Middle East

Makkah, Oct 27: Experts have called on the government to protect various ancient sites and mosques in Makkah because of their religious and historical importance. Talal Al-Sharif, an Islamic antiquities expert, said the buildings include mosques built during the Ummayyad period and the house of Khadeeja, the first wife of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). This site is thought to be on the

Jeddah, Oct 26: Taxi operators here say they would lose 60 percent of their revenue and may even have to close shop if women are allowed to drive in the city. Saudi women have been pushing for the right to drive and many plan to get behind the wheel today to highlight their cause. Ali Sayed, an Egyptian taxi supervisor in Jeddah, told Arab News that his firm would likely lose 60 percent of its

Jeddah, Oct 26: Organizers of the women’s “Oct. 26 Driving Campaign” abandoned their plans late Friday by canceling Saturday’s driving demonstration throughout Saudi Arabia following intense pressure from the Ministry of Interior that said it will arrest participants. “Out of caution and respect for the Interior Ministry’s warnings ... we are asking women not to drive tomorrow and to change the

Jeddah, Oct 25: Several Saudi women who applied for driving licenses at Dallah Driving School in Jeddah had their applications rejected on Thursday by traffic officials. Naila Attar, a Saudi businesswoman, went with two friends to apply for licenses this week at the school. She said it was a futile situation for local women, but that they had some hope that officials would grant them the licenses

Jeddah/Dhahran, Oct 24: A group of young women were repeatedly harassed Tuesday by men at a Dhahran mall, triggering an angry wave of reaction across the country against it. The two-minute video shows a group of five young women wearing black abayas and headscarves being harassed by a countless number of young men at the Mall of Dhahran. The men were making funny moves at their victims and

Abu Dhabi, Oct 23: The recent visit of American singer Rihanna to Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi drew a lot of flak especially from social media websites with people denouncing her visit when she took improper photos at the sacred place. Rihanna was in the UAE as part of her “Diamonds” world tour. A hashtag page was consequently created under the headline ‘Rihanna profanes the Shaikh Zayed

Abha, Oct 22: The Ministry of Interior has sent a strongly-worded circular to all regional governorates asking them to start taking stringent penal action against those Saudis and expatriates who performed Haj without a permit. The violators will be summoned next Sunday to the nearest police stations across the Kingdom in order to take punitive measures against them. The governorates have been

Riyadh, Oct 19: The Kingdom has won accolades from the World Health Organization for the medical services it provided to pilgrims during the Haj season. Ezz Al-Din Al-Muhsini, WHO coordinator of elimination and eradication of infectious diseases, and coordinator of the eradication of polio, said: “The well-equipped hospitals designated to serve Haj pilgrims indeed surpassed many of the world-class

Jeddah, Oct 19: The Passport Department has sent text messages to sponsors and employers to fire their expatriate employees who performed Haj illegally this year, in preparation for their deportation. The Kingdom's security agencies used new fingerprinting devices in Makkah and the holy sites this year to detect expatriates without Haj permits. Ali Massoud, who has a barbershop in Jeddah, told

United Nations (United States), Oct 18: Saudi Arabia's angry rejection of a Security Council seat one day after winning it is a United Nations first that stunned members of the body on Friday. But diplomats said there had been no official notice from Riyadh of its refusal to take up the seat on January 1. It was possible the conservative kingdom could change its mind, they added. "This is totally