Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman opens the Higher Education Ministry's new building in the capital city on Sunday. (SPA)
JEDDAH: The Interior Ministry announced Sunday that it had released 10 militants last month after they attended counseling sessions organized by the Prince Muhammad bin Naif Center and showed positive results.
JEDDAH: Saudi businessmen who own about 1.6 million flats in Cairo, Alexandria and other Egyptian cities are worried that the continuing anti-government protests would harm their real estate investments in the country.
RIYADH: The Shoura Council announced on Sunday new deputies and members of 13 committees who were appointed at its session presided over by Chairman Abdullah Al-Asheikh.
JEDDAH: Two girls died of smoke inhalation from a house fire early Sunday morning in Jeddah's working class Quwaizah district. Seven others were treated.
JEDDAH: Doctors and health specialists in Jeddah say no diseases have so far surfaced among the city’s residents following last month’s floods in which many people were exposed to floodwaters that mixed with toxic sewage.
JEDDAH: As volunteer and charitable efforts at the Jeddah Center for Forums and Events concluded its eight days of relief operations following the Jan. 26 floods, volunteers in Jeddah reflected on their experiences.
JEDDAH: The risk of flooding in Jeddah will come to an end in six months once three dams in the east and south of Jeddah are completed, the Saudi Geological Survey (SGS) announced.
JEDDAH: Confusion still surrounds the number of people who died in the Jan. 26 Jeddah flood.
RIYADH: Amid growing security concerns, the Kingdom has evacuated more than 22,000 Saudis from Egypt where massive demonstrations for political change continued Sunday, the 13th day of protests.
RIYADH: Prince Turki bin Muhammad, undersecretary at the Foreign Ministry for multilateral relations, on Sunday, highlighted Saudi Arabia’s efforts to keep the Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
RIYADH: A group of women has launched a Facebook campaign to encourage the authorities to give them increased opportunities to participate in the Municipal Councils.
RIYADH: More than 100,000 people have visited the “Roads of Arabia” exhibition taking place at CaixaForum Barcelona through Feb. 20.
Deputy Governor of Jazan, Abdullah Al-Suwaid, being briefed on a painting by artist Alwan Ali Aburasin, after Al-Suwaid opened the art show in the southern city on Sunday. (SPA)
The first human love story is that of Adam and Eve (peace be upon them) whose marriage was witnessed by the Lord of the universe.
RIYADH: Spanish football giant Real Madrid has announced plans to build a sports academy in Saudi Arabia. It will be the kingdom's first. According to the club's website, an agreement will be signed in Riyadh on Monday between the Real Madrid Foundation (RMF) and the Prince Salman Foundation.
RIYADH: Spanish football giant Real Madrid has announced plans to build a sports academy in Saudi Arabia.
RIYADH: Well-known Saudi family lawyer Sultan bin Zahim has come out strongly in support of an effort by the government's Human Rights Commission (HRC) to define a man's abuse of his role in his daughter's marriage as a form of human trafficking.
JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah issued a series of royal decrees extending terms of the presidents of major universities and the director general of customs to another four years, the Saudi Press Agency said on Saturday.
RIYADH: Prince Fahd bin Salman Charitable Society for the Care of Kidney Patients has received a donation of SR1 million from Suleiman Saleh Al-Olayan Charitable Foundation in support of its humanitarian activities in the service of kidney patients in the Kingdom.
JEDDAH: Many residents in flood-ravaged districts in the city have yet to receive relief supplies and alternate accommodation.
JEDDAH: Three charitable societies on Saturday announced a variety of relief programs including the distribution of free purchase coupons and hot meals to alleviate the suffering of Jeddah’s flood victims.
JEDDAH: The Charity Warehouse in Jeddah launched a project on Saturday to supply rented cars to help flood victims who lost their modes of transport.
JEDDAH: A health official said the recent heavy rains have not caused an outbreak of dangerous tropical infections in Jeddah.
