabia but sold as slaves to a camel farm owner are languishing without food in the desert there, say their family members in Tamil Nadu. A. Muniasamy, 45, hailing from Ramanathapuram district and 44-year-old Jagabir Ali from Nagapattinam district have been stuck on a camel farm for the past three months with an expired visa

Dubai, April 26: His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, received US Secretary of Navy Ray Mabus and his accompanying delegation at Zabeel Palace on Wednesday. The meeting was attended by Dubai Crown Prince Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Dubai Deputy Ruler Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al