King Abdullah calls El-Sissi to pledge economic support

June 7, 2014

King Abdullah El-SissiJeddah, Jun 7: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah telephoned newly elected Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sissi on Friday to pledge the Kingdom’s support for the country’s economic development.

El-Sissi thanked King Abdullah for assisting Egypt and congratulating him on winning the elections.

“This is the Kingdom’s duty based on our religion, ethics and the joint destiny of the two countries,” said the king, who is vacationing in the Moroccan city of Casablanca.

King Abdullah and El-Sissi also reviewed relations between the two countries.

On Tuesday, King Abdullah called for a “Friends of Egypt” conference, which would raise funds for the country to weather its current economic crisis.

Egyptian ministers described the initiative as a revival of the spirit of Arab solidarity.

In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency, the Egyptian ministers welcomed the king’s congratulatory message and said the idea of a donor conference reinforces the fact that all Arab nations have a responsibility and shared interest in ensuring Egypt’s security and stability.

Egypt’s Trade, Industry and Investment Minister Mounir Fakhri Abdel-Nour thanked King Abdullah for his support on behalf of the government and the nation’s people.

“Saudi Arabia has always supported all Arab causes,” he said. Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou said King Abdullah’s call for aid was not surprising.

“King Abdullah has always stood by the Egyptian people and has always worked for their safety and security,” he said.

Nasser Al-Tayyar, vice chairman of Pilot Travel & Tourism, said he would personally support Egypt financially and morally in the coming period.

Al-Tayyar said he would soon hold meetings with Arab investors to encourage them to invest in Egypt, and ensure it assumes its previous strength.

“I took this decision in response to King Abdullah’s call to support Egypt in these difficult times,” he said.

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News Network
March 6,2020

Riyadh, Mar 6: Saudi Arabia on Thursday emptied Islam's holiest site for sterilisation over fears of the new coronavirus, an unprecedented shutdown state media said will last while the year-round Umrah pilgrimage is suspended.

The kingdom halted the pilgrimage for its own citizens and residents on Wednesday, on top of restrictions announced last week on foreign pilgrims to stop the disease from spreading.

State television relayed images of an empty white-tiled area surrounding the Kaaba -- a large black cube structure inside Mecca's Grand Mosque -- which is usually packed with tens of thousands of pilgrims.

As a "precautionary measure", the area will remain closed as long as the umrah suspension lasts but prayers will be allowed inside the mosque, state-run Saudi Press Agency cited a mosque official as saying.

Additionally, the Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque in the city of Medina will be closed an hour after the evening "Isha" prayer and will reopen an hour before the dawn "Fajr" prayer to allow cleaning and sterilisation, the official added.

A group of cleaners was seen scrubbing and mopping the tiles around the Kaaba, a structure draped in gold-embroidered gold cloth towards which Muslims around the world pray.

A Saudi official told news agency the decision to close the area was "unprecedented".

On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia suspended the umrah for its own citizens and residents over fears of the coronavirus spreading to Islam's holiest cities.

The move came after authorities last week suspended visas for the umrah and barred citizens from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council from entering Mecca and Medina.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday declared three new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of reported infections to five.

The umrah, which refers to the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken at any time of year, attracts millions of Muslims from across the globe annually.

The decision to suspend the umrah mirrors a precautionary approach across the Gulf to cancel mass gatherings from concerts to sporting events.

It comes ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan starting in late April, which is a favoured period for pilgrimage.

It is unclear how the coronavirus will affect the hajj, due to start in late July.

Some 2.5 million faithful travelled to Saudi Arabia from across the world in 2019 to take part in the hajj, which is one of the five pillars of Islam as Muslim obligations are known.

The event is a massive logistical challenge for Saudi authorities, with colossal crowds cramming into relatively small holy sites, making attendees vulnerable to contagion.

Already reeling from slumping oil prices, the kingdom risks losing billions of dollars annually from religious tourism as it tightens access to the sites.

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Agencies
July 19,2020

Kuwait City, Jul 19: Kuwaiti ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah has successfully undergone surgery early on Sunday, the emir's office said.

"His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah ... has undergone surgery this morning, with thanks to God for its success," the head of the emir's office Sheikh Ali Jarrah al-Sabah said, as quoted by state news agency KUNA.

The 91-year-old was admitted to hospital for a medical checkup.

Yesterday, a royal order was issued assigning Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmed al-Sabah, the emir's designated successor, "to take over some constitutional jurisdictions of His Highness the Emir temporarily"

In August 2019, Kuwait acknowledged the emir suffered an unspecified medical "setback" that required him to be hospitalised.

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Agencies
February 5,2020

Paris, Feb 5: Saudi Arabia has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu virus on a poultry farm, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Tuesday, February 4.

The outbreak, which occurred in the central Sudair region, killed 22,700 birds, the OIE said, citing a report from the Saudi agriculture ministry.

The other 385,300 birds in the flock were slaughtered, it said.

The case was the first outbreak of the H5N8 virus in Saudi Arabia since July 2018.

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