RIYADH/JEDDAH, 31 December 2006 — Riyadh Gov. Prince Salman joined hundreds of thousands of citizens and expatriates in offering Eid Al-Adha prayers on the old Deira Eid Ground here yesterday. Several members of the royal family, religious scholars, ministers and high-ranking officials also attended the prayers, while the Eid celebrations, later in the day, were largely overshadowed by the news of execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
RIYADH-A senior Iranian diplomat called for strengthening relations between Riyadh and Tehran in order to boost political efforts to solve regional problems. The diplomat made his remarks following talks with Prince Naif, interior minister, and Prince Salman, Riyadh governor.
RIYADH, 7 November 2006 — Interior Minister Prince Naif will inaugurate here today a high-profile conference and exhibition featuring handicrafts, arts and tourism products from Islamic countries. This event, the first of its kind with a mandate by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to promote handicrafts and tourism products, is being supported by the Supreme Commission for Tourism (SCT) and the Istanbul-based Research Center for Islamic History, Arts and Culture (IRCICA), an affiliate of OIC. A number of delegations from different OIC member states have already arrived in Riyadh.
RIYADH – Saudi Arabia is on track to run its eighth current account surplus in a row and the largest in its history at SR428.2 billion ($1141 billion), said a study conducted by Samba Financial Group obtained by Arab News yesterday. The Kingdom will earn a SR761 billion ($202.9 billion) in oil exports earnings this year, an all-time record, representing a 25-percent increase in oil earnings compared to last year.
RIYADH, 2 November 2006 — The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will discuss the possible expansion of their joint force called “Peninsula Shield” following a proposal made by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah in this regard recently. “A meeting of senior GCC officials will be held in Abu Dhabi on Monday to review the proposal,” according to GCC general secretariat sources.
RIYADH – Premium car manufacturer, Audi, saw the inauguration of the world’s first Audi customization studio in the Saudi capital by a delegation of the management board of AUDI AG (Germany) yesterday. The new Audi center, which has been especially designed by commissioned architects, is the first to carry the “Audi Exclusive” studio in addition to the standard showroom concept for Audi dealerships.
RIYADH, 11 October 2006 — The Philippines is seeking royal clemency for more than 250 Filipino migrant workers who are currently languishing in different jails and reformatory centers in Saudi Arabia, the Philippine Embassy here said yesterday. “These contract workers including some women have been allegedly detained on different minor and major offenses in various parts of the country,” said Nestor N. Padalhin, charge d’ affaires at the Philippine Embassy.
RIYADH, 22 September 2006 — A world-class model Saudi school, the first of its kind funded by the Saudi government and to follow Saudi curriculum, was officially inaugurated by Indian Minister of Human Resource Development Arjun Singh at a glittering ceremony in New Delhi on Wednesday. This Saudi-owned school, to be managed by Saudi Ministry of Education, will mainly enroll sons and daughters of Saudi and Arab diplomats, besides children of Arabs working and living in India.
RIYADH – An expatriate worker who was severely disabled in a traffic accident has been left in a hospital for the last 10 months. Makbool Ahmed, 36, from the eastern Indian state of Bihar suffered head injuries and multiple fractures on Nov. 25 last year and was rushed to King Khaled Hospital (KKH) in Al-Khari. His sponsor is neither visiting him nor paying his expenses. He has also not responded to phone calls in an apparent attempt to avoid paying the hospital bills which now exceed SR70.000.
RIYADH, 7 September 2006 — Around 320 passengers were stranded at the King Khaled International Airport (KKIA) for nearly 26 hours before being lodged in a city hotel yesterday after their Air-India (AI) flight bound for the south Indian city of Calicut was canceled. The ordeal of the passengers is likely to end today when an AI aircraft will probably carry them back home, airline sources said here last night.