Middle East

Jeddah, Nov 23: The Anti-Terror Quartet — Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, Bahrain — has added two new entities and 11 individuals to the terror lists for their role in disseminating and supporting terrorism. In a statement released through the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the quartet identified the two terror entities as the International Islamic Council "Massaa'" and the World Union of Muslim Scholars

Beruit, Nov 22: Saad Al Hariri returned to Beirut on Tuesday for the first time since he resigned as prime minister in a statement delivered from Saudi Arabia that plunged Lebanon into crisis. Hariri's sudden resignation on November 4 thrust Lebanon to the forefront of regional tussle. Hariri, cited fear of assassination and meddling by Iran and Hezbollah in the Arab world in his resignation

Beirut, Nov 21: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani declared the “end of Daesh” on Tuesday in an address broadcast live on state TV. Message A senior commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Major General Qassem Sulaimani, also declared the end of Daesh in a message sent to the country’s supreme leader Tuesday which was published on Sepah News, the news site of the Guards. Quds Force Videos and

Jeddah, Nov 21: Torrential rain lashed parts of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday forcing authorities to close schools and universities in some parts of the country. In the Makkah region, the directorate announced on Twitter the suspension of classes for the safety of students. As residents went out onto the streets to witness the downpour the Civil Defense called on people to avoid areas prone to flooding

Jeddah, Nov 20: Saudi Arabia is planning to open up four major sectors to employ women, a senior official said here on Sunday. Abdullah Al-Harbi, a senior executive at the Job Creation and Employment Commission (JCEC), said the Commission is planning to integrate women in marketing and advertising which may offer 10,000 jobs by 2030 in addition to 11,000 jobs in accounting, 20,000 in pharmacies

Jeddah, Nov 19: Official regulations at the Saudi General Directorate of Passports (GDP) have allowed some residents to remain in the Kingdom despite the expiry of their residency permits (Iqama), and despite the end of the relief offered by the "Nation without a Violator" campaign. The stay of these residents should not exceed 60 days from the date of the issuance of the Final Exit Visa, even if

Baghdad, Nov 17: Iraqi forces, backed by the U.S.-led coalition, on Friday captured the border town of Rawa, the last remaining town under Islamic State control. Recapturing it means that IS has largely been neutralized in Iraq. However, pockets of resistance still exist and the group does control some territory in the deserts of western Iraq, reports CNN. Government troops and paramilitary units

Riyadh, Nov 17: More than 330, 000 expatriates working in Saudi Arabia are over the age of 60 years as of the first half of this year, according to statistics published by “Mal” magazine and quoted by “Okaz” newspaper. This prompted some Saudi Twitter users to demand an age limit for foreigners. Others called on the GCC countries to limit the residency of foreigners to three periods of (six years)

JEDDAH, Nov 16: The first ever Women Sports Forum will be held next month in Jeddah under the patronage of Princess Reema Bint Bandar Bin Sultan, vice president of the General Authority of Sports and Planning. The forum is being organized by various sports organizations to help Saudi women who wish to pursue athletics, Al-Watan Arabic newspaper reported on Wednesday. The forum also aims to honor

Doha, Nov 15: Months into a dispute that has seen Doha cut off from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Qatar’s Emir said Tuesday his country was “a thousand times better off” without them. In a speech to the Shura Council, the upper house of Parliament, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani said his government had nonetheless put in place contingency plans as he expected the bitter political dispute with