Saudi police detained a young woman for violating modesty rules after she removed her abaya, the loose-fitting, full-length robes women are required to wear, on a main street in the capital Riyadh, local media reported on Monday. The conservative Muslim country enforces a strict dress code for women in public, bans them from driving and prohibits the mixing of sexes. The Arabic-language al-Sharq newspaper reported that the […]
The first global crude supply pact in 15 years has underlined the growing energy alliance between Saudi Arabia and Russia, as the depth of the two-year oil slump forces co-operation between once unlikely partners. Russia led the main oil producers from outside the Opec cartel, including Mexico and Kazakhstan, in a deal signed this weekend to reduce supply by 568,000 barrels a day — with Moscow, the […]
11 December 2016 Riyadh – Under the patronage of the governor of small and medium enterprises authority, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), represented by Badir Program for Technology Incubators and accelerators, is hosting the fifth ArabNet Riyadh – the largest and most influential digital conference in the Kingdom – on December 12-14, 2016 to be held at the Four Seasons Hotel. […]
By Angus McDowall | BEIRUT BEIRUT When President Bashar al-Assad turns from the wreckage of Aleppo to assert his authority across a fractured Syria, it will be as a figure who is virtually unassailable by rebels, but still faces great challenges in restoring the power of his state. The expected fall of Aleppo would mean rebels have almost no chance of ousting Assad, but their revolt has […]
Dubai Investments, part owned by sovereign wealth fund Investment Corp of Dubai, plans to close a 1.1 billion dirham ($299.52 million) loan by Dec. 31, its chief executive said on Saturday. United Arab Emirates banks First Gulf Bank (FGB) and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank have been mandated for the loan, Khalid Bin Kalban told reporters in Dubai. The loan will be used to build a residential project […]
VIENNA OPEC and non-OPEC producers on Saturday reached their first deal since 2001 to curtail oil output jointly and ease a global glut after more than two years of low prices that overstretched many budgets and spurred unrest in some countries. With the deal finally signed after almost a year of arguing within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and mistrust in the willingness of non-OPEC […]
DUBAI: Britain will help Gulf states “push back” against aggressive regional actions by Iran, Prime Minister Theresa May told the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Bahrain on Wednesday in a televised address.“We must… continue to confront state actors whose influence fuels instability in the region,” May told Gulf leaders at their annual summit.“So I want to assure you that I am clear-eyed about the threat that Iran […]
The Sheikh Zayed Heritage Festival opened its gates in Al Wathba last week, showcasing a range of exhibitions, foods and cultural performances from around the world. There are 18 different cultural districts, including nationally themed offerings from the UAE, Bahrain, Serbia, India and China, and each houses traditional souvenirs and handicrafts. Most of the merchandise is affordable and great value for money, but it doesn’t hurt to […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon — A court in Saudi Arabia sentenced 15 men to death on Tuesday for spying on behalf of Iran, after a trial that a Western human rights organization characterized as a “travesty of justice.” The sentences came as the sectarian and political rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran is fueling conflicts across the Middle East, including in Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Both Saudi Arabia, a […]
DUBAI An investigative body set up by the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said on Tuesday it should apologise for a deadly attack on a Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) hospital in August that the group said killed 11 people. But the Joint Group to Assess Incidents found the coalition was not responsible for or had legitimately targeted fighters in four other incidents that rights groups blamed on […]
Hotels operating in the UAE continued to see declines in occupancy and room rates during October, according to the latest data from industry consultants STR. It said the UAE’s hospitality sector reported an occupancy dip of 2.9 percent during the month to 75.6 percent, while average daily rates (ADR) dropped 9.6 percent to AED668.05, the lowest for an October since 2005. As a result, revenue per available […]
BEIJING China’s Foreign Ministry has expressed concern after Yemen’s armed Houthi movement and its political allies formed a new government, in what appeared a blow to U.N.-backed efforts to end 20 months of war in the country. Diplomats had hoped the Houthis, who control the capital Sanaa, would hold off on putting together a cabinet of their loyalists and instead form a unity government with their Yemeni […]
