Middle East

Tel Aviv, Apr 19: Israelis stepped into the streets without masks on Sunday for the first time in a year, a key milestone as the country vaccinates its way out of a coronavirus nightmare. "It's very strange but it's very nice," said Eliana Gamulka, 26, after getting off a bus near the busy Jerusalem shopping boulevard of Jaffa Street and removing her face covering. "You can't pretend that you don

Dubai, Apr 15: The presence of mind exhibited by an Indian expatriate in Dubai helped foil a day-light robbery attempt. Jaffer Parapurath, 40, hailing from south Indian state of Kerala was at his uncle’s cafeteria in Deira’s Bani Yas, when he saw a man fleeing with a cover full of cash. He was being chased by a group of people yelling ‘thief’. As he saw the suspect run towards him, Jaffer extended

Riyadh, Apr 13: The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has announced that pilgrims will only be granted permits to perform Umrah once this Ramadan. The Ministry also said on Monday that worshippers could now get permits to pray all of the five daily prayers in the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah. The Ministry’s Eatmarna app further clarified that those who already had an Umrah permit

Riyadh: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has revealed the updated mechanism and regulations for the issuance of permit to perform Umrah as well as to perform prayer at Grand Mosque in Makkah and visit the Rawdah Sharif at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah during the holy month of Ramadan. According to the regulations, only vaccinated pilgrims and worshipers will be allowed to perform the rituals

Madinah, Apr 10: Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday that only Covid-vaccinated or immune worshippers were allowed to enter the Prophet’s Mosque in the holy city of Madinah. According to Arab News, an official from the Ministry of Interior confirmed that the rule came in line with the Kingdom’s efforts to prevent the spread of Covid among worshippers during the holy month of Ramadan - 2021

Jeddah, Apr 5: Saudi Arabia’s critical COVID-19 cases have risen in the past few weeks, prompting calls from relevant authorities for the public to adhere to measures designed to limit the spread of the virus. At a press conference on Sunday, Interior Ministry spokesman Lt. Col. Talal Al-Shalhoub said the “unfortunate rise in daily cases” is due to “individuals who have been lax in following

Riyadh, Apr 4: An Indian warship has arrived in Saudi Arabia to participate in a military exercise with the navy of the Gulf nation in reflection of multi-faceted bilateral defence cooperation. An Indian Navy spokesperson said frigate INS Talwar arrived at the Jubail port of Saudi Arabia on Saturday. "This visit underscores deep-rooted friendly ties and multi-faceted defence cooperation between

Dubai, Apr 4: People flying into the UAE have been advised not to receive luggage from unknown people without knowing the content in the bags as this could land them in trouble. The UAE’s Federal Customs Authority (FCA) has advised travellers not to exchange luggage with friends under good faith without confirming the content of the goods. This was announced by the FCA recently in an elaborate

Riyadh, Mar 30: Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz announced the launch of the Green Middle East initiative. According to Arab News, the initiative is set to apply a number of ambitious programmes that will reduce carbon emissions by 60 per cent in the region and plant 50 billion trees in the world’s biggest afforestation project. “As a leading global

Yemeni human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Tawakkol Karman, has called on Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Houthi group to end their dispute and find common grounds for peace. “Any action that leads to peace is welcomed,” Karman wrote on Twitter, adding: “Saudi ceasefire proposal can be a launchpad for greater engagement.” “#Saudi & #UAE must end their blockade and