INTERNATIONAL Just weeks before the annual Hajj pilgrimage, Saudi Arabia has introduced new rules which mean prospective travellers from western countries must now book their visits to Mecca through a government website, rather than via travel agencies. Saudi Arabia’s Hajj Ministry confirmed on Monday that pilgrims from “Europe, America and Australia” would need to[…]
INTERNATIONAL Several top US lawmakers have signed a letter urging President Joe Biden to rework Washington’s relationship with Saudi Arabia and told him to warn the kingdom against pursuing more strategic cooperation with China on ballistic missiles. The letter, spearheaded by Congressman Adam Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, was signed[…]
JEDDAH: The Saudi Ministry of Health reported 565 new cases of COVID-19 in the Kingdom on Saturday, bringing the total number of cases to 770,650 over the course of the pandemic, which started in December 2019. The authorities also confirmed three new COVID-19-related deaths, raising the total number of fatalities to 9,155.[…]
INTERNATIONAL Google investors have raised concerns over a Cloud computing centre that the tech giant is developing in partnership with Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant Aramco, warning that it will enable the kingdom to spy on people, including activists and journalists. According to the New York Post, shareholders have expressed unease over the[…]
INTERNATIONAL Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to visit Saudi Arabia later this week after years of tensions in relations between the two countries over the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, three sources familiar with the trip told Middle East Eye. Speaking anonymously, the sources said the visit was planned for Thursday,[…]
The Saudi Public Prosecution has banned the establishment of private websites to collect donations for charitable work outside the kingdom in an effort to stop funds being sent to terror groups, the Saudi Okaz newspaper reported. A statement issued by the government body explained that the punishment for anyone who is proven to have committed[…]
Amnesty International yesterday called on Saudi Arabia to release four Uyghur, including a mother and her 13-year-old daughter, and not send them to China where they could face torture. “Saudi authorities must immediately release four Uyghurs – including a 13-year-old girl and her mother – who are at grave risk[…]
Saudi Arabia on Saturday welcomed a two-month truce brokered by the United Nations in war-torn Yemen, Anadolu Agency reports. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it supports the truce announcement by the UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, which will see “all forms of military operations inside Yemen[…]
A Yemeni rebel attack on a Saudi oil plant set off a huge fire near Jeddah’s Formula One circuit during televised practice sessions on Friday, part of a wave of assaults on Aramco facilities. Smoke billowed near the circuit and the second practice was delayed in the attack, one of[…]
Houthi rebels in Yemen on Sunday claimed drone and missile attacks on facilities run by oil company Aramco in Saudi Arabia, Anadolu Agency reports. Rebel spokesman Yahia Sarei tweeted that the attacks targeted Aramco facilities in the capital Riyadh and a number of Saudi regions. He said the rebel group also struck[…]
WhatsApp us 