Middle East

Riyadh, Jun 6: Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has revoked the license of Qatar Airways and ordered its offices to to be closed within 48 hours, the regulatory body said said in a statement. Any licenses granted to Qatar Airways employees would also be withdrawn, the statement said. The move comes a day after GACA banned all Qatari planes from landing in the kingdom's

Riyadh, Jun 6: A ban on Qatari flights imposed by Saudi Arabia and its allies took effect Tuesday as first efforts were made to resolve the biggest feud to hit the Arab world in years. Saudi Arabia and allies including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain cut diplomatic ties and transport links with Qatar on Monday, accusing the Gulf state of supporting extremism. Gas-rich Qatar has long

Jeddah, Jun 6: Qatar residents on Monday flocked to supermarkets to stock up on food, in response to Saudi Arabia's decision to close the country's sole land border effective early morning. Social media users reported “panic buying,” with pictures of overflowing shopping carts and empty shelves, after major Gulf states cut diplomatic ties with Doha. “The severity of the Qatari embargo will depend

Baghdad, Jun 5: Iraqi forces retook an area near the Syrian border from the Daesh group on Sunday as part of operations to expel the jihadists from strongholds in the country's north. The Hashed Al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization) forces announced the “total liberation” of Al-Baaj district “with support from the air force.” “The Iraqi flag has been hoisted above its buildings,” said a statement from

Riyadh, Jun 4: Saudi Arabia's King Salman and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Abu Dhabi crown prince and deputy commander of the UAE Armed Forces, on Friday discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties between their respective nations. The Abu Dhabi crown prince also conveyed the regards of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan to King Salman, along with his wishes for further

Jeddah, Jun 4: Let's face it. Saudis love their fast food. McDonald's, Hardee's and KFC are all wildly successful in the Middle East market, but are American fast food chains compatible with the very Middle Eastern rituals of Ramadan? Not so much. For reasons only Arabs can explain, American fast food is not a good fit when it comes to traditional Middle Eastern food during Ramadan and other

Riyadh, Jun 3: A total of 255 beggars — 56 men, 124 women and 75 children — were arrested in the capital during the first week of Ramadan. Following Taraweeh prayers during the holy month, it is common to see groups of beggars pester motorists at traffic lights on the streets of Riyadh. The police said the Saudi beggars arrested were handed over to the Ministry of Labor and Social Development for

Jeddah, Jun 2: Ramadan is all about feeling the suffering of the poor, and is the month of giving. Charity work takes different shapes during the holy month, from distributing dates and water at traffic signals and intersections to reaching out to the needy in their homes.Lina Tahlawi, 24, and a group of young women are keeping up with the habit of distributing food to the needy during Ramadan. “I

Jeddah, Jun 2: Two “terrorists” died in a vehicle explosion Thursday in Qatif, a Foreign Ministry official said. The cause of the blast has not been confirmed. “Two wanted terrorists were killed in the explosion,” Faisal bin Farhan, an adviser to the Foreign Ministry, said on his personal Twitter account. According to reports, police are said to be looking for three others who survived. Police

Jeddah, Jun 1: Muslim neighbors in Iraq helped rebuild a church that had been destroyed by Daesh militants. In a gesture of solidarity, Iraqi volunteers helped their Christians neighbors, who are still encountering abuse by Daesh, and rebuilt what was once their house of worship. They wanted to prove that Iraq, their home, welcomes people of all faiths, not only Sunni Muslims. Mosul residents