Middle East

Washington, May 12: The White House and Saudi Arabia scrambled to quell talk of a diplomatic rift on Monday, after King Salman pulled out of a summit with President Barack Obama at the eleventh hour. Senior US and Saudi officials appeared in public to insist the Gulf royal's decision was not a snub nor part of a deeper crisis in never-easy ties that date back decades. Obama had invited six Gulf

Jeddah, May 7: Five men including an officer were killed and 12 injured by mortar shells launched from the Yemeni side of the border on Wednesday, the Civil Defense announced. Captain of a jail patrol Cpl. Hyyan Al-Wadie was killed when a shell hit him in King Salman Street at 1:30 p.m., said a spokesman of the Civil Defense in Najran. His companion was wounded and rushed to a nearby hospital. The

Jeddah, May 6: Mortar shells and Katyusha missiles fired by Houthi rebels across the Yemeni border have hit a field hospital, school, cars and houses in the town of Najran, the Saudi-led coalition said on Tuesday. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Assiri, coalition spokesman, said there were no casualties in the town. However, there were injuries reported at the field hospital. Saudi Airlines has now suspended its

Jeddah, May 5: The Interior Ministry has said it has the right to revoke the visa of any expatriate and deport him without giving a reason. The ministry made it clear that it intends to cancel the visas of expatriates seen affiliated with the Hezbollah terror group. In March 2014, the ministry published a list of organizations classified as terrorists. Hezbollah, however, was not on the list. Gulf

Jeddah, May 4: Watermelons being sold in Taif by street vendors have caused alarm. There is a widespread fear that the product is genetically modified and chemically nourished to speed up ripening and increase its size. The fears have been aggravated following the circulation on social networking sites of a video clip, which shows how the watermelons are upsized with the help of unknown chemicals

Beirut, May 3: US-led strikes targeting the Islamic State group killed at least 52 civilians in northern Syria, a monitor said Saturday, but the Pentagon said it could not confirm the report. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor also reported 10 civilian deaths in a rocket strike Saturday in the northern city of Aleppo and said 40 others suffered respiratory problems in a pre-dawn

Jeddah, May 3: The 30-year-old King Abdul Aziz International Airport (KAIA) is undergoing a massive overhaul that would further entrench its leading status in the region and the world. The first phase saw two main contracts signed on November 13, 2010, to expand the facility as the main gateway to Jeddah and the Two Holy Mosques. Jeddah, of course, is an economic powerhouse and one of the most

Riyadh, Apr 29: Saudi King Salman on Wednesday appointed interior minister Mohammed bin Nayef as his new heir, replacing the monarch's half brother prince Muqrin, and made his son, defence minister Mohammed bin Salman, second in line to succeed. He also replaced veteran foreign minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, who had served in the role since March 1975, with the kingdom's Washington ambassador

Jeddah, Apr 28: Fifty thousand domestic pilgrims will benefit from the government’s low-cost Haj service this year, said Saad Al-Qurashi, chairman of the Haj and Umrah Committee at Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, on Monday. “There will be seven categories in the low-cost Haj service with prices ranging between SR3,000 and SR5,000,” Al-Qurashi told Arab News. During the past three years

Jeddah, Apr 23: Sara Omar, grandma of US President Barack Obama, has emphasized the significance of the Prophet Muhammad exhibition in Makkah and said it reflects the moderate teachings of Islam that calls for tolerance and rejects violence. Sara has come to Makkah with her son Saeed Obama, uncle of President Obama and her grandson Mousa Obama to perform Umrah. She commended the Saudi government’s