SAGIA: Smooth transition highlights KSA’s stability
Saudi Arabia is committed to creating a world-class environment for investors, said Abdullatif A. Al-Othman, governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority.“The smooth transition of power to Custodian of the The Two Holy Mosques King Salman is a testament to the stability and commitment to our leadership,” he said.King Salman brings with him a track record of knowledge, insight and success from an early age, said the SAGIA chief. Al-Othman made these remarks in his keynote speech at the Global Competitiveness Forum (GCF) in Riyadh.More than 1,500 local and foreign delegates are taking part in the conference, focused  on the country’s priority investment sectors and major development projects. Eric Schmidt from Google and Bill McDermott from SAP were also present.Al-Othman hailed King Salman as a learned leader with an avid knowledge of history, and a true statesman in buildin...
Iraq's Shiite militias killed 70 civilians after IS rol...
BAGHDAD: Sunni politicians and tribal chiefs from Iraq’s eastern Diyala province accused Shiite mili...
Cosmic puzzle settled: Comets give us shooting stars
PARIS: Suspicions that shooting stars come from comet dust, transformed into fiery streaks as they h...
Salman, Obama set for strategic talks
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman will hold talks in Riyadh on Tuesday with US President Barack Obama on major regional and international issues, a Royal Court statement said. “The talks will also focus on prospects of expanding bilateral ties,” the statement added.The announcement came as Saudi Arabia’s Shoura Council pledged its allegiance to King Salman, Crown Prince Muqrin and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed...
Dawn of a new era under King Salman
A new era dawned in Saudi Arabia on Monday under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman as citizens across the country expressed their confidence in the new king’s ability to take the Kingdom to new heights of progress and prosperity.The three-day mourning period for the late King Abdullah ended Sunday. King Salman, Crown Prince Muqrin, Deputy Crown Prince, Second Deputy Premier and Interior Minis...

SAUDI ARABIA »

SCTA suspends ongoing tourism festivals
The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) has decided to suspend the ongoing and planned tourism festivals in the Kingdom to mark the death of King Abdullah who passed away early on Friday morning.SCTA President Prince Sultan bin Salman extended his sincere condolences to the Custodian...
Story behind the king’s title
With the pledge of allegiance this week, King Salman became the third Saudi monarch to take up the title of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques after King Fahd and King Abdullah.Historian Hassan Al-Basha says in his book, Positions and Titles, that Saladin was the first king to take up the title as a means to attain closeness...
Bodyguard of King Abdullah served loyally for 10 years
There was an outpouring of sympathy and praise online by Saudis for the personal bodyguard of King Abdullah, who served the late monarch for 10 years.Col. Abdul Aziz Al-Faghm was seen performing the funeral prayers for King Abdullah in Imam Turki bin Abdullah mosque in Riyadh last Friday with his usual stoic expression, but...
Crown Prince Muqrin ‘saved my daughter’
A 60-year-old Madinah woman says Crown Prince Muqrin saved the life of her daughter when he was governor of the city.Umm Mohammed, a resident of Al-Ais province in Madinah, said that when her daughter fell ill, the family did not have money for her treatment. She then decided to seek Prince Muqrin’s help while he was visiti...
New campaign to reduce car fuel consumption
The Saudi Center for Energy Efficiency at King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology plans to launch a third campaign to reduce fuel consumption in the country, this time targeting drivers.The four-week campaign follows the government focusing on air-conditioners in 2013. In 2014, it issued directives for all new buildi...
Stray bullet hits boy, 5, in Riyadh
A five-year-old boy is in intensive care at a hospital in Riyadh after being struck by a stray bullet, which is now lodged in his skull.Sultan bin Berm bin Abdul Aziz is being treated at the Abanamy Hospital in Riyadh. His father said the bullet struck him while he was standing in the doorway of the family’s home in Qurtuba...
Courts have SR6bn backlog of finance cases
The Ministry of Justice has called on judges to deal with lawsuits involving commercial papers and other financial instruments, even if these documents do not have the prescribed information on it.The ministry said these cases must be referred to executive judges so that plaintiffs can get paid out what was promised to them...
Saudis fortunate to have King Salman as leader
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, who has nearly 60 years of experience as governor of Riyadh, defense minister, crown prince and deputy premier, is all set to drive the Kingdom to greater progress and prosperity. Saudis say they are fortunate to have King Salman as their new leader.Being a close associate of a...
Ministry sets up call centers to help resolve labor disputes
The Ministry of Labor has begun to provide services to workers with labor dispute cases via call centers in Makkah, Riyadh, Arar, Hail, Najran, and Jazan. Work is ongoing to expand services to other regions gradually, according to an official report by the Labor Dispute Settlement Department at the Ministry.The report indic...
Tourist arrivals in Jeddah increase by 70%
The influx of tourists to Jeddah has increased by 70 percent with the festivals and activities drawing huge crowds to the historical city. Hotels and furnished apartments have also recorded an increase of 75 percent as tourists take advantage of online bookings to rent accommodations in advance.Tourist spending has also ris...
Massive show of support for king
A large number of citizens declared loyalty to their new ruler, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, on Sunday. Regional governors and ambassadors posted in Saudi diplomatic missions across the world also received pledges of allegiance on behalf of King Salman on Sunday.More high-profile foreign leaders arrived fo...
Business community pledges allegiance
Leaders of the Saudi Chambers and the Saudi business community declared their allegiance to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, Crown Prince Muqrin and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif.In a statement on Sunday, CSC expressed its deep sorrow over the death of King Abdullah who rendered great services to Islam...
1.61 million follow King Salman on Twitter
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has become a widely followed world leader on Twitter, while his popularity is progressively growing on other social media networks. The new king has overtaken many leaders on the popular microblogging site, and he is currently being followed on all social sites by Saudi citizens...
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MIDDLE EAST »

