Beirut, Apr 16: At least 68 children were among those killed in the car bomb attack on a convoy carrying evacuees from besieged government-held towns in Syria, a monitor said today.
Yestersay's attack in Rashidin west of Aleppo killed at least 126 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, updating a previous toll of 112 dead.
At least 109 of those killed were evacuees from the towns of Fuaa and Kafraya, it said, while the rest were aid workers and rebels guarding the convoy.
Dubai, Jan 12: Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco announced Sunday that its initial public offering raised a record $29.4 billion, a figure higher than previously announced, after the company used a so-called "greenshoe option" to sell millions more shares to meet investor demand.
The company said that the sale of an additional 450 million shares took place during the initial public offering process.
The oil and gas company, which is majority owned by the state, began publicly trading on the local Saudi Tadawul exchange on December 11. It hit hit upwards of $10 a share on the second day of trading. This gave Aramco a market capitalization of $2 trillion, making it comfortably the world's most valuable company.
Aramco's additional sales mean the company has publicly floated 1.7% of its shares. It's IPO, even before the added sales, was the world's largest ever.
The shares sold in the over-allotment option "had been allocated to investors during the book-building process and therefore, no additional shares are being offered into the market today," Aramco said.
Company shares traded down on Sunday, dipping to around 34.7 riyals, or $9.25 a share, amid heightened tensions in the Persian Gulf between Iran and the United States. Aramco was a target of rising tensions over the summer when a missile and drone attack, which Saudi Arabia and the US blame on Iran, temporarily halved its production.
Sunday's trading figures value Aramco at $1.85 trillion, still well ahead of Apple, the second largest company in the world after Aramco, but below the $2 trillion mark sought by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Dubai, Mar 23: All inbound, outbound and transit passenger flights to and from the United Arab Emirates – home to one of the world’s busiest hubs – are to be suspended for two weeks.
The UAE’s National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority (NCEMA) and General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has announced that passenger flights to, from and through the country will be suspended from 25 March for a period of two weeks, in order to “curb the spread of the Covid-19”.
Freight and emergency evacuation flights will still be permitted to operate.
The suspension affects major global hubs in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Dubai-based Emirates has already announced that it will suspend most of its passenger flights from 25 March.
“Additional examination and isolation arrangements will be taken later should flights resume, in order to ensure the safety of passengers, air crews and airport personnel and their protection from infection risks,” state the NCEMA and the GCAA.
Dubai International Airport was the third-busiest airport in the world in 2018, handling 89 million passengers.
Jeddah, Jul 26: The city of Makkah is opening its arms again to welcome pilgrims for the annual Hajj — although only a handful compared with previous years.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s event is limited to about 1,000 pilgrims, all from inside Saudi Arabia, about 700 of whom are expatriates.
Abdullah Al-Kathiri, an Emirati and a recovered COVID-19 patient, postponed his pilgrimage last year because it coincided with his wedding plans. “I’ve heard from many who’ve performed the pilgrimage in past years that it was always a smooth process, even with the massive numbers,” he said. “So you could imagine how it would be with the limited number of pilgrims this year. Surely it will be a great experience.”
Khadija, a Bulgarian expatriate, was overcome with tears when she heard she would be performing Hajj this year. “I didn’t expect they’d accept,” she said. “I’m sure this year’s Hajj will be an exceptional one in all respects.”
Dr. Haifa Yousef Hamdoon, a Tunisian physician in Qassim, is another who did not expect to be accepted because of the low numbers this year. “When I received confirmation of my request, I was overjoyed and couldn’t believe it,” she said.
Mu’taz Mohamed, a Sudanese pilgrim who also lives in Qassim region, praised the preventive and precautionary health measures taken in order to ensure his safety and that of other pilgrims, to enable them to perform the rituals safely.
After completing their arrival procedures, the pilgrims were taken to their accommodation in Makkah, supervised by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah. They will stay there for four days before beginning their pilgrimage on July 30.
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