Middle East

Riyadh, Oct 14: Nearly half a million pilgrims made use of medical facilities that were available in Makkah and Madinah during Haj this year. Nineteen open heart surgeries were performed, Mansour Al-Hawasi, deputy health minister for Health Affairs, said here Sunday. Al-Hawasi was addressing health officials here during an Eid party hosted by the Ministry of Health to thank health officials who

Madinah, Oct 13: Some 95 properties and 126 mosques will be demolished to carry out the expansion work of the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, said director general of the Madinah branch of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs and Endowments Dr. Muhammad Al-Amin Al-Khatri. Several of these buildings have been vacated while work is ongoing to vacate the others. He said specialist committees have been formed

Jeddah, Oct 12: Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Asheikh, chairman of the Council of Senior Ulema and the General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta, criticized tweeters who are focusing only on the negative issues of Haj 2014 without seeing the pluses, describing such social network users as " mean and ill-mannered." During his sermon on Friday at Imam Turki bin AbdulLah Mosque, the grand

Jeddah, Oct 11: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to Saudize all contract jobs at embassies abroad, including allocating a third of all positions for women. Deputy Foreign Minister Prince Khaled bin Saud said the plan would ensure 100 percent Saudization in Arab countries and 75 percent in missions in non-Arab countries. He said the ministry is “closer than ever to achieving these numbers,”

Jeddah, Oct 10: Businessmen and officials have welcomed the Saudi Railway Organization’s (SRO) plan to establish a 660-km coastal railway line between Jeddah and Jazan, saying it would boost the two regions’ economic, commercial and social development. The SRO recently signed a contract with an engineering consultancy firm to conduct a feasibility study on the project, including its cost, number

Madinah, Oct 9: Work on the first phase of the SR50 billion King Abdullah Pilgrim City in Madinah has begun as part of the government’s efforts to further improve services being extended to the guests of God who come for Haj and Umrah every year. The massive city covering an area of over 1.6 million square meters will accommodate 200,000 people. It is located 3 km to the west of the Prophet’s

Jeddah, Oct 8: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has commended the efforts of government agencies and private organizations in making this year’s Haj a "big success," enabling more than 2 million Hajis to perform their rituals in peace and comfort. “We appreciate the efforts of your royal highness and the Supreme Haj Committee as well as security officers and employees of public and

Mina, Oct 7: A total of 650 pilgrims were found sleeping in a rundown private school in Al-Aziziah next to Mina without food, water and transport on Sunday, allegedly victims of a fake Haj firm. The pilgrims, from various Arab countries, claimed they paid SR1.6 million to the operator in Buraidah, Qassim, to take them on the holy pilgrimage. They allegedly paid between SR2,000 and SR4,000 for

Mina, Oct 6: Haj has never been so organized — from the trains that run on elevated tracks to the extremely helpful security forces on the ground and in the many helicopters that hover overhead informing the central operations command about possible bottlenecks. Saudi Arabia has poured billions of riyals into infrastructure here at the holy sites. Most of these gigantic projects have been carried

Abu Dhabi, Oct 5: UAE leaders performed Eid Al Adha prayers across the country on Saturrday. In Dubai, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Matkoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, yesterday performed Eid Al Adha prayers at the Shaikh Rashid Mosque in Zabeel. Also praying alongside Shaikh Mohammad were Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown