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Saudi Arabia is all set for a new era under Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman as the newly appointed ministers and regional governors took oath of office in front of the king at Al-Yamamah Palace on Sunday.King Salman urged the new governors and ministers to give top priority for the welfare and prosperity of citizens. “May Allah help us all to serve our religion, nation and people,” the king said in a brief speech.He expressed his confidence in the new governors and ministers who took oath of office on Sunday, describing them as “the roots of this country founded by King Abdul Aziz.”He highlighted Saudi Arabia’s position as the heart of the Muslim world and the cradle of Islam.King Salman called upon Saudis to strengthen their unity and solidarity to bolster the Kingdom’s security and stability. He noted the great contributions made by previous kings.“King Abdullah always ad...

14 crimes not covered by amnesty

Prisons across the Kingdom have started releasing a number of inmates who are qualified to be set fr...

Tadawul rises 3% as lavish payout boosts market

Saudi Arabia's stock market rose sharply on Sunday after Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salm...

Fake degree users to face tough action

Saudi Arabia is mounting a crackdown on academic fraud after several incidents were uncovered recently in which Saudis and expatriates were found holding lucrative jobs on the basis of fake degrees and diplomas of reputed universities. The plan is also to blacklist and persecute individuals and institutions found to be involved in counterfeiting educational testimonials.“The Ministry of Interior will apply statutory penal...

Cafe lands in the soup

Saudi security authorities have closed a café in Riyadh for allegedly celebrating the removal of the former president of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (Haia).The café had put up a banner on the gate of the building that announced that hot drinks would be served free to mark the removal of Haia chief from his position.Abdul Rahman Al-Sanad, former president of Madinah Islamic Univers...

SAUDI ARABIA »

King Salman merges ministries to boost educational standards

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has recently issued a royal decree to merge the two ministries of education and higher education in a historic decision, which defines Saudi Arabia’s ambitious plans for education, according to Naif Al-Roomi, governor of the Public Education Evaluation C...

Alarab Television channel goes on air

Alarab, a new pan-Arab television channel, took to the airwaves on Sunday from its headquarters in Manama, Bahrain.The channel, owned by Kingdom Holding Co. Chairman Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, is headed by the Madinah-born, US-educated Saudi journalist, columnist and editor Jamal Khashoggi.As general manager of the new chan...

Name-swapping trend is a rage

In order to keep up with the times, a new fashion is causing all the rage among Saudi families. In this new fad, citizens are changing their names under the excuse that the previous ones have become old fashioned.The trend is more widespread among women than men, since women change their names before they get married or aft...

Makkans welcome return of Prince Khaled as governor

People in the Makkah Province have wholeheartedly welcomed the reassignment of Prince Khaled Al-Faisal as their governor, as announced in Thursday’s royal decree.They hope that with the return of Prince Khaled, known for his strict governance and discipline, the holy city will once again reverberate with activities, notably...

Madinah job fair planned for this week

Under the guidance of Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman, a forum on the employment market will be organized for hundreds of Saudi youth at Le Meridien Hotel on Feb. 4 and 5.Labor Minister Adel Fakeih will attend the event which aims to find jobs for the youth in the public and private sectors in the Madinah province.“Fi...

Saudi team visiting Dhaka to formalize recruitment process

A special delegation from the Saudi Labor Ministry which was commissioned on Sunday in a royal decree issued last week will shortly leave for Dhaka to work out the details for the recruitment of Bangladesh manpower, the Bangladesh Embassy announced here on Sunday. The royal decree announced lifting of the 2008 ban on manpow...

Imran Khan prays at Prophet’s Mosque

Well-known Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan visited Madinah with his wife Reham last week. He prayed at the Prophet’s Mosque and visited Masjid Al-Quba.He also paid a visit to the Uhud battle site. Khan described Pakistani-Saudi relations as strong. “I am in Saudi Arabia for spiritual reasons,” he told Arab...

Shrimp season declines by 50 percent in EP

With the shrimp season due to end in February following its launch in early August, fishermen in the Eastern Province said that it was the worst season in the past three years with the shrimp catch declining by almost 50 percent compared to the previous season.The fishermen also complained about the high prices of the marin...

