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Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are to enhance cooperation in all areas, with a particular focus on the energy and agricultural sectors, according to sources.Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met in Riyadh on Wednesday for bilateral discussions. “We give utmost importance to our brotherly ties with the Kingdom and King Salman has a special place in the hearts of Pakistanis,” Sharif said, adding that the relations remain unshakable.Sharif is currently on a three-day visit to the Kingdom on an invitation from the king. He arrived at the Royal Terminal at King Khaled International Airport, and was received by King Salman and senior Cabinet ministers. The other dignitaries present included Crown Prince Muqrin, deputy premier, Riyadh Gov. Prince Faisal bin Bandar, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, second deputy premier and minister of inter...

WHO declares war on hidden sugars in fight against obesity

Geneva: The World Health Organization on Wednesday urged a dramatic drop in the consumption of sugar...

Kerry, Iran FM in new nuclear talks

Montreux, Switzerland: The US and Iran ignored a passionate plea from the Israeli prime minister to...

Shariah rule ‘sovereign Saudi right’

It is Saudi Arabia’s sovereign right to implement Shariah law, said Bandar Al-Aiban, president of the Human Rights Commission.Addressing the 28th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Wednesday, he said capital punishment is imposed on murderers to protect society.“Our judicial system protects the rights of criminals and their victims,” he said. “(Since) Saudi Arabia’s rules and regulations are based on Shar...

Riyadh, Seoul eye trade expansion

South Korean President Park Geun-hye has called on Saudi and Korean businesspeople to diversify commercial cooperation with an emphasis on nuclear energy, renewable energy, education and health care. Park said she hoped the two countries would drive the development of the energy industry over the next 20 years. She was speaking at a crowded Saudi-Korean Business Forum here.The high-profile gathering was attended by severa...

SAUDI ARABIA »

Protection sought for heritage sites in Makkah and Madinah

There should be further measures taken to punish those who destroy the country’s archaeological sites in Makkah and Madinah, a top Saudi official said recently.Abdul Aziz Kaki, winner of the King Faisal International Prize for Islamic Studies, said there have been several important landmarks destroy...

BISESJ students excel in IGCSE, A level exams

Bangladesh International School (English Section) in Jeddah (BISESJ) obtained 100 percent passing grades in both International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and Advanced Level (A level) under Cambridge International Exam (CIE) held in May-June 2014. The result was announced in August 2014 and later in F...

Prince Faisal honors graduates in Yanbu

Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman officiated a graduation ceremony at the Higher Institute for Elastomer Industries in Yanbu on Wednesday. The event saw 57 trainees passing out from the institute.Ali bin Nasser Al-Ghafees, governor of Technical and Vocational Training Corporation, emphasized his organization’s efforts i...

Social upliftment gets boost from KKF, BMGF

The King Khaled Foundation (KKF), in collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), hosted on Wednesday their first interaction with leaders of various Saudi foundations to help boost their social welfare work in the Kingdom.Speaking on the occasion, Princess Banderi Abdulrahman Al-Faisal, KKF’s director g...

US to relocate staff in Yemen to Jeddah

The United States government has decided to temporarily relocate its Yemeni-based diplomatic staff to Jeddah.The announcement came as US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived here Wednesday to hold consultations with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on the emerging nuclear deal with Iran and ways to tackle the...

Indian national arrested for blasphemous Facebook post

The arrest of an Indian national in Jeddah, for allegedly posting a blasphemous image of the Kaaba on his Facebook page, has seen experts warn that such content violates the country’s cyber laws and can mean jail time and heavy fines.Indian Consul General B.S. Mubarak confirmed that the Indian national has been jailed for v...

Riyadh book fair puts focus on South Africa

South African Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq Jaafar thanked the organizers of the Riyadh International Book Fair for having chosen South Africa as a guest of honor.Culture and Information Minister Adel Al-Toraifi inaugurated the fair on Wednesday evening in the presence of the South African ambassador. Speaking to the local medi...

Over 83% of hospitals in EP ‘not approved’ for practice

Over 83 percent of hospitals and medical facilities in the Eastern Province are not technically approved to practice medicine, local media reported, quoting data released by the Saudi Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions (SCBAHI).According to SCBAHI, only 12 government and privately-owned hospitals wer...

Prince Miteb rewards boy for saving sisters from fire

National Guard Minister Prince Miteb bin Abdullah has rewarded a boy for his bravery to risk his life while saving his sisters from a fire that had broken out in their living room, in Al-Qriyat.The prince has also bore all the expenses in his treatment in the burns unit in King Abdulaziz Medical City in the National Guard b...

