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King named Cultural Personality of the Year

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has been chosen for the Zayed Book Award’s Cultural Personality for 2014. The announcement was made by Ali bin Tamim, secretary-general of the award, during a press conference here on Saturday. The Sheikh Zayed Book Award’s Cultural Personality of the Year honors a prominent Arab or international figure (or organization) who has contributed to the advancement of the Arabic culture and promoted tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Ali said that the Award’s scientific committee and its board of trustees has decided that the prize for 2014 be awarded to King Abdullah in view of his numerous achievements over the decades. “King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz’s impressive achievements have been witnessed over the decades and he still contributes as generously as he has always done to the Arab and Islamic...

Islamabad not to grant MFN status to India, says minister

Pakistan is “no longer” considering India for most-favored nation (MFN) status, said Pakistani Feder...

2 more expats die of MERS in Jeddah

JEDDAH: Two foreigners died of MERS in Jeddah, the Health Ministry said Saturday, as fears rise over...

At least 42 dead in Pakistan road accident

KARACHI: At least 42 people were killed and 17 wounded in southern Pakistan when a bus travelling to Karachi collided with a tractor-trailer, police said.The dead included 14 children and 13 women, they said.The accident happened in the town of Sukkur, 425 km north of Karachi in the southern province of Sindh.Fida Hussain Shah, a senior Sukkur police officer who gave the casualty figure, said the bus driver was killed on...

Attacks kill at least 15 people in Iraq

BAGHDAD: A series of attacks, including a coordinated assault on a private Shiite college in Baghdad, killed at least 15 people and wounded nearly 50 others in Iraq on Sunday, officials said.Less than two weeks ahead of parliamentary elections, Iraq is struggling to keep a lid on a surge in sectarian violence that has sent bloodshed soaring to levels not seen since the country was pushed to the brink of civil war in 2006...

SAUDI ARABIA »

Photos bring back memories of Haj from a bygone era

French President Francois Hollande and Deputy Foreign Minister Prince Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah will open a Haj exhibition in Paris on Tuesday.King Abdul Aziz Library and t...

Makkah intensifies traffic inspections...

The Makkah Traffic Police is intensifying inspections on weekends to control and streamline the increasing traffic owing to the surging number of pilgrims in the holy city and adopting strategic measures to curb driving violations with the aim to ensure road safety.In the latest move, the Traffic Police arrested 20 erring m...

Jubail to hold Career Day

The Royal Commission of Jubail (RCJ) represented by the Colleges and Institutes Sector (Jubail Industrial College, Jubail University College, and Jubail Technical Institute) has organized the 12th Jubail Career Day over three days from April 21-23 to enable talented KSA nationals in different fields to come face-to-face wit...

Search under way for missing citizen

A voluntary team has announced its intention to cooperate with security authorities in Taif to look for a 50-year-old citizen who went missing in one of the villages affiliated with Al-Mahani center, after receiving information leading to his whereabouts.Press spokesman for the team Abdulaziz Al-Aboudi said the team members...

MIDDLE EAST »

7 in fray to be Libya PM

TRIPOLI: The Libyan Parliament on Sunday began hearing seven candidates who are...

Peace our greatest weapon: Al-Sudais

There some individuals who misuse Islam to achieve personal goals and spread vio...

WORLD »

Abdullah Abdullah leads the race in Afghan election

KABUL: Former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah leads the race to become Afghan...

At least 42 dead in Pakistan road accident

KARACHI: At least 42 people were killed and 17 wounded in southern Pakistan when...

ECONOMY »

Automakers unveil China-focused models in Beijing

BEIJING: Ford Motor Co. unveiled a new Escort sedan designed in China for global...

SABIC expansion abroad vital, says CEO

RIYADH: Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) reported a dip in its quarterly ear...

SPORTS »

Hamilton pulls three-peat at Chinese Grand Prix

SHANGHAI: Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton captured his third straight Formula One race with ease on Sunday, leading from start to finish to win the Chinese Grand Prix.Merc...

Rain or Shine gets critical win over...

Wayne Chism shot 30 points, had 15 rebounds and five blocks in a critical Rain or Shine win over Barangay Ginebra Sunday night, giving Yeng Guiao the last laugh on everyone who wanted to see him send his import home.“(Only) the team and myself were the ones not giving up on him,” Guiao said after a 105-101 overtime thriller...

Liverpool closes on title; Everton...

LONDON: Liverpool moved closer to a first league title since 1990 with a 3-2 win at Norwich City on Sunday that sent them five points clear in the Premier League.Quick-fire early goals from Raheem Sterling and Luis Suarez put the visitors in control at Carrow Road, before Gary Hooper replied for fourth-bottom Norwich in the...

Sweet home success for Michelle Wie

KAPOLEI, Hwaii: American Michelle Wie won her first LPGA title since 2010 on Saturday, firing five-under par 67 for a two-shot victory in the Lotte Championship.Wie had six birdies, and not even a three-putt bogey at the final hole at her home course, Ko Olina, could dim her joy at her third career LPGA crown.“It feels good...

OPINION »

Seema Sengupta

Human rights versus commercial interests

British envoy to India Sir James Bevan’s politically significant decision to tra...

Muhammad Waqas

Musharraf case tests civil-military ties

Times change, people change but acrimony in some relationships seems to last for...