Service launches in Turkey with more cities to go live in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt Dubai, December 1, 2016 Fueled by its market expansion strategy to broaden the reach of its services within the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, Careem, the region’s leading app based car booking service, recently launched operations in Istanbul Turkey. Within the GCC itself, Careem is answering the high demand […]
App-based service now covers six cities Egypt – offering more local residents a convenient, reliable way to get around town Cairo, Egypt, December 1, 2016 Careem, the region’s leading app-based car booking service, launches today in three new cities in Egypt, extending access to its services to a total of six destinations across the country. The app is now live in Mansoura, Tanta and Hurghada, adding to […]
Russian President Vladmir Putin played a crucial role in helping OPEC rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia set aside differences to forge the cartel’s first deal with non-OPEC Russia in 15 years. Interventions ahead of Wednesday’s OPEC meeting came at key moments from Putin, Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani, OPEC and non-OPEC sources said. Putin’s […]
30 November 2016 As Saudi Arabia looks to diversify its economy to retain global competitiveness, the 5th Annual Human Asset Management conference 2017 will bring together global HR leaders to address issues pertaining to local talent management and development. Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia approved its National Transformation Program and Saudi Vision 2030, making great headway in enhancing the Kingdom’s global competitiveness. Over the past four decades, […]
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman underlined the kingdom’s intention to invest heavily in speeding up its diversification away from oil exports with the inauguration on Tuesday of a $35 billion mining and minerals processing complex. Riyadh has tried to reduce the economy’s reliance on oil for decades, but the challenge has become particularly urgent in the past couple of years as low prices have pushed state finances deep […]
WASHINGTON Two senior U.S. senators said on Wednesday they want to amend a law allowing lawsuits against Saudi Arabia over the Sept. 11 attacks to narrow the scope of possible lawsuits. Lindsey Graham and John McCain, two of the Republican party’s congressional foreign policy leaders, said they would introduce an amendment to the law so that a government could be sued only if it “knowingly” engages with […]
OPEC has agreed its first limit on oil output since 2008, an OPEC source told Reuters after Saudi Arabia said it was prepared to accept “a big hit” on production and agree to arch-rival Iran freezing output at pre-sanctions levels. Brent crude futures jumped 8 percent to more than $50 a barrel on hopes Riyadh had finally reached a compromise with Iran after insisting in recent weeks […]
Photo Prince Alwaleed bin Talal in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2015. In a four-page letter posted on his personal website, the prince argued that “it is high time that Saudi women started driving their cars.” Credit Fayez Nureldine/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images A prominent Saudi prince and business magnate has added his voice to the debate over women’s rights in his country, urging it to abandon its […]
By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler | VIENNA VIENNA OPEC began on Wednesday debating a deal to curtail oil production and prop up the price of crude, with Iran and Iraq resisting pressure from Saudi Arabia to participate fully in any action. Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries started an informal meeting at 0700 GMT at the Vienna Park Hyatt hotel and were […]
November 30, 2016 by: Anjli Raval and David Sheppard — Vienna What is happening?Opec oil ministers from the 14-member producer group start their official meeting around 10am (GMT) on Wednesday in Vienna as they attempt to secure the first supply deal in eight years. Meetings traditionally last for between two and eight hours, but trying to predict the duration of such a gathering is near impossible. Oil […]
Iran and Iraq are resisting pressure from Saudi Arabia to curtail oil production, making it hard for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to reach a global output-limiting deal when it meets on Wednesday. OPEC sources told Reuters a meeting of experts in Vienna on Monday failed to bridge differences between OPEC’s de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, and the group’s second- and third-largest producers over the […]
Opec’s most powerful members were rushing on Tuesday to rescue a supply deal designed to end the longest oil price crash in a generation. Saudi Arabia, Opec’s largest producer, and its arch rival Iran have both set out their positions ahead of Wednesday’s ministerial meeting in Vienna, with the kingdom hinting it could walk away from a deal if its conditions are not met and Tehran publicly […]