JEDDAH: The thousands of Malaysian students evacuated from Egypt have been temporarily housed at the pilgrims’ city in downtown Jeddah.
JEDDAH: Normally Saudis travel to Egypt or Lebanon for vacation during this time of year, but due to the recent unrest in both countries Saudis are cautiously staying away.
JEDDAH: Since the introduction of the Saher speed camera system last year, many Saudis have adopted special ways to avoid being flashed. Some drivers put their hazard lights on to warn drivers behind them whereas others flash oncoming traffic to warn motorists of mobile camera units ahead.
JEDDAH: Muslim expatriates in the Kingdom say there are no mosques that deliver Friday sermons (khutbah) in their languages.
JEDDAH: King Abdulaziz University plans to take punitive action against those who spread a rumor that some female students were swept away by the Jan. 26 floods.
JEDDAH: Saudi families say they are stopping their younger daughters from marrying if they have older sisters who are unmarried.
JOUF: The 4th Olive Festival will open in the northern city of Jouf on Saturday. Gov. Prince Fahd bin Badr will inaugurate the festival.
JEDDAH: Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal said high-priority projects would be implemented to protect Jeddah districts from floods and solve other problems troubling city residents.
JEDDAH: The municipality of Uhud district in Madinah has launched an awareness program entitled "Towards a Clean District" aimed at eradicating graffiti on walls and in public parks, bridges and tunnels, chairman of the municipality Hamza bin Jafaar Sabiyah was quoted as saying in a local Arabic daily newspaper on Friday.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has allowed Malaysian planes carrying thousands of its students from Egypt to land at King Abdul Aziz International Airport (KAIA) in Jeddah.
JEDDAH: The municipality of Uhud district in Madinah has launched an awareness program entitled "Towards a Clean District" aimed at eradicating graffiti on walls and in public parks, bridges and tunnels, chairman of the municipality Hamza bin Jafaar Sabiyah was quoted as saying in a local Arabic daily newspaper on Friday.
JEDDAH: A Jeddah Municipal Council official has said the reason the Um Al-Khayr burst dam on Jan. 26 was because the overflow outlet had been blocked by cars washed into it by flash flooding resulting from the huge downpour. This had caused waters to rise to dangerous levels. The burst dam caused massive flooding and extensive damage throughout the city.
JEDDAH: Young boys and girls are at risk from sexual harassment from store workers, especially when shopping alone. There have been frequent reports of cases where children have been sexually harassed.
JEDDAH: Shopkeepers and store owners are weeping over damages to their businesses after recent rains and flooding in Jeddah, and many of them are still busy cleaning up.
JEDDAH: A large number of Filipino overstayers, including runaway workers, have set up a makeshift camp with their families outside the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah.
JEDDAH: An administrative investigation agency has completed the interrogation of nine employees in the office of Jeddah mayor in connection with alleged wrongdoings pertaining to the causes of flooding in Jeddah, Al-Madinah newspaper reported on Thursday.
Assistant Minister of Defense and Aviation Prince Khaled bin Sultan meets with Michèle Flournoy, US undersecretary of defense for policy, at the Conference Palace in Riyadh on Wednesday. They discussed the latest developments in the region. (SPA)
RIYADH: Several Saudi realtors have urged the authorities to expedite procedures to enact the much anticipated mortgage law that has been at a planning stage for almost a decade now.
JEDDAH: Saudi travel agencies say they have suffered significant losses after a large number of tourists canceled trips to Egypt due to the civil unrest there.
JEDDAH: Saudi Research & Marketing Group (SRMG) publications have started providing digital news services on the iPad, iPhone and Nokia platforms, in addition to its text message service through mobile phones and interactive websites.
RIYADH: A maid identified only as Leonora (not her real name), who claimed she was raped by her employer and was living with six other runaway maids in Majmaa, Riyadh province, has gone missing.
DAMMAM: The maximum penalty imposed under the Saher traffic system will be no more than SR900, according to Capt. Ali Muhsin Al-Zahrani, the spokesman for the Eastern Province Traffic Department.
