World Cup qualification national achievement, says Saudi King

Arab News
September 21, 2017

Jeddah, Sept 21: King Salman on Wednesday received the chairman of the General Sports Authority (GSA), Turki Al-Asheikh, accompanied by the president and members of Saudi Arabian Football Association (SAFA) and players of the Saudi Football First Team on the occasion of their qualification for 2018 World Cup finals in Russia.

Upon their reception at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah, King Salman said he was pleased to be among them on this day as they represent their country, which they all have the honor to represent it as it is the Qiblah of Muslims, the land of the Two Holy Mosques and the cradle of Arabism.

He said their qualification (to the World Cup finals) was an achievement for the country and he expressed hope for their success and a safe return to their country.

SAFA President Adel Izzat expressed happiness over meeting King Salman. He said the meeting reflected the care and concern given by the king to the youths and sportsmen which enabled them to occupy top ranks at regional, Arab and global forums, the latest achievement being qualification to the World Cup finals for the fifth time.

He considered the qualification to the World Cup finals one of the fruits of care given by king and the crown prince, whose unlimited support to the players and the administrative and technical staff played a key role in this achievement.

The audience was attended by Prince Abdul Aziz bin Saud bin Naif, minister of interior; Minister of State and Cabinet member Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban; Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar bin Obaid Madani; and a number of officials.

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News Network
November 24,2025

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Israeli forces have pushed over the Syrian frontier, erecting a checkpoint and stopping vehicles in the southwestern city of Quneitra, in yet another breach of the Arab country’s sovereignty.

The violation took place on Sunday, when the troops made their way across the border, setting up the outpost near the Ain al-Bayda junction in northern Quneitra, Syrian outlets reported.

According to the al-Ikhbariya paper, an Israeli detachment positioned itself at the junction, halting cars and conducting searches.

The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that three Israeli military vehicles then moved further into the northern countryside, deploying between the town of Jubata al-Khashab and the villages of Ofaniya and Ain al-Bayda. The agency added that a separate Israeli unit mounted a new incursion in the central region, approaching the villages of Umm Batina and al-Ajraf.

Residents said such activities have surged in recent months, pointing to Israeli advances onto farmland, leveling of extensive forested areas, arrests, and spread of mobile checkpoints.

The Israeli regime began markedly increasing its military aggression against Syria last year.

The escalation coincided with increasingly ferocious onslaughts throughout the country by the so-called Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Takfiri terrorist group, which the government of President Bashar al-Assad had confined to northwestern Syria. The HTS, however, managed to overthrow the government as the Israeli attacks would pummel the country’s civilian and defensive infrastructure.

Various reports have shown that, during the escalation, the regime conducted more than 1,000 airstrikes on the Syrian territory and over 400 ground raids into the south.

Following the collapse of the Assad government, Tel Aviv also widened its grip over the occupied Golan Heights by taking control of a demilitarized buffer zone, in defiance of a 1974 Disengagement Agreement. Earlier this month, senior Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, visited the buffer zone, prompting expressions of alarm on the part of the United Nations.

The United States, the regime’s biggest ally, has, meanwhile, been fraternizing the HTS head Abu Mohammed al-Jolani amid the widely reported prospect of rapprochement with Tel Aviv.

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