Saudi Arabia steps up tourism push with new visas

Arab News

March 2, 2019

Riyadh, Mar 2: Tourists will be offered special “event” visas to visit Saudi Arabia as part of plans by the Kingdom to become a major global entertainment destination.

The new one-off visas will allow foreign visitors to choose from the growing number of sporting, entertainment and business attractions available in the country.

Announcing the new visa category on Thursday, the Saudi Cabinet said embassies and consulates will be able to issue the visas within 24 hours of receiving a request.

Under the visa upgrade, the Kingdom’s General Investment Authority, General Sports Authority and General Entertainment Authority will provide the Foreign Affairs Ministry and state security with details of events at least two months beforehand. The details will then be included in the visa system.

Saudi Arabia is investing billions of dollars in sports and entertainment as it seeks to reform and diversify its economy, part of a wide-ranging Vision 2030 program introduced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The Kingdom is hoping to increase the number of foreign visitors, as well as encourage domestic tourism and create jobs for young Saudis.

Formula E motor racing, WWE wrestling and world title boxing events have also been added to the country’s sporting calendar in the past 12 months.

Turki Al-Sheikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, said earlier this year that infrastructure investments in the next decade would reach SR240 billion ($64 billion) and would contribute SR18 billion to the country’s economy and generate 224,000 new jobs by 2030.

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24-yr-old NRI techie falls to death from UAE building after throwing his phone down

coastaldigest.com news network

August 3,2020

Sharjah, Aug 3: A 24-year-old Indian engineer has fallen to death from the sixth floor of a residential building on Eid al-Adha in the UAE's Sharjah, a media report said on Monday.

The electrical engineer, identified with his single name Sumesh, hailed from the south Indian state of Kerala.

He lived in a building in Al Dhaid in Sharjah, from where he fell to death on Friday, the report said, adding that he was apparently talking over the phone and threw it down minutes before the incident.

Sumesh, who came to the UAE a year ago, worked as a designer in Sharjah's Muwaileh area. His roommates said that he had some "personal issues" that had been "bothering him for some time", according to the report.

"It was Eid al-Adha and our cook had made biryani for us. We were all cracking jokes and having a good time. In fact, even Cuckoo (Sumesh) was also laughing with us. He seemed happy. Nobody had anticipated this. I did sense a few times that something was troubling him and I even asked him about it, but he brushed it off," the report quoted his roommate Dileep Kumar as saying.

Shans KF, another roommate, said Sumesh was to travel to India for his annual leave but could not because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The police have launched an investigation and moved the body to the forensic lab for an autopsy.

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'You'll be made to leave': UAE princess slams NRI for Islamophobic tweet on Tablighi Jamaat

News Network

April 18,2020

Apr 18: Taking a strong notice of Islamophobia on social media, Princess Hend Al Qassimi, a member of the royal family of United Arab Emirates, called out a series of tweets by a user named Saurabh Upadhyay.

Upadhyay had posted tweets attacking Muslims over the Tablighi Jamaat congregation held in March in Delhi that led to surge of coronavirus cases cases in India. He also gave into rumours of muslims ‘spiting on food’ to spread the virus.

Princess Qassimi shared the screenshots of his tweets and warned that those engaging in racism and Islamophobia will have to pay penalty and will be made to leave UAE. Upadhyay has apparently deactivated his Twitter handle now.

Responding to his earlier posts, she though the ruling family of UAE is “friends with Indians”, his rudeness was “not welcome”.

“All employees are paid to work, no one comes for free. You make your bread and butter from this land which you scorn and your ridicule will not go unnoticed,” she wrote.

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Banks asked to search and seize B R Shetty’s accounts in UAE

News Network

April 26,2020

Dubai, Apr 26: The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has instructed financial institutions in the country to search and freeze all bank accounts of Indian billionaire BR Shetty and his family along with those of companies where he has a stake.

The apex bank has also blacklisted several firms associated with Shetty along with their entire senior management.

In an advisory issued last week, CBUAE cited decisions of the Federal Attorney General and asked financial institutions to search and freeze any bank accounts, deposits or investments in the name of Shetty or his family members.

Financial institutions have been directed to stop transfers from these accounts and deny access to deposit boxes.

Currently in India and facing a string of charges, Shetty is the founder of NMC Health.

The heathcare provider was placed into administration by a UK court recently following an application by the Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) which alone has an exposure of $981 million (Dh3.6 billion).

Overall, UAE banks have a combined exposure of more than Dh8bn to NMC which owes money to Oman-based banks and financial institutions as well.

Probing credit facilities
The Central Bank has sought information about credit facilites extended to the Shettys along with details of their safe deposit boxes and the financial transfers they have made till date.

A similar advisory has been issued for NMC Healthcare and NMC Holding, based on the decision of the Head of Plenary Fund Prosecution.

The Central Bank has also blacklisted several companies associated with Shetty. Key staff members of these firms have been similarly blacklisted.

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when you make money with good country you should not make doka to that country, first of all we indian have bad name in GCC now this will make more dought on indian hindus..

after BJP come to power in india,our country is acting like maron, this will only end with final WAR.