Middle East

Riyadh, Jun 24: Every few metres someone -- a newlywed couple, a group of young girls with balloons -- stops Samar Almogren to cheer her on or flash her a thumbs-up. It's midnight in Riyadh, and she's making her way across the city she was born and raised in, finally in the driver's seat of her own car. Saudi Arabia's notorious ban on women driving ended today. After drinking tea and counting down

Jun 24: Women throughout Saudi Arabia waited for the stroke of midnight, turned the keys in the ignition, fired up their engines — and hit the road to a bright new future. It was the moment they had waited for since King Salman issued the royal decree on September 26, 2017, to lift the driving ban on women. Just after midnight on Saturday and in the first minutes of Sunday, Samah Algosaibi grabbed

Dubai, Jun 23: An Indian expatriate, who lost both his hands and legs to an infection caused after an accident during work in the UAE, has received 202,000 dirhams (USD 54,994) as compensation from his employer after the intervention of the Indian mission in Abu Dhabi, according to a media report. Gurbinder Singh, who hails from Punjab and worked as a crane operator for a private company in Abu

Jeddah, Jun 22: Since the foundation of Saudi Arabia, its wealth has not been limited to its citizens but has been spread throughout most of the world. It has provided humanitarian aid, charitable grants and soft loans to countries regardless of color or race. The Kingdom has always been one of world’s top providers of aid. To highlight the Kingdom’s effort internationally and to preserve its

Riyadh, Jun 21: Saudi Arabia's King Salman expressed his hope that Afghanistan extends the truce that was announced at the end of the holy month of Ramadan. King Salman added in a statement, published by the Saudi Press Agency, that he followed closely the ceasefire that was agreed between the government of Afghanistan and the Taliban and hoped that such a blessed step would be built upon by all

Abu Dhabi, Jun 20: Widows and divorced women residing in the UAE can soon apply for a one-year visa extension, it was announced on Tuesday. In the latest of a series of changes to visa legislation, the UAE Cabinet adopted the decision to grant these women and their children a visa extension option for one year from the date of the divorce or the death of the spouse. "The decision grants widows and

Jerusalem, Jun 20: Israeli jets struck 25 Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip in the early hours of Wednesday after militants launched rockets and mortar shells at Israeli territory, the military said. Two Hamas security men were lightly hurt in one air strike in the southern Gaza Strip, residents said. No casualties were reported in Israel after one of the most intense recent barrages of militant

Jeddah, Jun 19: More than 1.25 million people were arrested in Saudi Arabia for violating residential, labor and border security regulations during the Kingdom’s months-long campaign. The crackdown, which started on November 16 last year and ended on June 14, saw the arrests of 1,251,966 people in the joint security field campaign across the Kingdom. Those arrested included 931,069 violators of

Ras Tanura, Jun 17: This port, on the calm blue waters of the Persian Gulf, operates with military-like precision. Black and red-hulled super oil tankers must ask for permission to load months in advance. Detailed records go back 30 years to trace any vessels that have broken the rules by dumping oil or using substandard equipment. High-tech radar constantly scan for potential troublemakers, like

kabul, Jun 17: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing that killed at least 25 people in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar. The group's Amaq website said the attack on Saturday targeted "a gathering of Afghan forces" in Nangarhar, but gave no details. According to Attaullah Khogyani, the provincial governor's