Middle East

Riyadh,April 27: Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef, former deputy chairman of the Shoura Council, has supported the present system of appointing qualified members to the Saudi consultative body. “Shoura is an important system and it needs people of experience and wisdom to run the show. I think people who call for elections have not taken this important point into consideration,” he said. In an exclusive

Chennai, April 26: It was a torturous homecoming for P Periaswamy, a resident of Karkudi village in Perambalur district, who was enslaved by his employer in Saudi Arabia for 18 years. When the 45-year-old finally landed in Chennai on Wednesday morning, the airport police detained him for a couple of hours suspecting him to be the husband of a deserted woman. Periasamy, who went to Saudi Arabia

Dubai, April 26: Mindless litterbugs, gum-chewers and smokers beware. Dubai authorities have unleashed an 869-member legion of litter swatters to curb spitting, littering and throwing of cigarette butts anywhere, XPRESS has learnt. The litter inspectors are armed with receipts and legal authority to note down car plate or labour card numbers of people caught on the spot, a senior official said

Chennai, April 26: Two Indian workers promised construction work in Saudi Arabia but sold as slaves to a camel farm owner are languishing without food in the desert there, say their family members in Tamil Nadu. A. Muniasamy, 45, hailing from Ramanathapuram district and 44-year-old Jagabir Ali from Nagapattinam district have been stuck on a camel farm for the past three months with an expired visa

Dubai, April 26: His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, received US Secretary of Navy Ray Mabus and his accompanying delegation at Zabeel Palace on Wednesday. The meeting was attended by Dubai Crown Prince Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Dubai Deputy Ruler Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al

Abu Dhabi, April 25: Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) announced today that Abu Dhabi International Airport was awarded the Best Airport in the Middle East Award at the prestigious 2012 World Airport Awards, ranking the Capital’s Airport as the third best airport in the world, within the size category of 20 million passengers per year. During the awards held in Vienna, Abu Dhabi International

Sharjah, April 25: A day-old baby had a miraculous escape in Sharjah on Tuesday after being thrown by his mother down a garbage chute from the ninth floor of an apartment building and landing in a garbage container. The baby’s mother, a 26-year-old Filipina maid, threw the baby from her employer’s building in Al Majaz area. The watchman discovered the baby inside a garbage bag in the trash at 5pm

Abu Dhabi, April 25: Abu Dhabi’s second communications satellite was sent successfully into the orbit early morning on Tuesday, from a space station in Kazakhstan. A Mubadala Development Company unit, Al Yah Satellite Communications Company or Yahsat, confirmed that the launch of Y1B took place at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan at 2.18am, Abu Dhabi time. Yahsat’s first satellite Y1A was

Beirut, April 25: Bashar Assad’s international allies must realize the Syrian president is “finished” and persuade him to step down to avoid further bloodshed, Tunisian President Moncef Al-Marzouki said in a newspaper interview published on Tuesday. “The Russians and Chinese, and the Iranians must understand that this man is finished and they cannot defend him. They must persuade him to leave

Sharjah, April 24: The massive fire that gutted Al Baker Tower 4 in the Taawun area of Sharjah earlier this year was caused by a cigarette butt, as was the case with the Kuwait Tower fire a year ago, officials have said. The report from the Sharjah Police forensic laboratory on the causes of the fire has revealed another big risk smokers in residential buildings pose to neighbours. According to