Hassan Barari

Algeria faces uncertain future

Despite health problems and the fact that ailing Abdelaziz Bouteflika is confine...

AbdulRahman AlRashed

Truth behind ‘charity’ work

It is ironic that the regulator of charitable societies in the UK has now become...

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ART & CULTURE »

Egyptian artist gives voice to Pakistani...

When artist Wael Shawky attended the 10th Sharjah Biennal in 2011 he became aware of something a little unsettling. This was the unintentional disconnect between the words being spoken by the art curators at the press conferences and a large part of the ‘community’ which the organizers declared it was their intention to reach. He not...

Alkhobar’s Al-Rashid Qaisariya...

Jeddah’s artworks amaze visito...

Arabic calligraphy flourishing...

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY »

Increase your productivity with RescueTi...

RescueTime is a software that helps increase your productivity by monitoring your activity on the computer and informing you when and how you're being productive or distracted.
The program is basically a small application (3.76MB) that you have to install locally on your computer. Whenever you would like to see statistics about your b...

NASA’s space station Robonaut...

Tracking posts on social media...

Flu can increase risk of autis...

FASHION »

Skirt trunk show attracts Jeddah fashion...

In the latest event to rock J-town's fashion scene, 15 fashion designers came together with their collections of trendy skirts, especially designed for the trunk show held at Libra Boutique.
The event gathered 12 Saudi designers along with two Kuwaiti designers who were looking to test the Saudi market with their designs.
...

Shopaholism: Is it a disease?

Paraphernalia: Street-wear glo...

Cosmetic herbal recipes with a...

TRAVEL »

Explore stunning Islamic architecture in...

The historic Bidar in the federal state of Karnataka in India now finds itself on the world map of heritage tourism as it figures in the 2014 World Monuments Watch list released by the World Monuments Fund (WMF), a New York-based NGO working for the protection of monuments. I was in Bidar last year especially to feel what a premier madrasa (reli...

Media convoy to capture Taif...

Visitors throng Taif for mild...

New surprises, more fun &...

FOOD & HEALTH »

Face mask can reduce coronavirus risk by 80%

Wearing a face mask can reduce the risk of being infected by the coronavirus by more than 80 percent, Dr. Hana Bakhash, a consultant in infectious diseases and viruses at Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital (DSFH) in Jeddah, told Arab News.“Residents are advised to maintain personal hygiene and wash their hands regularly, as well as avoid large crowds, especially at hospitals, commercial centers, malls and markets,” she said.Pharmacy owners have reported a boom in mask sales, with a 300-percent increase in a single week, indicating fear among locals that has only been exacerbated by rampant rumors on social networking sites.“I hardly used to sell any face masks in the past, but have sold more than...

Baiz: Celebrating tradition, the modern way

Ehnaini cakes, burgers made with traditional Bahraini kebabs, and fries made with ancient aromatic spices are only some of the dishes you can enjoy at the Baiz coffee shop and restaurant in Alkhobar. Everything in the restaurant, from its name (Baiz is an old local term meaning a piece of cloth used to clean surfaces) to the dishes on the menu and the antique interior design uniquely blended with modernity, end up giving a feel of the traditions of the Eastern Province. Eman Al-Bagawi is the co-founder of the restaurant together with her cousin Fai Al-Shammari. She is a marketing graduate whose study has helped her market her project, especially through Instagram and Twitter. She then...

Ohio clinic plans ultra-modern health center in Abu Dhabi

The late United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan traveled 7,000 miles to get there for his kidney transplant. For decades the Cleveland Clinic has provided health care to the upper echelons of Middle Eastern society who fly halfway across the world for treatment at the Ohio-based private medical center. Soon, they can skip the trip. Early next year the Cleveland Clinic plans to open an ultra-modern, 364-bed specialty hospital on Al-Maryah Island in Abu Dhabi, one of the most ambitious forays into the oil-rich country by a US health care brand. The expansion comes as the Cleveland Clinic slashes hundreds of millions of dollars off its US operations to prepare for...

OFFBEAT »

Why is Amitabh Bachchan nervous?

Amitabh Bachchan ... apprehensive

MUMBAI: After delivering hits with R Balki, megastar Amitabh Bachchan has revealed that he still gets butterflies in the...

A royal baby’s day out

SYDNEY: Britain’s baby Prince George stepped out in public with his parents Sunday for the first time in Australia, for an encounter with wildlife at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo.George, eight-months-old and third in line to the throne after grandfather Princes Charles and father William, stole the show as his parents toured the harborfront zoo overlooking the Opera House and Sydney Harbor Bridge.The royal family were at the zoo to visit an enclosure for bilbies and meet one of the rabbit-eared native marsupials who was named in George’s honor.Dressed in a blue striped shirt, blue shorts and black...

Michelle to make acting debut

LOS ANGELES: Michelle Obama is to make a cameo appearance on American musical drama series ‘Nashville’ next month. The First Lady, 50, will make a cameo appearance as herself in an upcoming episode of the ABC drama, which will air on May 7 and lead up to the season two finale, reported Ace Showbiz.The brunette beauty will appear alongside Connie Britton, whose character Rayna James persuades Obama to host a charity concert at Fort Campbell, after it is revealed character Luke Wheeler has been injured in Afghanistan. The mother of two, who appears to have no problem oozing confidence in front...