Royal pardon: Thankful prisoners are over the moon

The General Directorate of Prisons is preparing to implement a Royal Decree issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman to pardon public-rights prisoners, as well as exemptions from financial penalties that don’t exceed SR500,000. The directorate announced its readiness to apply the directions as soon as the par...

Recruitment from Bangladesh ‘soon’

The Ministry of Labor will soon overturn a two-year-old ban on the recruitment of Bangladeshi manpower, and will allow private companies to hire nationals from that country, Al-Riyadh daily has reported, quoting sources close to the ministry. This measure comes after a visit to Saudi Arabia last week by Bangladeshi Labor M...

IISJ plans higher fees; says expansion needed to admit more students

The International Indian School, Jeddah (IISJ) has vowed to solve the admission problem facing thousands of Indian students and has taken practical steps to admit all applicants for the next academic year. “We are now in the process of renting a new building to accommodate all students who need admission,” said Mohammed Raz...

No dearth of experience in King Salman’s new team

The new team of ministers and officials appointed by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman on Thursday is a mix of youth and experience.Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, deputy minister of petroleum and mineral resources, held a number of posts during his service in the ministry before.As early as 1987, he was appointed...

Saudi, expat infected with MERS

Two new cases of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus ((MERS-CoV) were recorded by the Ministry of Health late Friday. The Command and Control Center (CCC) at the ministry reported that an expatriate worker in Riyadh and a Saudi national in Hofuf had contracted the infection, bringing the total number of...

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MIDDLE EAST »

Egypt releases Australian Al-Jazeera reporter Greste

CAIRO: Al-Jazeera English reporter Peter Greste left Egypt on Sunday on a flight...

Jordan still ready for swap with Islamic State to free pilot

AMMAN: Jordan said on Sunday it was still ready to hand over a jailed Iraqi mili...

Mahmoud Abbas’ main rival wins Serbia citizenship

BELGRADE: Serbia has granted citizenship to a key political rival of Palestinian...

34 airstrikes conducted against IS

WASHINGTON: The US and its allies have carried out 26 air strikes in Iraq and ei...

Jordan vows to do ‘everything’ to save life of IS-held pilot

AMMAN: Jordan has vowed to do all it could to save an airman held by the Islamic...

WORLD »

Thousands of Hong Kongers march for democracy

HONG KONG: Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators marched through Hong Kong’s...

India probes discovery of bodies found in police morgue

NEW DELHI: A forensic team has submitted a report on the gruesome discovery of d...

Modi to visit China in May

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit China in May, the fore...

Philippine minister says not told in advance of raid

MANILA: The Philippine interior minister said Sunday he did not know in advance...

Death toll mounts in Ukraine fighting after peace talks fail

KIEV/DONETSK, Ukraine: Thirteen government soldiers and at least as many civilia...

SPORTS »

Time to pay attention to sports

A few days ago, many Saudis and particularly the youth were seen discussing one...

Sweet 5th Down Under for Djokovic

MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic won his fifth Australian Open title and his eighth car...

McIlroy reigns supreme in Dubai

DUBAI: World No. 1 Rory McIlroy produced a masterclass of how to protect a lead...

Red Bull launches new car in pursuit of Mercedes

JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA, Spain: Red Bull team principal Christian Horner wants to g...

Warriors back to winning ways, beat Suns

OAKLAND, California: Golden State ended a rare form lapse and beat Phoenix 106-8...

ECONOMY »

GCC growth 'to remain unaffected by oil price fall...

Economic growth in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will not be affected by the falling oil prices as these countries have abundance of financial reserves, w...

Tadawul index breaks 9,000-point barrier

The benchmark Tadawul All-Share Index logged a sharp gain of roughly three percent on Sunday, surpassing the psychological important 9,000 points mark.The index opened with a largely positive note (+4.0 percent) and finally added 265.4 points, closing at 9,143.93. Large Cap made the biggest jump among market cap indices, po...

Private equity specialist upbeat on KSA market

Saudi Arabia has around $700 billion in reserves, enough to continue spending at its current rate and oil prices for years to come, says Shailesh Dash, founder and CEO of Al-Masah Capital Ltd. (AMCL).Of course, “the steep decline in the price of oil has put the Kingdom’s 2015 budget into a deficit of almost $40 billion,” Da...

