Saudi Arabia third happiest country in the world: Survey

January 10, 2016

Jeddah, Jan 10: Saudi Arabia has come third in a poll for the world’s happiest countries – in a list which features almost no European. The research was carried out by WIN/Gallup International, a polling association which interviewed 66,040 people from 68 countries.

The kingdom has only been pipped to top position by Fiji and Colombia.

At an average temperature of about 26C in January, the beautiful Fiji islands have an evident advantage.

Fiji has an average all-year round temperature of 26 C and apparently happy citizens.

Indeed, nearby Mexico ranked as the world’s eighth happiest country.

The findings suggest that either people have different perceptions of what “happiness” means, or that material wealth, ideological freedom and civil stability do not necessarily translate into personal contentedness.

China and Fiji are also two of the most hopeful nations, with China also the third most optimistic about economic prosperity. Nigerians are the most optimistic about their economy.

Europe, meanwhile, barely made it into the top 10 countries for happiness.

Iceland, which has one of the highest percentage of women working outside the home, was the only European country to make the top 10, sharing joint tenth position with China.

Italy is the least hopeful nation out of their 68 nations surveyed, while Greece is the third most unhappy country – and France and Italy tie as the 10th most unhappy.

As 2015 came to an end, 66% of respondents to the WIN/Gallup International survey said that they are happy, down slightly from 70% in 2014. Of the 66040 people surveyed, 10% said that they were unhappy, up 4% from 2014. Overall, that means that the world is 56% net happy (happiness minus unhappiness). In 2015 the net happiest country in the world is Colombia (85%), in stark contrast the world’s unhappiest country is Iraq at -12% net happiness.

The study showed that 45% of the world is optimistic for the economic outlook in 2016 over double (22%) of those who are pessimistic. It’s perhaps unsurprising that Greece is the most pessimistic (-65% net optimistic) country given their current perilous financial position. The most optimistic nation when it comes to the economy is Nigeria (61% net optimism). When it comes to a demographic breakdown young people prove to be considerably more optimistic than older generations with 31% net optimistic for the under 34s compared to just 13% for the over 55s.

As part of their analysis WIN/Gallup International has grouped the world into three tiers: Prosperous (the G7); Emerging (G20 excluding the original G7) and Aspiring (all others) nations. Whilst there is huge disparity in income levels across these three tiers, the level of net happiness across all three (Prosperous 42%, Emerging 59% and Aspiring 54%) is notably high. However the findings on hope and economic optimism vary markedly across the tiers. According to the global poll, Prosperous nations display the least hope and economic optimism with 6% and -16% respectively; to the contrary Emerging nations are very hopeful about the future and far more optimistic about the economic outlook at 50% and 36% meanwhile the Aspiring nations sit between the two on hope (29%) and economic optimism (16%).

Jean-Marc Leger, President of the Association, said: “2015 has been a tumultuous year for many across the globe, despite that the world remains largely a happy place. 45% of the world is optimistic regarding the economic outlook for 2016, up by 3 percent compared to last year.”

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Syrian Town erupts after Israeli forces enter Beit Jinn; heavy casualties reported

News Network

November 28,2025

Several Syrians were killed and more than two dozen others injured in Israeli strikes on the outskirts of Damascus, amid intensified incursions by the occupying regime since the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad and the rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rule.

Syrian state TV reported that the casualties occurred during an overnight Israeli assault involving helicopters and drones on the town of Beit Jinn in the Damascus countryside. The attack followed an Israeli military unit’s entry into the town, where they were surrounded by local residents, leading to gunfire and direct confrontations.

According to the report, “The occupation army’s helicopters and artillery shelled Beit Jinn, located at the foothills of Mount Hermon, resulting in 13 martyrs and 25 injured civilians.” The broadcaster did not specify the full extent of damage.

Al-Ikhbariyah Syria confirmed that the shelling coincided with Israeli soldiers entering Beit Jinn, while artillery pounded surrounding areas. The broadcaster stated that the escalation began after local residents clashed with an Israeli patrol that had infiltrated the southern town and “kidnapped” three young men.

Following a two-hour exchange of heavy fire, Israeli forces withdrew and repositioned on the hill of Butt al-Warda at the town’s outskirts.

Israeli media acknowledged that six soldiers were wounded in the clashes—three of them seriously—describing the confrontation as a “sudden ambush” that forced the deployment of reserve units and air support to secure an exit route. No further details were provided.

The aggression has fueled renewed displacement from Beit Jinn, with residents fleeing to nearby villages amid increasingly frequent Israeli attacks.

The raid came just a day after Israeli troops carried out another ground incursion into Umm al-Luqas village in Quneitra province. According to SANA, an Israeli unit in four vehicles entered the village, raided several homes, and later withdrew.

Syria condemned the repeated incursions as violations of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement and UN resolutions, urging the international community to enforce compliance and pressure Israel to halt its operations and withdraw fully.

Israel has expanded its attacks across Syrian territory following the collapse of the Assad government last year. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly instructed his forces to push deeper into Syrian territory and seize strategic positions.

Meanwhile, critics say the HTS-led interim government’s inaction and growing normalization gestures toward Israel have emboldened Tel Aviv to intensify its military operations. HTS, formerly linked to al-Qaeda, seized control of Damascus last December, formally ending Assad’s rule.

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