Iraq's Shiite militias killed 70 civilians after IS rollback:...
BAGHDAD: Sunni politicians and tribal chiefs from Iraq’s eastern Diyala province...
Kurds kick out IS from Kobani

BEIRUT: Kurdish fighters have expelled Islamic State (IS) group militants from i...

Japan seeks Jordan’s help to free hostages

TOKYO: Japan sought help from Jordan and other countries Monday in its race to s...

US Embassy in Yemen closed

SANAA: The United States said on Monday that it has closed its embassy in Yemen...

Zarif lands in hot water over walk with Kerry

DUBAI: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is to appear before Parliam...

WORLD »

Modi vows business-friendly India to American executives
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to banish India’s reputation as a...
Russian-backed rebels push forward in Ukraine

KIEV/ST PETERSBURG: Russian-backed rebels pushed forward on Monday with a new of...

Nigerian military fights to recapture town from Boko Haram

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: Nigerian troops backed by air strikes were fighting on Monda...

Death toll rises to 43 in southern Philippines clash

MANILA: At least 43 Philippine police commandos were killed in a fierce battle w...

‘Lizard Squad’ hackers attack Malaysia Airlines website

KUALA LUMPUR: The website of Malaysia Airlines was commandeered for several hour...

SPORTS »

Watt steals Team Irvin thunder in friendly Pro Bowl
GLENDALE, Arizona: Few moved very fast, no one flattened a quarterback and ther...
Tavares scores 4, Team Toews outscores Team Foligno, 17-12

COLUMBUS, Ohio: John Tavares of the New York Islanders matched a record with fou...

'Deflategate' overshadows Seahawks' Super Bowl arr...

PHOENIX: With the arrival of the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, Super Bowl week wa...

Unfancied hosts, Congo enter Cup of Nations quarters

BATA, Equatorial Guinea: Hosts Equatorial Guinea and Claude Le Roy’s Congo Brazz...

Djokovic delights; Williams sisters fight on

MELBOURNE: Dominant Novak Djokovic swept into the Australian Open last eight Mon...

ECONOMY »