Shoura calls for campaign against common eye diseases

The Shoura Council recently highlighted the need for a nationwide awareness campaign on common eye diseases and the possible disadvantages of using contact lenses.The council made the recommendation to the King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital (KKESH) after the annual report of the medical facility was read at the 19th ordina...

Diabetes raises limb amputation rate to over 400% in 8 years

The rate of limb amputations resulting from diabetes has increased by 404 percent over an eight-year period, whereas the amputation rates resulting from traffic accidents dropped by 39.8 percent, according to data released by the Ministry of Health.Madinah topped the rate of amputation cases as a result of diabetic gangrene...

Fire guts Al-Khumra warehouse

Fifteen firefighting units took part to extinguish a major blaze that engulfed a warehouse in south Jeddah. “Nobody was injured when the Civil Defense officers stormed into the fire site to rescue people trapped inside the warehouse,” said Lt. Col. Walid Abushanab, deputy spokesman of the department.He said the fire gutted...

Gambian president to visit Kingdom

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh is expected to visit the Kingdom before the end of the year, Ambassador Omar Gibril Sallah said.“In 2014, the Gambian leader also visited the Kingdom to bolster bilateral ties,” the Gambian envoy told Arab News on Wednesday. The Gambian president headed a high-powered delegation that visited t...

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MIDDLE EAST »

‘Gangster’ Israel irks Palestine

RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of “gangsterism” on...

Briton fighting with Kurds killed

IRBIL, Iraq: A British citizen fighting alongside Kurdish forces against the Isl...

Massive Cairo convention center blaze injures 19

CAIRO: A massive fire broke out at Cairo’s main convention center on Wednesday,...

Malaysia Muslim travelers’ top choice

SINGAPORE: Malaysia is the most preferred global destination in the fast-growing...

Blast, clashes kill dozens at intel HQ in Syria’s Aleppo: monitor

Beirut: Dozens were killed Wednesday when Syrian rebels set off a powerful tunne...

WORLD »

Merkel warns Russia of more sanctions

BRUSSELS: German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned Russia on Wednesday that any se...

India bans broadcasting of film showing gang-rapist

NEW DELHI: India has banned the broadcasting of a controversial documentary in w...

Hillary Clinton under scrutiny over e-mails

WASHINGTON: Hillary Rodham Clinton used a private e-mail account for her officia...

Snowden ‘ready to return to America’

MOSCOW: Edward Snowden, the fugitive whistleblower who has been given refuge in...

Nobel Peace Prize chairman removed

OSLO: The committee that picks the Nobel Peace Prize demoted its chairman on Tue...

SPORTS »

Little-known Kulichkova advances in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR: Little-known Elizaveta Kulichkova cruised through to the quarterfi...

Pacquiao prepares for ‘fight of my life’

Manny Pacquiao called his boxing showdown with Floyd Mayweather “the fight of my...

Goulart hat trick lifts Guangzhou to victory

SYDNEY: A hat trick from record signing Ricardo Goulart held off strong-finishin...

Goulart hat trick lifts Guangzhou to victory

SYDNEY: A hat trick from record signing Ricardo Goulart held off strong-finishin...

Hawks rally past Harden-less Rockets 104-96

ATLANTA: Atlanta showed why it is top of the NBA standings by coming from 18 poi...

ECONOMY »

9,700 traders visit Saudi Plastic & Petrochem show

Saudi Plastic & Petrochem 2015 and Saudi Print & Pack 2015 successfully concluded the three-day run with an attendance of more than 9,700 trade visitors. The show...

Qatar eyes 7% growth in 2015 despite oil price slump

DOHA: Qatar's economy is predicted to grow by seven per cent in 2015, as it forges ahead with huge infrastructure investment despite the slump in oil prices, leading economists said Wednesday.The figure compares with estimated growth of 6.5 percent for 2014.The Qatar National Bank's "Economic Insight" predicted even higher...

Qatar Airways receives second Airbus A350

BERLIN: Qatar Airways will take delivery of its second Airbus A350 on Wednesday and expects to receive seven more this year, Chief Executive Akbar Al-Baker said.Qatar Airways has ordered 80 of the newest European long-haul jet, which is designed to compete with Boeing 787 and 777.Speaking at a news conference at the ITB tra...

