Saudi king Salman to launch 'entertainment city' near Riyadh

Agencies
April 24, 2018

Riyadh, Apr 24: Saudi King Salman will launch the construction of an "entertainment city" near Riyadh on Wednesday, authorities said, part of a series of multi-billion dollar projects as the kingdom seeks to diversify its oil-reliant economy.

The 334-square kilometre project in Qiddiya, southwest of Riyadh, would rival Walt Disney and include high-end theme parks, motor sport facilities and a safari park, officials say.

The facility highlights a "relentless effort to develop giga-projects that will help achieve many direct and indirect economic returns", project official Fahd bin Abdullah Tounsi was quoted as saying in a government statement on Monday.

Qiddiya chief executive Michael Reininger said he expects the project will draw foreign investors in entertainment and other sectors, but did not specify the total cost of construction.

Such projects are the brainchild of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a self-styled liberal change agent who is the chief architect of the sweeping "Vision 2030" reform programme.

Saudi Arabia has dazzled investors with several plans for hi-tech "giga projects", funded in part by its sovereign wealth fund, but some sceptics question their viability in an era of cheap oil.

The kingdom has unveiled blueprints to build NEOM, a mega project billed as a regional Silicon Valley, in addition to the Red Sea project, a reef-fringed resort destination -- both worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

Analysts say the projects could create funding pressures at a time when the government faces a yawning budget deficit and growth in the kingdom`s non-oil economy is only slowly gathering pace.

The reform stems partly from an economic motive to boost domestic spending on entertainment as the kingdom has been reeling from an oil slump since 2014.

Saudis currently splurge billions of dollars annually to see films and visit amusement parks in neighbouring tourist hubs like Dubai and Bahrain.

In February, Saudi Arabia`s General Entertainment Authority (GEA) announced it will stage more than 5,000 festivals and concerts in 2018, double the number of last year, and pump $64 billion in the sector in the coming decade.

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abdul
 - 
Friday, 27 Apr 2018

next dance bar in Salaman palace 

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News Network
April 5,2020

Ajman, Apr 5: A bakery worker in Ajman has been detained for spitting in the bread dough as he prepared bread at the bakery, police said.

The General Command of Ajman Police arrested the Asian worker in coordination with Ajman Municipality after investigators suggested that he intentionally spat in the dough while preparing bread at a bakery which is located in Ajman.

Lt. Col. Muhammad Mubarak Al-Ghafli, Director of Al-Jarf Al-Shamel Police Station, said a team from police had immediately gone to arrest the worker after receiving a report from the municipality confirming that the man spat in the bread dough.

Officials said a customer had filmed the Asian as he spat in the dough while preparing the bread at the bakery during the evening.

The customer then filed a complaint to the municipality with the supporting evidence of a video as the worker was doing the buzzer act.

Police said the man was taken for for psychological examination as he's being prepared to be referred to the public prosecution.

Meanwhile, the bakery has been shut down by the municipality for violating food hygiene and public health rules.

Lt. Col. Al-Ghafli has appealed to the public to report persons or any acts that could harm the health and safety of the public.

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News Network
January 12,2020

Tehran, Jan 12: Iranian police dispersed students chanting “radical” slogans during a Saturday gathering in Tehran to honour the 176 people killed when an Ukrainian airliner was mistakenly shot down, Fars news agency reported.

News agency correspondents said hundreds of students gathered early in the evening at Amir Kabir University, in downtown Tehran, to pay respects to those killed in the air disaster. The tribute later turned into an angry demonstration.

The students chanted slogans denouncing "liars" and demanded the resignation and prosecution of those responsible for downing the plane and allegedly covering up the accidental action.

Iran said Saturday that the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 was “unintentionally” shot down on Wednesday shortly after taking off from Tehran's main airport. All 176 people on board died, mostly Iranians and Canadians, many of whom were students.

Fars, which is close to conservatives, said the protesting students chanted “destructive” and “radical” slogans. The news agency said some of the students tore down posters of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian general killed on January 3 in a US drone strike on Baghdad.

Fars published pictures of demonstrators gathered around a ring of candles during the tribute and a picture of a torn poster bearing the image of a smiling Soleimani. It said that police "dispersed" them as they left the university and blocked streets, causing a traffic jam.

In an extremely unusual move, state television mentioned the protest, reporting that the students shouted "anti-regime" slogans.

A video purportedly of the protest circulated online showing police firing tear gas at protesters and a man getting up after apparently being hit in the leg by a projectile. It was not possible to verify the location of the video, or when it was filmed.

Iran's acknowledgement on Saturday that the plane had been shot down in error came after officials had for days categorically denied Western claims that it had been struck by a missile. The aerospace commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards accepted full responsibility.

But Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh said the missile operator acted independently, shooting down the Boeing 737 after mistaking it for a "cruise missile".

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News Network
April 10,2020

Dubai, Apr 10: Saudi Arabia reported 364 new coronavirus cases and three new virus-related deaths, the Ministry of Health announced on Friday.

The total number of confirmed cases in the Kingdom is 3,651, out of which 2,919 are currently active, the ministry added.

Out of the new cases, 90 were recorded in Mecca, 78 in Medina, 69 in Riyadh, and 54 in Jeddah, the ministry said.

Meanwhile, the number of fatalities rose to 47, while th number of recoveries reached 685.

The daily number of confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia has not peaked yet, and has been rapidly accelerating.

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Health had said earlier this week that four different studies showed that the number of coronavirus cases in the Kingdom could reach between 10,000 to 200,000 within weeks.

The ministry spokesman emphasized the urgent need for citizens and residents to remain at home and maintain social distancing practices to ensure that the virus does not spread further.

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