Infrastructure investment to continue
Heavy spending on infrastructure, education, training and job creation initiatives would continue under Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, an expert said here...
SABIC creates ‘enormous value’ for Kingdom
The enormous benefits of SABIC to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia include the creation of high-quality jobs, development of technology, and opportunities for service industries, said Mohamed Al-Mady, the company’s vice chairman and CEO, at a major international forum in Riyadh.“The petrochemicals industry has played a significa...
Al-Rabiah unveils new push to promote Saudi exports
Plans are under way to set up open markets with selected countries to export Saudi products, according to Commerce and Industry Minister Tawfiq Al-Rabiah.He was speaking at the inaugural session of the GCF 2015 on "Competitive governments and Saudi Arabia: Gateway to the world" at the Four Seasons Hotel here on Monday. It w...
Current account surplus: Kingdom in strong position
Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product (GDP) doubled during the reign of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, who died on Friday, from SR1.23 trillion in 2005 to about SR2.82 trillion in 2014. Disclosing this, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) Gov. Abdullatif Al-Othman said that the growth rate o...
Saudi youths innovative and competitive, observes Google exec
Saudi youths have potential for innovation and their country has the resources for constructive developments, Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google said while addressing the Eighth Global Competitiveness Forum (GCF 2015) held here on Monday.In his keynote address, Schmidt said unlike other countries, Saudi Arabia has a...
Invest in Saudi Arabia show features 24 major exhibitors
A comprehensive Invest in Saudi Arabia exhibition attracted hundreds of delegates of the GCF 2015, on its opening day on Monday.The expo, which has 24 exhibitors from major companies, was opened by Saudi Arabian Investment Authority Gov. Abdulatif A. Al-Othman during the tea-break of the GFC 2015.Commerce and Industry Minis...
OPEC chief expects some rebound in crude prices soon
LONDON: Oil prices at current levels may have reached a floor and could move higher very soon, OPEC Secretary-General Abdullah Al-Badri said.“Now the prices are around $45-$55 and I think maybe they reached the bottom and will see some rebound very soon,” Al-Badri said in an interview. Benchmark Brent crude was close to $49...
Best in class: Bahra Cables setting industry standards
Jeddah-Bahra Cables Company has nurtured the idea of opening women-only factories in the future to basically handle low voltage switchgear assemblies that can be operated exclusively by Saudi women. Women’s employment is foremost in companies’ mind.Bahra Cables’ total investment would reach SR1 billion after completion of v...
UAE economy minister expects oil to start recovering by mid-year
ABU DHABI: Oil prices are expected to start recovering by the middle of this year, along with improvement in major economies, UAE Economy Minister Sultan bin Saeed Al-Mansouri said.“My expectation is that by the middle of this year we should see some turn in oil prices and an expected positive turn in the economies of Europ...
Tadawul: Media shares stay in the limelight
The benchmark Tadawul All-Share Index (TASI) dug in at 8,480.1 points on Monday. It rose over one percent just after the opening bell and spending entire session above the breakeven line gained 0.69 percent.All market cap indices ended the day in the safe area, with Small cap adding 1.6 percent. Fourteen sectors accumulated...
Kingdom’s nonoil GDP growth expected to be robust in 2015
Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz) recently released its outlook on GCC markets for the full year of 2015. In this research report, Markaz analyses the performance of GCC stock markets in 2014 and provides an outlook for 2015 based on hydrocarbon dependency, corporate earnings potential, valuation attraction, economic factors...
Dubai real estate market shows growth in 2014
The latest quarterly report issued by the real estate consultancy arm of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) — MPM Properties — has found that while 2014 was a year of further growth for Dubai real estate market, the last three months saw a decline in values/prices in some areas and improved net yields to more sustainable levels....
Italy plans to set up ‘bad bank’ to clean up risky loans
ROME: Italy is considering setting up a state-backed "bad bank" to help clean up its banking sector, Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said in a newspaper interview on Sunday.Bad loans force lenders to set aside money to cover expected losses. They have become the main problem for Italian banks, which fared the worst in a...

OPINION »

Hassan Barari
Visionary leaders
ARABS and Muslims are very saddened by the death of King Abdullah. His death cam...
Ramzy Baroud
The pain of displacement
Whenever the word “refugee” is uttered, I think of my mother. When Zionist milit...
Linda S. Heard
Netanyahu upsets allies
ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a tough cookie. For him, making ene...
Agence France Presse
A balancing act
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has trumpeted a new era of friendship with U...

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ART & CULTURE »

Telling ‘The Story of Kamin’ — one pen s...

It takes imagination, time, patience and a lot of creativity to create a piece of art. A canvas, a freshly painted white wall, a restaurant napkin or on the side panels of a notebook can all be materials to create something amazing after a moment or two of inspiration. For some, the act of creativity is an innate feeling and it can result in ama...
Abdullah Qandeel’s art: A thin...
Purists alarmed at increasing...
Filipino wins in photo expo
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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY »

Cosmic puzzle settled: Comets give us sh...