Al-Naimi expects oil price to stabilize

BERLIN: Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali Al-Naimi said on Wednesday he expected oil prices, which hit a near six-year low in January, to stabilize, signaling cautious optimism about the market outlook.Giving a speech in the German capital, the minister also urged non-OPEC producers to help balance the oil mar...

Tadawul drops 0.3% on profit-taking

DUBAI: Most Gulf stock markets edged down in slow trade on Wednesday after a mixed set of corporate news failed to boost investor sentiment.Saudi Arabia's main Tadawul All-Share Index slipped 0.3 percent to 9,463 points after rising for three sessions in a row. The market saw some profit-taking as it approached its February...

Standard Chartered net profit falls 37%

HONG KONG: Asia-focused Standard Chartered bank said net profit fell 37 percent in 2014, the second consecutive year of decline, almost a week after announcing two of its top bosses would leave in a reshuffle aimed at transforming its fortunes.The British lender said net profit came in at $2.51 billion for the year, down fr...

India makes another surprise interest rate cut to 7.5%

MUMBAI: India’s central bank has announced a second surprise cut in interest rates in two months as it forecast a further easing of inflation, triggering a surge in share prices.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lowered the benchmark repo rate — the level at which it lends to commercial banks — by 25 basis points to 7.5 perce...

Areva nuclear group announces $5.3 billion loss

PARIS: French nuclear group Areva has confirmed record net losses in 2014 of 4.8 billion euros ($5.3 billion) after it was forced to absorb costs linked to delays to its flagship next-generation reactor.The mostly state-owned company, which had forecast losses of 4.9 billion euros, said it would make savings worth around on...

Natcom emerges HP’s top partner in Saudi Arabia

The National Computer Systems Company (Natcom) has been awarded the HP Partner of the Year award.The HP World Tour event took place in Riyadh where Ali Alireza, chairman of Natcom, received the award from Peter Ryan, SVP of Enterprise Group and MD of HP EMEA. Also present was Alaa Alhimy, MEMA EG director, Khaled Al-Dhaher,...

9,700 traders visit Saudi Plastic & Petrochem show

Saudi Plastic & Petrochem 2015 and Saudi Print & Pack 2015 successfully concluded the three-day run with an attendance of more than 9,700 trade visitors. The shows, which were organized by Riyadh Exhibitions Company and held at the Jeddah Center for Forums & Events, witnessed the participation of more than 300 c...

Kingdom Holding signs MoU with Korean sovereign wealth fund

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), signed an MoU with Hank Ahn, chairman and CEO of Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) in Riyadh. This strategic partnership aims at generating opportunities in private equity investments and the exchange of investment opportunities between both parties glob...

New solar power plant to provide green energy

The energy division of Yusuf Bin Ahmed Company Ltd. inaugurated a 60 kW solar power plant to provide green energy to their facility in the presence of South Korean Consul General Nakyoung Oh and Khalid bin Mohammed Kanoo Group Deputy Chairman Ahmed Fawzi Kanoo, area manager-Western Province.This power plant was built with K...

Automakers vow not to give up on weak-selling electrics

GENEVA: Top automakers are vowing not to give up on weak-selling electric vehicles — even as they unveil an array of powerful luxury cars with conventional engines aimed at a growing global automarket.BMW AG CEO Norbert Reithofer said that at the Geneva International Motor Show that his company cannot do without battery-pow...

OPINION »

Abdulateef Al-Mulhim

Mr. Netanyahu: Iran is not just your enemy

There is one simple way to better understand the political dynamics of the Middl...

Mshari Al-Zaydi

Mother of all evils

The US is fighting the self-ascribed Islamic State (IS), and so is Iran. At the...

Abdulrahman Al-Rashed

Joint force may not be feasible

Most Gulf countries share similar enthusiasm when it comes to extending support...

Jeffry D. Sachs

Closing one’s eyes to disaster

ONE year ago, I was in Brazil to launch the Brazilian chapter of the United Nati...

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A Bangladeshi prisoner receives the gift of a...

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ART & CULTURE »

Ba9ma Banat: Reviving the Prophet’s lega...

Dareen M. Edress is the marketing manager of “Ba9ma Banat,” an innovative institution that revives the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) among young girls through different programs and interesting products such as calendars, diaries and books comprising the sayings of the Prophet (pbuh).
In a conversation with Arab News...

Dubai gets its first taste of...

Saudi steals show with his art...

The mural that stole the natio...

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY »

Dawn on Ceres: Nasa probe to visit dwarf...

