Cultural bonanza at Janadriya

RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah inaugurated the 25th National Heritage and Culture Festival at Janadriya, 45 km north of the capital city, on Wednesday.

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Al-Diriya development discussed

RIYADH: Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman, who is also the chairman of Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA), on Tuesday presided over a meeting of the executive committee for the development of Al-Diriya, said Abdullatif bin Abdul Malik Al-Sheikh, head of ADA’s projects and planning center.

Naif signs security deal with Yemen

TUNIS: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif held talks here Wednesday with Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and commended the president for his country’s continuous support in strengthening Arab security cooperation.

Brazilian president places wreath on Arafat's tomb

RAMALLAH, West Bank: Brazil's president placed a wreath on the tomb of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Wednesday and sharply criticized Israeli policies, leading Israeli officials to suggest he was not being evenhanded.

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Pakistani court charges 5 Americans with terrorism

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court charged five young Americans on Wednesday with planning terrorist attacks in the South Asian country and conspiring to wage war against nations allied with Pakistan, their defense lawyer said.

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Editorial: Thai protests

The Bangkok protests organized by supporters of ousted Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra fell short of the million-man march that had been called for.

Firm global action needed in Jerusalem: Jordan king

Israel rejects calls to halt settlement work as ‘unreasonable’

Arab ministers urge West not to shelter terror financiers

TUNIS: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif held talks here Wednesday with Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and commended the president for his country’s continuous support in strengthening Arab security cooperation.

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Erdogan threatens to throw out Armenians

ANKARA: Turkey’s prime minister has threatened to expel thousands of illegal Armenian immigrants after US and Swedish lawmakers passed votes branding World War I-era killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide.

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Israel moves to ease diplomatic dispute with US

JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised President Barack Obama on Wednesday and spoke by telephone with his vice president as a vocal feud over Jewish settlements took on softer tones.

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Women lawyers to handle family disputes: Al-Eissa

RIYADH: Justice Minister Mohammed Al-Eissa said on Tuesday that women lawyers will only be allowed to appear in court to defend women and deal with family cases.

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Zuma in bid to end Zimbabwe crisis

HARARE: South African leader Jacob Zuma met Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai on Wednesday in an attempt to resolve a decade-long political crisis that helped drag Zimbabwe into economic ruin.

Fire at royal tomb prompts Uganda clash

KAMPALA: Ugandan security forces killed two people and wounded five on Wednesday after fire destroyed historic royal tombs, heightening tension between the government and the powerful Bugandan kingdom.

Fingerprinting made mandatory for renewal of iqamas

JEDDAH: The Directorate General of Passports announced on Wednesday that it would start implementing a fingerprinting system for iqama (residence permit) renewals from mid-April.

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Extremist website makes death threat against poet

JEDDAH: Death threats have been made on an extremist website against a Saudi poet who recently attacked conservative fatwas in a poem she wrote.

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Kingdom’s first private airport to be opened in Madinah

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s first privately owned airport is likely to be ready by 2014, according to a senior official of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA).

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Picture of the day

A hiker enjoys the warm spring-like weather in the Olympic park in Munich, southern Germany, as he walks behind a slowly melting pile of snow on Wednesday. (AP)

Challenger overtakes Iraq PM in overall vote count

BAGHDAD: A secular coalition challenging the Iraqi prime minister in the country's historic parliamentary elections has narrowly pulled ahead for the first time in the overall vote count, although it still trails in the crucial province-by-province count.

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