RIYADH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) organized on Tuesday a four-day women’s bazaar at Oshinka Entertainment City, based in the Riyadh Gallery Complex.
RIYADH: Sri Lankan missions in the Kingdom have made elaborate arrangements to celebrate their country’s National Day on Friday.
JEDDAH: Charges for the issuance and renewal of iqamas (residence permits), passports, licenses and car registrations will not increase. They were initially reduced for three years by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
JEDDAH: The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) resumed activities Tuesday after last week's floods shut down all JCCI services, JCCI Secretary-General Adnan bin Hussain Mandoura announced Wednesday. All services except document certification and subscriptions returned to normal.
In the past, divorces were infrequent and only happened for fundamental reasons that made married life impossible.
It never happened during the early years of marriage, out of fear for the potential damage to the wife’s reputation.
For this reason, married life used to continue for several years before it broke down, if at all. In most cases, divorce would only come after 10 years of marriage at least.
There is a new trend emerging where divorces occur earlier to the extent that some marriages do not last more than a year!
RIYADH: Deputy Health Minister Mansour Al-Hawasi will represent the Kingdom on behalf of Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah at the GCC Health Ministers Conference to be held in Qatar on Thursday. “The focus of the meeting is to combat noncommunicable diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and smoking in the region,” said Health Ministry Spokesman Dr. Khalid Al-Mirghalani.
RIYADH: Egyptian expatriates in Saudi Arabia are closely following the ongoing crisis in their country, keeping their ears stuck to their mobile phones and eyes glued to their television screens.
JEDDAH: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif inspected Jeddah’s flood-ravaged residential districts on Tuesday to get a first-hand account of the catastrophe before filing a report to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal listens to a Saudi woman, who was affected by Jeddah floods, on Monday. The governor promised that he would do everything possible to prevent recurrent flooding. (SPA)
JEDDAH: The SR2 billion King Abdullah City for Girl Students, being built at the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University Campus in Riyadh, is designed to accommodate 40,000 students, said Suleiman Abalkhail, president of the university.
RIYADH: The Saudi Urban Transport Conference gets under way on Feb. 19-22 at the Riyadh Marriott Hotel under the patronage of the Ministry of Municipality and Rural Affairs, with Deputy Minister Habib Zein Alabideen leading the list of speakers.
RIYADH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism & Antiquities (SCTA) has launched a website for its Travel and Tourism Investment Forum (www.sttim.com.sa).
JEDDAH: An Asian expatriate committed suicide in a tent in the Nufud desert in Hail province on Saturday.
MADINAH: The windows of two vehicles belonging to the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (Haiah) were smashed in Madinah on Saturday.
JEDDAH: Rola Basamad, director of Bab Rizq Jameel Female Branch at Sairafi Mall in Jeddah, announced that the BRJ’s employment center created 190 job opportunities for women in Jeddah in January.
RIYADH: The Ministry of Health has set better nutrition standards in food served to patients of government hospitals, according to Deputy Health Minister Mansour Al-Hawasi.
RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has instructed the state-run Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) to write off SR585 million worth of housing loans granted to 3,276 people who died without paying off their loans. Under the waiver, all loans granted to citizens who died before Sept. 11, 2007 would be written off unconditionally.
RIYADH: The human rights group Migrante Middle East has called on the Philippine Embassy to speed up the repatriation of ailing 70-year-old Irene Sto. Domingo, who is currently staying at the Bahay Kalinga (BK) shelter.
RIYADH: About 540 Malaysian students airlifted from strife-torn Egypt to Jeddah in a massive ongoing evacuation operation supported by the Saudi government will leave for Kuala Lumpur on board a Malaysian Airline System flight on Sunday evening, according to Malaysian Ambassador Syed Omar Al-Saggaf.
NEW DELHI: A Saudi delegation headed by Sheikh Saleh Hassan Aalaid, general secretary of the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs, visited Indian Jamaat-e-Islami’s headquarters here recently and commended the organization’s activities to spread the message of Islam and uplift Indian Muslims.
