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By Haitham El-Tabei Mohammed Sayed wipes sweat from his brow as he repairs another broken air conditioning unit at the height of the Saudi summer, his most stressful time of year. The 28-year-old Sudanese national and his fellow technicians clock long hours as temperatures in the capital Riyadh clear 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) on a daily basis, highlighting the Gulf kingdom’s dependence on machines the government is trying to make less environmentally taxing. “The […]
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — A US citizen sentenced to 19 years in a Saudi prison for social media posts criticising the kingdom’s rulers has been released, his son told AFP on Tuesday. Saad Ibrahim Almadi, a 72-year-old of Saudi origin, was arrested in 2021 for what his son, Ibrahim, described as “mild” Twitter posts on topics including the war in Yemen and the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Last October, a court […]
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia will send its first ever woman astronaut on a space mission later this year, the latest move by the kingdom to revamp its ultra-conservative image. Rayyana Barnawi will join fellow Saudi Ali Al-Qarni on a 10-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS), the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said. Barnawi and Al-Qarni will fly to the ISS aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft as part of a mission […]
ZURICH, Switzerland (AFP) – Swiss food giant Nestle said Thursday it will pour seven billion riyals ($1.8 billion) into Saudi Arabia over 10 years in a bid to strengthen its presence in the kingdom. The announcement is likely to be a major boost to Riyadh as the kingdom pushes to attract greater foreign investment. Nestle will build a new factory, due to open in 2025 that will produce infant nutrition products and ready-to-drink coffee for the […]
MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — The Philippines will lift a ban on deploying domestic workers to Saudi Arabia and resume it in November after Riyadh agreed to boost protective measures for Filipino migrants, officials said. Manila had halted the sending of household workers last November to Saudi Arabia — a popular destination for Filipinos working abroad — after reports emerged of abuse and unpaid wages. Deployment will resume on November 7, a decision that […]
MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — Manny Pacquiao, who retired from boxing last year for a tilt at the Philippines presidency, told AFP on Tuesday that he is considering an exhibition fight in Saudi Arabia in January. The 43-year-old legendary former world champion is to hold talks over a fight against French former sparring partner Jaber Zayani in Riyadh. “We will just start discussions,” Pacquiao, who previously ruled out a return to professional boxing, said by […]
by Emeline Burckel Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The OPEC+ group of oil exporters are set to hammer out a new strategy at their meeting Wednesday, with all eyes on how they will react to soaring crude prices. The 13 core members of OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, and the 10 further states in OPEC+ — chief among them Russia — find themselves at a crossroads. After the drastic output cuts they agreed […]
JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel has “no objection” to two strategic Red Sea islands being transferred to Saudi Arabia as a step towards any normalisation of ties between both countries, high-ranking officials said Thursday. The Jewish state hopes US President Joe Biden’s Middle East tour will hail the start of diplomatic ties between it and Saudi Arabia. After meeting Israeli officials on Wednesday and Thursday, Biden is on Friday to travel on to Saudi Arabia […]
WASHINGTON, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia pushed Yemen’s president to step down earlier this month, and officials have confined him to his home and restricted his communications, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi announced his resignation on April 7, handing his powers to a new leadership council as Yemen entered into a fragile ceasefire that brought a rare pause in the years-long conflict. Citing anonymous Saudi and Yemeni officials, the […]
by Haitham El-Tabei Agence France-Presse JIZAN, Saudi Arabia (AFP) – For Farah al-Malki, growing coffee plants in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern region of Jizan is more than just a profession. It is a family tradition passed down from generation to generation. The 90-year-old patriarch has a long history with coffee, which spread from Ethiopia to Yemen and then to the rest of the Middle East around the 15th century. “My father inherited it from his grandfathers, […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) – Saudi Arabia has said it filled and fortified thousands of abandoned wells across the country, after the tragic death of a boy in Morocco following failed rescue efforts. Five-year-old Rayan, who spent five days trapped down a well, was laid to rest on Monday in his village of Ighrane in Morocco’s Rif mountains. Following last week’s tragic incident, Saudi Arabia’s ministry of environment, water and agriculture said on Sunday: “To […]
by Emeline BURCKEL Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – The world’s top oil-producing countries will meet on Wednesday to discuss a further increase in output, while crude prices have reached seven-year highs rattled by geopolitical tensions. Part of their regular meetings since the Covid-19 pandemic shook markets, the 13 members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their 10 allies convene by videoconference to set output. Many analysts expect the grouping, […]
