Imran Khan, Reham arrive for Umrah

January 22, 2015

Jeddah, Jan 22: Pakistani cricket legend-turned-politician Imran Khan arrived in Jeddah on Wednesday to perform Umrah with his new wife Reham.imran reham

Some of his close friends in Jeddah, including Zultec CEO and philanthropist Zulqiurnain Ali Khan and Saudi Steel CEO Mohamed H. Zakaria, welcomed the newly-weds at King Abdul Aziz International Airport.

“It is a private visit,” Zulqiurnain Ali Khan told Arab News. “Performing Umrah is a great blessing and Imran and his wife wanted to be here to thank Allah as they embark on a new phase in their personal lives. Obviously, he and Reham are delighted to be here in the holy land,” he said.

“They are here to pray for the victims of the Peshawar tragedy and for the well-being of Pakistan.”

Imran, who heads Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf, is popular among young Pakistanis and has received tremendous support for his campaign for electoral reforms. He recently rallied his supporters for a marathon sit-in in Islamabad that almost crippled the current government.

His marriage to Reham on Jan. 9 has become the talk of the town and his followers are following his every move. Reham, a television broadcaster and anchor, who formerly worked for the BBC, looked calm and serene on arrival at the airport. She wore a white scarf covering her hair and a beige shawl wrapped around her shoulders.

A few hours after their arrival, they left for Makkah to perform Umrah with close friends. On Thursday, they will head to Madinah to pray at the Prophet’s Mosque.

They will return to Jeddah on Friday where there is an exclusive party arranged for the couple.

Overseas Pakistanis in Jeddah, especially the late Ahsan Rashid, played a prominent part in organizing Imran’s political party.

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Agencies
July 31,2020

Makkah, Jul 31: Organising this year's scaled-down hajj required "double efforts" by Saudi authorities amid the coronavirus pandemic, King Salman said Friday after being discharged from hospital following gall bladder surgery.

Only up to 10,000 people already residing in the kingdom are participating in this year's pilgrimage, compared with 2019's gathering of some 2.5 million from around the world.

"Holding the ritual in the shadow of this pandemic... required reducing the numbers of pilgrims, but it obliged various official agencies to put in double efforts," 84-year-old King Salman said in a speech read out on state television by acting media minister Majid Al-Qasabi.

"The hajj this year was restricted to a very limited number of people from multiple nationalities, ensuring the ritual was completed despite the difficult circumstances," he said.

The speech came on the occasion of Eid al-Adha, the Muslim festival of sacrifice, a day after the king left hospital following a 10-day stay for surgery to remove his gall bladder.

The hajj, which began on Wednesday, is one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime.

Authorities implemented the "highest health precautions" during the rituals, the king said.

Pilgrims, who were all tested for the virus, are required to wear masks and observe social distancing.

For Friday's "stoning of the devil", the last major ritual of the hajj, Saudi authorities offered the pilgrims pebbles that were sanitised to protect against the pandemic.

In a sign that its strict measures were working, the health ministry reported no coronavirus cases in the holy sites on Wednesday or Thursday.

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News Network
May 5,2020

Dubai, May 5: A Saudi ministerial decision issued on Monday allows companies in the private sector to reduce salaries by 40 per cent and allows termination of contracts owing to the economic hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to daily newspaper Al Sharq Awsat.

The new decision was still not published by the cabinet according to the newspaper.

The decision which the newspaper saw a copy of was signed by Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to regulate the labour contract in the current period, allows employers to reduce the employees salaries by 40 percent of the actual effective wage for a period of 6 months, in proportion to the hours of work and allowing the termination of employee contract after 6 months of the COVID-19 circumstances.

The new decision has also included a provision in which the employer would be allowed to cut wages even he or she benefits from the subsidy provided by the goverment, such as those for helping pay workers wages or exemption from government fees.

The decision also stressed that employers are not allowed to terminate any employee, unless three conditions are met.

1.            First the passing of six months since the measures of salary cut has been taken

2.            Reducing pay, annual leave and exceptional leave were all used

3.            Company proves that its facing financial troubles due to the circumstances.

The memo, which goes into affect as soon as its published in the government’s official newspaper, ensures that the employee will receive his/her salary if on annual leave within the period of 6 months.

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News Network
April 29,2020

Dubai, Apr 29: Saudi Arabia reported 1,325 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 21,402, the Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday (April 28).

Meanwhile, the ministry reported 169 recoveries today, with total recoveries in the kingdom at 2,953. There are 125 cases in intensive care.

The ministry also confirmed 5 deaths, bringing the total number of deaths in the kingdom to 157.

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