Middle East

Astana, Sept 11: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia participated Sunday in the OIC Summit on Science and Technology being held in Astana, Republic of Kazakhstan, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. During the opening session, a speech of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman was delivered by Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Khalid Al-Falih. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques

Al-Khobar, Sep 10: Municipal inspectors here have imposed a total of SR180,000 in fines on expatriate workers who sold miscellaneous items on streets and confiscated 24,000 vegetable and fruit boxes, a large amount of clothes and foodstuffs, Al-Yaum daily reported. Al-Khobar Municipal Office head Sultan Al-Zayedi said all expatriate workers who had been fined turned out to have legal residence

Qatar, Sept 9: Saudi Arabia says plans to hold talks with Qatar have been suspended, shortly after the emergence of reports that a phone call between Qatar's emir and the Saudi crown prince hinted at a potential breakthrough in a major diplomatic crisis in the Gulf. The call on Friday between by Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was the first

Kuwait City, Sept 8: The emir of Kuwait says the threat of war between Qatar and Arab nations blockading it for the past three months has been neutralised. Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al Sabah, the main mediator in the Gulf dispute, spoke in Washington, DC on Thursday at a joint press conference with US President Donald Trump. While both sides in the dispute have ruled out the use of armed force, some

Jeddah, Sept 7: A report released by the Ministry of Labor and Social Development in revealed that the number of Saudi female workers in the retail sector reached about 200,000, despite the difficulties facing the Saudization of the female workforce in this sector since 2011. Faten Al-Sari, acting head of the women’s employment policy and programs at the Labor Ministry, said that the ministry is

Jeddah, Sept 6: Saudi Arabia qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 2006 with a 1-0 victory over Japan in a decisive Asian qualifying match on Tuesday at the King Abdulah Sports City Stadium on the outskirts of Jeddah. Needing to win to qualify outright after Australia beat Thailand 2-1 earlier in Melbourne, the Green Falcons did just that before an announced full house crowd of 62

Jeddah, Sept 5: Nadima Abulaynain, 18, is setting the scene for women who are keen to cycle the streets of Jeddah. “I’ve liked riding a bicycle since I was a child,” the high school student told Arab News. “Why not spread interest in the activity and help other try it?” All she needed was a bicycle, a helmet and social media to start a cycling club. Abulaynain started with her family, encouraging

Jeddah, Sept 4: As Hajj winds down, congratulations poured in regarding the Saudi Arabian government’s efforts to assist pilgrims undertaking the journey of a lifetime. International media played a major role in communicating the success of this year’s pilgrimage — through many articles, videos and pictures — while the topic was trending on social media. Reactions from across the Arab and Islamic

Makkah, Sep 3: The security and control command center for Hajj installed nearly 6,000 digital cameras to monitor the movement of pilgrims at the holy sites to ensure their safety, according to the head of the center. In statements to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the head of the security and control command center for Hajj, Maj. Gen. Hassan Al-Zahrani, highlighted the work of those working in the

Makkah, Sept 3: Saudi King Salman on Saturday said the Kingdom has made great strides in protecting Muslim holy sites from terror attacks. “The arms of terrorism have sought to harm the holy sites without any consideration to their sanctities,” he said during a reception in Makkah for dignitaries attending the annual Hajj pilgrimage. “However, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia — with Allah's help and in