JEDDAH: Nearly 2,000 archaeological sites have been discovered east of Jeddah by an Australian archaeologist. Bizarrely, professor David Kennedy, from the University of Western Australia, has never set foot in the Kingdom. He discovered the sites from the comfort of his office in Perth, Western Australia, using Google Earth on his computer.
JEDDAH: A Jeddah Municipal Council official has said the reason the Um Al-Khayr burst dam on Jan. 26 was because the overflow outlet had been blocked by cars washed into it by flash flooding resulting from the huge downpour. This had caused waters to rise to dangerous levels. The burst dam caused massive flooding and extensive damage throughout the city.
JEDDAH: In the post-rain scenario, the Jeddah municipality is fighting tooth and nail to keep the city clean and safe for its residents, but human folly, feral cats and flies are complicating the situation.
JEDDAH: Egyptian protests in its second week has triggered a severe price hike on vegetables and fruits coming from that country to Saudi Arabia’s market. With Egyptian ports shut, no exports are arriving in Saudi Arabia and prices have almost doubled. Several local vegetable shops in Jeddah dependent on these goods told Arab News on Friday that they are closely watching the Egyptian situation on television like many other people.
RIYADH: Sri Lanka's Independence Day was celebrated in the Kingdom on Friday with a call to Lankans in Saudi Arabia to plan an action-oriented program to live in unity so that there will be one people and one country among the Sri Lankans.
DAMMAM: A new multimillion-riyal international English school that opened in Alkhobar on Thursday is set to offer expatriates good choice for their children’s education.
JEDDAH: There are many individual stories following the Jan. 26 rains that led to massive flooding throughout city. The story from the Bangladesh International School behind King Saud Mosque on Madinah Road in Jeddah is a tale of panic and fear, but also of unity and teamwork.
JEDDAH: There is a silver lining in every cloud. How true this is for the mechanics and towing businesses of this Red Sea coastal city following recent floods that damaged an estimated 9,000 vehicles.
JEDDAH: Prince Faisal bin Salman, chairman of the Saudi Research & Marketing Group, has emphasized SRMG’s plans to expand its investments in human capital and digital media technology.
JEDDAH: Begging has existed in the Kingdom for years, but the latest mode of begging has taken the practice to a new level. Begging is no longer the forte of those dressed in torn clothes. When the word beggar is mentioned, a vision of amputated limbs, decrepit old people and mothers with a stream of young children comes to mind. The modern day beggar, however, is unlike this.
CASABLANCA: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, who is currently convalescing in the Moroccan city of Casablanca following a successful back surgery, on Wednesday received a telephone call from King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa of Bahrain.
JEDDAH: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif on Wednesday commended the heroism of Sergeant Muhammad bin Ali Al-Majrashi, a border guard officer who died on Tuesday during a gunbattle with a group of drug smugglers in Abu Radif checkpoint, near Khoba.
JEDDAH: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif on Tuesday announced a series of measures to tackle Jeddah's recurrent floods. He said international companies would be awarded contracts to establish a state-of-the art rainwater drainage system for Jeddah.
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of the Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), being awarded the Medal of Friendship by Vietnam’s President Nguyen Minh Triet at a ceremony held at the presidential palace in Hanoi in the presence of Princess Ameerah Al-Taweel, vice chairwoman of the Board of Trustees of the Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation.
JEDDAH: Following last Wednesday’s heavy rains, residents of Jeddah fear a bout of dengue fever might hit the city over the coming days.
JEDDAH: People from all around the Kingdom have flown to Jeddah to assist volunteers in providing aid to people affected by last week’s floods in the city.
JEDDAH: Cleanup operations following last Wednesday’s flash floods in Jeddah have been continuing six days after the floods, municipal sources said on Monday.
JEDDAH: Prince Sultan bin Salman, chairman of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA), visited Jeddah’s flood-ravaged areas on Monday and emphasized the government’s efforts to provide housing and other assistance to the victims.