Irish ambassador visits Almarai facilities

Irish Ambassador Tony Cotter visited Almarai Company’s facilities in Alkharj recently. His tour included one of the cattle farms and the central processing plant for the production of juices, cheese and long life milk.At the farm, the envoy was briefed on the modern methods the company adopted in the main milking parlors an...

Aviation leaders seek new safety mandate after deadly 2014

MONTREAL: Aviation leaders will try to secure a mandate to implement new safety standards when they meet next week after a string of high-profile accidents around the world made 2014 the deadliest year for commercial airlines in almost a decade.Efforts to adopt new standards for global plane tracking and co-operation on the...

Alwaleed, Google’s Schmidt discuss business cooperation

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), met with Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google and an accompanying delegation.The delegation included head of Android business development and partnerships, MENA, Jared Cohen, director, Google Ideas, Frances Townsend, CNN national security analyst an...

Global halal food market is worth $1.1 trillion

The international Halal food market, considered one of the fastest growing segments of the worldwide food industry and currently worth $1.1 trillion globally, occupies an integral part of Gulfood 2015 — the 20th anniversary of the food and hospitality trade show. In all, more than 1,000 international halal food brands and c...

Etihad Airways appoints first female Emirati airport manager

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has appointed Fatima Al-Kharousi as the first Emirati female airport manager. Based in Nagoya, Japan, she will be responsible for overseeing the airline’s operations at Chubu Centrair International Airport and the smooth operation of its daily service between Abu Dhabi and Na...

Greece wants to link debt payments to growth

BERLIN: Greece’s economy minister said it would be better to link the country’s debt repayments to its economic growth rate as it needs a feasible solution to bring its sovereign debt under control.Athens faces about 10 billion euros ($11 billion) in repayments this summer and is shut out of international bond markets while...

Russia’s economy to shrink by 3% in 2015

MOSCOW: Russia’s economy minister Alexei Ulyukayev forecast GDP to fall by three percent in 2015 on the back of a collapse in oil prices and a massive capital flight.“We have issued a forecast for 2015 which uses the current prices, that is $50 dollars a barrel for the entire year,” Ulyukayev was quoted by Russian news agen...

Mexico cuts spending on oil shock

MEXICO CITY: Mexico’s government has cut its 2015 budget by nearly 3 percent after a drop in global prices hurt public finances, and it is shelving a tainted $3.75 billion high-speed train tender as part of its austerity measures.Finance Minister Luis Videgaray said the cuts were intended to reassure global investors that M...

Russia’s Astrakhan region delegation visits SAIF Zone

A high-level trade and investment delegation from Astrakhan region of Russia visited Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF ZONE).The delegation led by Sergey N. Krzhanovskiy, deputy chairman of the government and minister of industry, transport and natural resources of Astrakhan region, met Saud Salim Al-Mazrouei,...

Saudi Brothers: Ensuring sustainable water solutions

For Saudi Brothers Commercial Group and its CEO Sheikh Fahd Al-Nowaiser, water desalination and purification industry is not only an important business but also a vital service to the nation, supplying potable water to its growing population.The group has established three subsidiaries with operations across the Kingdom to...

OPINION »

Sabria S. Jawhar

Examining root of western hostility

Aa the self-ascribed Islamic State (IS) continues to murder as many people as po...

Abdel Aziz Aluwaisheg

Injecting fresh blood

The passing of King Abdullah on Jan. 23 and the seamless transfer of power to Ki...

Emil Amin

Saudi-US relations stand test of time

Since the meeting between the founder of the Kingdom, King Abdul Aziz, and US Pr...

Hassan Barari

War of a new kind

It seems that Egypt will continue grappling with terrorism for years to come. Th...

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ART & CULTURE »

Man denounces Islamic State through art

BAGHDAD: The Islamic State (IS) militant glares at Baghdad residents with bulging eyes and bared teeth, but neither kidnapping nor death are imminent, because this terrorist is made from a shoe.
A black, treaded sole with the toe broken off serves as his face and nose, while old shoelaces evoke both black headscarf and long hair.
For t...

Art fair turns India’s capital...

Telling ‘The Story of Kamin’ —...

Abdullah Qandeel’s art: A thin...

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY »

Chinese language apps make learning a ga...

HONG KONG: Philipp Mattheis knew his gaming app was addictive when he realized he kept checking his phone — hooked by the brightly-colored reminders telling him to play again or risk falling from the triple-figure level he had reached.
Yet gripping the German journalist’s attention was not Candy Crush, but one of a new generation of Chinese...

