Middle East

Washington, Dec 12: US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he stood by Saudi Arabia's crown prince despite a CIA assessment that he ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and pleas from US senators for Trump to condemn the kingdom's de facto ruler. Trump refused to comment on whether Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was complicit in the murder, but he provided perhaps his most

Riyadh, Dec 12: Saudi audiences have been treated to a 10-day feast of classical music, including the world premiere of the Arabic translation of the lyrics of Schubert’s “Winter Journey” romantic song cycle. The performances took place at the German diplomatic missions in Riyadh and Jeddah, the French Consulate General in Jeddah, the Goethe Institute in Riyadh and KAUST in Thuwal. The musicians

Abu Dhabi, Dec 10: The 40th session of the GCC summit will be held in the UAE, according to a communique issued at the end of the 39th summit in Riyadh. King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and King of Saudi Arabia, chaired the 39th session of the council in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the

Riyadh, Dec 9: Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani will not be attending the upcoming Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit. A delegation headed by Qatar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi will represent the country at the summit. According to Al Jazeera, the GCC summit which is going to be held in Riyadh on Sunday comes amid an ongoing blockade on Qatar

Riyadh, Dec 9: The Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) annual summit was set to open in Riyadh on Sunday, with regional unity imperilled by a bitter row with Qatar and the host, Saudi Arabia, facing a diplomatic crisis over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The one-day annual gathering of leaders from the six member states is expected to focus on security issues, including the Yemen war and

An Air India Express flight -- IX715 -- from Kannur to Abu Dhabi landed in the UAE capital at 12.30pm. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu had on Sunday commissioned the Kannur International Airport Ltd (KIAL). The first flight, IX715, was flagged off by the chief guests at 10am. All 180 passengers received a gift each from KIAL. This is the

Tehran, Dec 8: President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday warned Western countries that they will face a massive influx of drugs if Iran becomes weakened by US sanctions. Rouhani spoke in Tehran at a six-nation conference on fighting terrorism attended by parliament speakers of Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, China and Russia. In remarks broadcast on state TV, Rouhani said a weakened Iran would be

Tehran, Dec 8: Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said US sanctions were "economic terrorism", as he sought to foster a united front from visiting regional officials on Saturday. Washington has reimposed an oil embargo and other damaging sanctions on Iran since pulling out in May from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers. "America's unjust and illegal sanctions against the

Vienna/New Delhi, Dec 7: Oil cartel OPEC will consider views of world leaders such as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who represent the voice of major consuming nations, with seriousness before taking a decision on cutting output to support falling prices, Saudi oil minister Khalid Al Falih said Thursday. India is the world’s third largest oil consuming nation, which is more than 80 per cent

Dubai, Dec 7: Singer Mika Singh was arrested in UAE for allegedly sending "indecent pictures" to a teenaged Brazilian model, according to a media report on Thursday. Singh, who was here to perform at a party, was arrested in UAE after the model lodged a complaint that the singer has sent her inappropriate pictures, Gulf News reported quoting sources. He also promised her a job in a Bollywood movie