Saudi Gulf ready for Nov. 1 takeoff

May 26, 2015

Jeddah, May 26: Saudi Gulf Airlines said Monday that it would start operating flights on Nov. 1 from Dammam to Jeddah, Riyadh and one international destination, with more destinations added next year as its fleet expands.

The statement follows a meeting between Sulaiman Al-Hamadan, president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation, and Tariq bin Abdel Hadi Al-Qahtani, chairman of the airline’s board of directors. “Saudi Gulf plans to fly from Dammam to three destinations, initially with a fleet of four Airbus A320s,” said Samer Majali, the group’s president and senior adviser.

“We are working with GACA in preparation for starting operations to obtain the technical license,” Majali said. The airline’s domestic flights will offer first class and economy fares, while international flights will provide business class and economy class services. In addition to the A320 aircraft, the airline signed a $2 billion deal with Canada’s Bombardier last year to purchase 16 CSeries jets with an option for a further 10.

Delivery of the CS300 jets, which can carry 130 to 160 passengers, is expected to begin late this year or early 2016. Majali said additional aircraft would join the fleet after the delivery of the A320s and CSeries jets.

“We are happy to welcome Saudi Gulf as a new operator in the Kingdom,” said Al-Hamdan, adding that it would strengthen competition between airline companies to provide better services to passengers.

“We believe that the increase in the number of airlines will improve air transport services between Saudi cities and regions and boost the Kingdom’s social and economic development,” the GACA chief said.

During the meeting, Saudi Gulf presented its operation plans. “They have a primary license and the final license will be given when they complete final preparations for operations,” said GACA spokesman Wael Al-Sarhan.

Only national carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines and budget operator National Air Services currently serve a domestic market of about 27 million people. Foreign carriers can only fly in and out of Saudi Arabia, not within the country, but that will change when Qatar Airways obtains regulatory approval to launch its subsidiary Al Maha Airways for the Saudi market.

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Israel kills female journalist who captured evidence of Zionist war crimes in Gaza

News Network

January 15,2025

Another Palestinian journalist has been killed in an Israeli attack in the Gaza Strip, taking the death toll to 205 since early October 2023 when the occupying Tel Aviv regime launched its all-out onslaught against the blockaded coastal sliver.

Local organizations identified the new victim as Ahlam al-Nafed, who recently reported from the besieged Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza for Drop Site News and other media outlets.

She was killed on Tuesday as she was walking to al-Shifa Hospital – the largest medical complex and central hospital in the Gaza Strip, and located in the neighborhood of northern Rimal in Gaza City.

“For the past 100 days, Ahlam chronicled the genocide in northern Gaza, capturing evidence of Israeli war crimes from the besieged Indonesian Hospital.

“Through her words and images, she ensured that atrocities which might have been silenced were brought to light, allowing the world to witness the brutal reality unfolding there,” Drop Site News wrote in a statement published on its X account on Tuesday.

It underlined that Ahlam’s work documenting the attacks on the Indonesian Hospital was irreplaceable.

“She was one of the last remaining voices in northern Gaza — a voice the world desperately needed. Without her, the full extent of Israel’s actions might never have been known,” the statement also read.

For its part, the Indonesian Hospital said, “Ahlam courageously documented the genocide in north Gaza, residing in the medical facility during its siege, taking evidence of war crimes and bearing witness to tell the story with her pictures and her words, many of which we shared with you.”

Journalists working within the Palestinian territory face heightened risks while covering the genocidal war, particularly in light of Israeli ground assaults and airstrikes, as well as challenges such as disrupted communications, shortages of supplies, and power outages.

In the face of these difficulties, Palestinian journalists have continued to document the atrocities of the war, acting as the global community's eyes and ears throughout one of the most deadly wars of the 21st century.

Backed by the United States and its Western allies, Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against the Israeli regime in response to its decades-long campaign of oppression against Palestinians.

The regime’s bloody onslaught on Gaza has so far killed at least 46,645 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 110,012 others. Thousands more are also missing and presumed dead under rubble.

On November 21 last year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former minister of military affairs Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

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