Facebook, Instagram suffer glo...

Cosmic puzzle settled: Comets...

Turn your smartphone into a sc...

FASHION »

Hatem Al-Akeel: Revolutionizing the humb...

Knowledge is key in the fashion industry. Knowing what works and what doesn’t is what helps improve a designer in their quest for innovative designs. Inspired by different cultures, attentive to the latest in the fashion world and keen on details is what defines Hatem Al-Akeel. Coming from no background in design, he ventured in the world with h...

Anton Heunis: The hawk-eyed je...

Hair masks: Top 10 tips for lo...

Argan oil: The Moroccan ‘liqui...

TRAVEL »

Discovering the Kingdom

Historical monuments and sites can be found throughout Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom has many attractions designed for those who want to know more about the country. The Kingdom offers several tourist places such as atmospheric souqs and villages reflecting the heritage and culture of Saudi Arabia.
This place is more than a harsh desert. We hav...

SCTA suspends ongoing tourism...

Tourist arrivals in Jeddah inc...

Japan’s modern architecture on...

FOOD & HEALTH »

Cases of sandfly disease are ‘on the rise’ in KSA

Health workers in the Kingdom have reported a rise in cases of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL) disease, caused by the bite of sandflies, and warned the public to take precautions.According to a report in a local publication, several patients, mostly in the Eastern Province, have been detected with Leishmaniasis. The symptoms include welts or sores on the skin, which can become infected. It can affect the spleen and liver and result in death. Several physicians have said there is no clear method to treat CL. However, Ministry of Health officials recommend people minimizing the amount of exposed skin, improve their personal hygiene and keep their surroundings clean. They can also use nets...

California declares electronic cigarettes a health threat

SACRAMENTO, California: California health officials say electronic cigarettes are a health threat, especially to children, and should be strictly regulated like tobacco products.A report released Wednesday by the California Department of Public Health says e-cigarettes emit cancer-causing chemicals and get users hooked on nicotine. California Health Officer Ron Chapman says new generations of young people will become nicotine addicts if the products remain largely unregulated.E-cigarettes heat liquid nicotine from cartridges into inhalable vapor without tar and other chemicals found in traditional cigarettes. E-cigarette makers say their products are far safer than tobacco.Other states...

You quit smoking, now what?

Ever wondered what happens after you quit smoking? Many people fall back and get back to their bad habits. There are many reasons for this, some of which are mental while others are physical.We just found out about smoking detox where you can literally detox cigarettes out of your body. “This can only be assisted by controlling what you eat and drink on a daily basis. To be able to get the maximum benefit out of this type of detox, begin by quitting cigarettes right on the spot,” said pulmonologist Dr. Khalil Saad. “Your body will take its time to fully recover and this could take up to a period of years. Smoking is very harmful and your body cannot kick out the toxins in a short period of...

OFFBEAT »

Name-swapping trend is a rage

In order to keep up with the times, a new fashion is causing all the rage among Saudi families. In this new fad, citizen...

Jolie beats Malala in poll for ‘most admirable woman’

NEW YORK: Hollywood sweetheart Angelina Jolie beat the likes of Malala Yousafzai and Europe’s lavish royals in a poll that crowned her the world’s most admired woman.In a survey conducted by YouGov, in which 25,000 people from 23 countries participated, Jolie beat the Queen of England, Angela Merkel, Hillary Clinton and Sonia Gandhi.Jolie’s name was the most common answer in the survey which asked people to name a man or a woman they most admired. The UN special envoy for refugees and Hollywood powerhouse came on top, along with Bill Gates who secured the title of “most admired man.”The poll...

Sundance: Cancer movie wins top prize

LOS ANGELES: “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl,” a moving drama about a teenager who befriends a classmate with cancer, won the top prize at the Sundance Film Festival Saturday.Sundance winners regularly go on to critical and awards success at Hollywood’s main prize-giving ceremonies. Last year’s top winner, “Whiplash,” is nominated for best picture at this year’s Oscars.The US documentary award meanwhile went to “The Wolfpack,” while in the non-US categories the main prizes went to a Scottish filmmaker and a movie about Ukraine’s ongoing struggle in the shadow of its former Soviet masters.“Me...