Prince Khaled: Souk Okaz to be a full-fledged tourist center

September 11, 2013

Jeddah, Sep 11: Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal announced plans to develop Souk Okaz, located in the summer resort of Taif, into a full-fledged tourist center on Tuesday, opening its doors throughout the year and not only during the holiday seasons.

He emphasized the role of Souk Okaz in promoting creativity among Saudis.

“It’s a venue for people to present their creativity and exchange their thoughts. It’s also a venue for promoting culture, literature and tourism,” he said.

Addressing a press conference at Taif University on the occasion of the launch of Souk Okaz’s activities for this year, Prince Khaled said: “It’s an opportunity to learn from others’ thoughts, knowledge and experience and a window for Saudis to showcase their culture and achievements in various fields to the world.”

Prince Khaled, himself a poet, said the word “souk” should not be misconstrued as only a venue for trade. “It’s an occasion for the exchange of thoughts and cultural dialogue.”

The governor added: “We are proud that Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah was the first world leader to promote a culture of dialogue at regional and international levels.”

He said the organizers do not want Souk Okaz to remain just a heritage show, but rather, seek to showcase the Kingdom’s present and future with the participation of public and private agencies.

He disclosed plans to set up incubators for making innovative thoughts and ideas of youth into reality.

Deputy Gov. Abdul Aziz Al-Khodairy highlighted the initiatives taken by Prince Khaled for the development of the region, including his efforts to carry out stalled development projects in various sectors and strengthen the Haj and Umrah sector by launching a campaign entitled “Haj instils worship and civilized behavior.”

Saleh Al-Nassar, supervisor of the National Strategy for Youth, said the plan was drafted after studying about 80 similar plans in other countries. It aims to protect the health of youth, fight unemployment, develop their skills and build youth welfare facilities.

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UN condemns Israeli regime’s ‘organized torture’ against Palestinians

News Network

November 30,2025

The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) has condemned the Israeli regime for enforcing a policy of “organized torture” against Palestinians.

In a report published on Friday, CAT stated that the occupying regime enforces a deliberate policy of “organized and widespread torture and ill-treatment” against Palestinian abductees, particularly since October 7, 2023, when Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza.

The committee expressed “deep concern over repeated severe beatings, dog attacks, electrocution, water-boarding, use of prolonged stress positions [and] sexual violence” inflicted on Palestinians.

Palestinian prisoners were degraded by “being made to act like animals or being urinated on,” systematically denied medical care, and subjected to excessive restraints, “in some cases resulting in amputation,” the report added.

CAT also condemned the routine application of “unlawful combatants law” to justify the prolonged detention without trial of thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children.

More than 10,000 Palestinians, including women and children, are currently held in Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian and international human rights groups, with 3,474 Palestinians in “administrative detention,” meaning they are imprisoned without trial for indefinite periods.

The report highlighted the “high proportion of children who are currently detained without charge or on remand,” noting that while Israel sets the age of criminal responsibility at 12, even younger children have been abducted.

Children designated as security prisoners face severe restrictions on family contact, may be subjected to solitary confinement, and are denied access to education, in clear violation of international law.

The committee further suggested that Israel’s policies across the Occupied Territories constitute collective torture against the Palestinian population.

“A range of policies adopted by Israel in the course of its continued unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading living conditions for the Palestinian population,” the report said.

On Thursday, the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas condemned the systematic killing and torture of Palestinian abductees in Israeli prisons, urging international action to halt these abuses.

Citing human rights data, Hamas stated that 94 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli prisons since the start of Tel Aviv’s genocidal war on Gaza.

“This reflects an organized criminal approach that has turned these prisons into direct killing grounds to eliminate our people,” the resistance movement said.

Hamas called on the international community, the UN, and human rights organizations to immediately pressure Israel to end crimes against prisoners and uphold their rights as guaranteed by all international conventions and norms.

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