Makkah Clock Tower to open for tourists after Haj

August 17, 2014

Makkah ClockMakkah, Aug 17: The Makkah Clock Tower, the second tallest tower in the world, is to open for tourists after Haj 2014, according to officials.

Tourists will have to buy tickets to visit the tower top.

The gigantic Makkah Clock project was constructed on top of Tower No. 5 of the King Abdul Aziz Endowment Project, which consists of seven towers. The tower includes hotels on which the clock is situated.

It is 601 meters high with 76 stories and 858 suites. It overlooks the Grand Mosque.

“A large number of visitors of different nationalities will be allowed to visit the tower to get a close look at the interior of the Clock Tower,” an official told Arab News.

"There will be tickets to visit the tower. This procedure will be announced after this year's Haj season," said the official.

A number of hotels inside the tower attracted many visitors who were keen to enjoy the view of the Grand Mosque, especially during Ramadan.

“The Clock Tower revived our business during the last three years," said Abbas Subhi, marketing manager at a hotel located in the Clock Tower.

"Most of visitors come only to stay in our roof to enjoy the panoramic view of the Grand Mosque. The Clock Tower supports tourism," he told Arab News.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah had ordered the largest clock tower in the world to be built in Makkah.

The clock is placed at a height of 380 meters and can be seen from all sides.

The name of Allah has been inscribed on each of the four clock faces. Two of the clock faces, including the inscription, are 80 meters high and 65 meters wide, and the dial diameter is 39 meters.

The King Abdul Aziz Endowment Project, which overlooks the Holy Mosque, is one of the world’s largest construction projects.

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Agencies
July 5,2020

Iraq’s deputy parliament speaker Hassan Karim al-Kaabi on Saturday described the move as provocative and in violation of international law.

Kaabi also called on the Iraqi government to take swift measures to halt such actions.

The Embassy’s move to fire in a residential area in the heart of Baghdad is an unacceptable act and another challenge for the Arab country, adding to the mass of its provocations and illegal actions in Iraq, he noted.

According to Iraqi media, the US tested a patriot missile system inside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone.

Anti-US sentiments have been running high in Iraq since Washington assassinated top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and the second-in-command of the Iraqi popular mobilization units, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, in January.

Following the attack, Iraqi lawmakers unanimously approved a bill on January 5, demanding the withdrawal of all foreign troops.

Baghdad and Washington are currently in talks over the withdrawal of American troops. Iraqi resistance groups have vowed to take up arms against US forces if Washington fails to comply with the parliamentary order.

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News Network
March 23,2020

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.

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Agencies
August 8,2020

Beirut, Aug 7: A devastating explosion that destroyed much of Beirut might have been the result of a missile attack or bomb, Lebanese President Michel Aoun said, as the death toll from the blast rose to 154.

More than 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate had been sitting in a port warehouse for six years, but there have been conflicting accounts about why Lebanese authorities decided to empty the shipment of explosive material. The vessel carrying the flammable cargo was heading from Georgia to Mozambique when it stopped in the Lebanese port to load up on iron, according to the ship’s captain.

By Friday, 19 suspects had been arrested and Lebanon’s former director general of customs Chafic Merhy had been questioned by military police.

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