PARIS: Suspicions that shooting stars come from comet dust, transformed into fiery streaks as they hit Earth’s atmosphere, have been bolstered by Europe’s Rosetta space mission, scientists reported Monday.
Comets and asteroids have both been eyed as possible progenitors of meteors, also known as shooting or falling stars — and now particles...
Turn your smartphone into a sc...
KSA’s digital generation
Craft your own metropolis
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FASHION »

Argan oil: The Moroccan ‘liquid gold’ fo...

Argan oil is known as ‘liquid gold’ and is made especially in Morocco. It is used in beauty rituals and in cooking. Lately, this oil has captured the attention of many for its proven nutritional and cosmetic health benefits. The oil is sold around the world as a luxury item and can be difficult to find outside its production areas.
In 1998...
Diamonds are literally this gi...
Treating acne during pregnancy
Rock ‘n’ Roll fashion the new...

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TRAVEL »

SCTA suspends ongoing tourism festivals

The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) has decided to suspend the ongoing and planned tourism festivals in the Kingdom to mark the death of King Abdullah who passed away early on Friday morning.
SCTA President Prince Sultan bin Salman extended his sincere condolences to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on t...
Tourist arrivals in Jeddah inc...
Japan’s modern architecture on...
Restoration of Diriyah heritag...
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FOOD & HEALTH »

Our kids’ bodies contaminated with chemicals (Part 11)
Last week I stopped at the discussion about fast food. Since the subject of fast foods and their harmful effects does not seem to end, because their health-damaging side effects are surfacing lately more and more through recent research, I will take the liberty to expound on them. Recent research at the Massachusetts Medical Society Committee on Nutrition found a relationship between fast food and elevated body mass index (BMI) and weight gain due to the high content of unhealthy simple sugars, refined chewy white bread, saturated, trans fats, and large portions, which raise the risk of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, and fatality. An earlier study showed that trans fats (...
Rosewood Jeddah’s Italian food fest is bigger and better
The fourth edition of the Italian Food Festival at Rosewood Jeddah was launched last week. Chef Francesca Simoni from Bologna and executive chef Amjad Yousef Al-Ghandoor are presenting traditional Italian cuisine from across Italy with a unique modern touch at Habsburg, a Rosewood restaurant.Chef Francesca is the Executive Sous Chef at Amerigo 1934 Trattoria, the winner of the prestigious Gambero Rosso Award for the best restaurant in Italy in 2013. She flew into Jeddah especially for the festival. Together with Al-Ghandoor, she is preparing authentic dishes not only from her region, Emilia-Romagna, but from all the major Italian cities. The festival will continue until Jan. 28.Chef Al-...
Bitter news: Diabetes ‘to hit 50% Saudis by 2030’
If no action is taken, the number of Saudi nationals with diabetes is expected to jump from 24 to 50 percent by 2030, the International Diabetes Federation said in a report run by a local publication.A global conference on diabetes in Alkhobar has, meanwhile, proposed that nine government agencies set up a national project to fight diabetes and obesity in the Kingdom, local media said.Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the conference, Abdulaziz Al-Turki, board chairman of the Saudi Society for Diabetes and Endocrinology (SSDE) in the Eastern Province, said the situation is alarming and would have negative health, social and economic consequences for Saudi society. He said a national...

OFFBEAT »

Colombian beauty crowned Miss Universe
DORAL, United States: Colombia’s Paulina Vega was crowned Miss Universe Sunday, beating out contenders from the United S...
Controversial ‘Sniper’ tops BO for 2nd week
LOS ANGELES: Clint Eastwood’s mega-hit “American Sniper” was the top film at North American movie houses for a second week, despite controversy over what some feel is a jingoistic message and graphic violence.The war drama, based on the true story of Iraq War Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, earned $64.4 million this weekend, industry estimates showed, after last weekend’s massive haul of nearly $90 million — a record January opening.Nearly half of all movie tickets sold over the weekend were for “American Sniper” and all told, the film has so far earned more than $200 million since its release, giving...
Zafar pays tribute to Peshawar attack victims
NEW DELHI: Pakistani actor-singer Ali Zafar has brought together musicians, actors and sportspersons for the video of his new single “Ureinge”, which translates into “Will fly,” to pay tribute to the victims of the Peshawar massacre.According to the Dawn, the video will feature big names like cricketer Shoaib Malik, actor Ali Kazmi, actresses Mahira Khan and Humaima Malick.The 34-year-old actor took to micro-blogging site Twitter to share the humbling experience.“Can’t explain how humbled I feel to see the entire tv, film and music industry come together for a song I did about the #...

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