PASADENA, California: A NASA spacecraft is about to reach the end of a nearly eight-year journey and make the first rendezvous with a dwarf planet.
The Dawn craft will slip into orbit Friday around Ceres, a dwarf planet the size of Texas. Unlike robotic landings or other orbit captures, the arrival won’t be a nail-biter. Still, Dawn had to...

Solar plane passes new test ah...

Dress color debate: So, it is...

Streaming fitness videos leave...

FASHION »

Wedding designers impress with innovativ...

Wedding is one of the most important events in a person’s life. It is the time when the air is filled with nothing but happiness and love. For the woman, the wedding day is usually a dream to make every single detail perfect for that one day or one night that would change her married life forever.
There are several wedding designers who al...

Warm up your feet in ‘The Moji...

All you need to know about hai...

Femininity gets a rethink duri...

TRAVEL »

Malaysia Muslim travelers’ top choice

SINGAPORE: Malaysia is the most preferred global destination in the fast-growing Muslim travel market, despite two catastrophic air disasters that hit the country’s flag-carrier in 2014, a survey showed Wednesday.
Turkey, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Indonesia followed Malaysia in the ranking of choice holiday destinations for Muslim tr...

Wonders of Arizona’s Red Rock...

Edinburgh: A city of history a...

Johannesburg: Heart of S. Afri...

FOOD & HEALTH »

Bridal beauty: How to work out a fitness plan

Planning a wedding can be a hectic time in every bride’s life. The mind is consumed with roses, tulips or peonies, the perfect shade of white, sequins or lace, short or long veil, pearls or diamonds, a day or night wedding, the guest list… the lists are endless. It’s a time consuming task until the day arrives and everything is perfect. Brides tend to lose themselves in the process and forget to take care of their mental and physical health as well, ironic actually since the most important people of the wedding are both bride and groom. A bride must find the serenity and balance in order for everything to go smoothly; exercise is always a great medication.We’ve all heard of these intense...

A taste of Lebanon in every bite

When I first heard that Em Sherif has franchised to Dubai, I couldn’t stop myself from booking a table there. The Lebanese restaurant will also open its doors in Jeddah soon. Located in the outdoor area of the Address Downtown hotel in Dubai and overviewing the Dubai Mall’s famous dancing fountain, the restaurant offers both indoor and outdoor seating for 300 diners at once. The outdoor seating area comprises white steel chairs and marble tables with romantic candlelight set up. Shisha is also served here. The inside decor features a Mediterranean touch, with silver blue walls, beautiful coral chandeliers and black wooden tables with velvet armchairs and black wooden chairs with blue...

Our kids’ bodies contaminated with chemicals (Part 17)

Last week, I wrote about ways to protect children and adults from everyday toxic bombardments. I also started with what Christopher Gavigan, author of Healthy Child, Healthy World and CEO and Executive Director of the non-profit www.healthychild.org, recommends of healthy practices to parents in order to reduce toxins in their children’s lives. In the previous article, I stopped at chemicals in processed, fried, and fast foods, soda and sweetened beverages, and additives (colorings, preservatives) in foods and medicines, which have become part of our children’s daily consumption. Today I will continue with Gavigan’s recommendations:• Overcleaning and sterilizing children’s environments...

OFFBEAT »

Business blooms as Saudi families spend billions on weddings

Innovation coupled with specialization has become a common feature of public lifestyles and Saudi weddings are not behin...

Franchise Man swoops in to save Bollywood

MUMBAI: Bollywood is looking for its next superhero, one who can swoop in to amuse audiences in a film industry bereft of fresh ideas. Its name might be Franchise Man.At least two movie studios in India are focusing on franchises, developing stories that will span three films.In the past, the Indian film industry has used the term “franchise” loosely. Typically, producers inch their way toward sequels, greenlighting them only when the first film is a hit.The “Krrish” superhero series and the “Dhoom” action franchise started as one-offs a decade ago, but the third films in the series released...

Terrific Taylor surprises young cancer patient

LOS ANGELES: Four-year old Jalene Salinas’ bucket list isn’t long. She wanted to make a snowman, go to school, drive a big wheel car — oh, and dance to her favorite song with Taylor Swift: “Shake It Off.”For the last 10 months, Jalene has battled an aggressive form of brain cancer. And with doctors giving her only a few months to live, the San Antonio girl and her family launched a quest to cross everything off of her final to-do list.She’s met the San Antonio Spurs, she caught the attention of actor Taye Diggs, and she inspired the hashtag #ShakeItOffJalene aimed at getting pop superstar...