RIYADH, 23 April 2004 — Security has been stepped up across the capital after Wednesday’s bomb blast. Government offices, hotels, housing compounds, shopping malls, banks and embassies are all in a high state of alert. Most government offices and the commercial organizations imposed tighter restrictions on visitors, who were asked to produce ID. Major government installations and hotels were put under the special guard of the mobile police and truckloads of special forces with mounted machine guns.
RIYADH – Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, yesterday reaffirmed that Islam is a religion of peace and moderation. The crown prince was delivering the inaugural address at an international conference on Islam and terrorism, organized by Imam Muhammad in Saud Islamic University.
RIYADH – Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, will inaugurate an international conference on Islam and terrorism at Imam Muhammad In Saud Islamic University (IMSIU) today. The conference, titled “The Position of Islam on Terrorism, Violence and Extremism”, will bring together some 100 scholars from around the world.
RIYADH, 20 April 2004 — The International Energy Forum Secretariat (IEFS) is set to join an international oil data collection project called the “Joint Oil Data Initiative” (JODI). The aim of the project is to add accuracy to oil data gathered with the help of a standardized process in cooperation with many regional and international energy bodies. IEFS was established on the initiative of Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard.
RIYADH, 13 April 2004 — Some 180 travel agencies face possible closure unless they submit details of all their staff before a new April 18 deadline. The new date was announced here yesterday evening following a meeting of a special task force of the Supreme Commission for Tourism (SCT) convened to discuss the lackluster response from travel agencies to the original April 5 deadline.
RIYADH, 2 April 2004 — Saudi Arabia, which boasts to have a number of world-class soccer fields and golf courses, can now use new technology called “Koro Systems” for the maintenence of tuff disclosed David Murphy, general manager of Delta Irrigation & Agricultural Services Company, here yesterday. The new system will maintain turf grass, repair the wear and tear of fields, and correct the compaction levels of the grass surface.
RIYADH-Growing concerns in the Gulf over depleting water resources have prompted Turkey to explore reviving an old scheme to export water to the Gulf. Studies suggest that water levels in Saudi Arabia have dropped dramatically. “We believe it would bring the two countries closer,” said Turkish Ambassador Ugur Dogan.
RIYADH, 29 March 2004 — A branch of India’s prestigious Delhi Public School (DPS) is planned for Riyadh. Addressing a press conference after the announcement at the Riyadh Palace Hotel, Dr. Ibrahim H. Al-Qauayid and Sultan Salman Al-Terais Al-Harbi, promoters of the project, said, “DPS Riyadh will be a world-class institution. The courses will include science, art, culture, heritage, environment and sports. The idea for the institution arose from a need to focus on educational excellence.”
RIYADH, 26 March 2003 — Saudi Arabia’s telephone revenues are expected to soar following a 25 percent increase in international calls since the war on Iraq broke out. National calls increased by 20 percent. A large number of expatriates and some Saudis have been calling their friends and relatives outside the Kingdom to assure them that they have not been affected by the war.
RIYADH/BURAIDAH, 23 March 2004 — Saudi Arabia yesterday denounced Israel’s assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and called for international protection for Palestinians. “The Kingdom strongly condemns this criminal act, which flouts all international and humanitarian norms,” said a Cabinet statement.