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[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-29T20:48:29 | null | 2016-08-29T03:28:58 | LOS ANGELES: Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn closed with a 12-foot birdie putt to easily win the Canadian Women’s Open by four strokes Sunday and post her fifth victory of 2016.The 20-year-old Ariya entered the final round with a two-shot lead and never wavered as she stormed to victory on the Priddis Greens course in Calgary, Alberta.Ariya, of Bangkok, also kept her perfect 54-hole record intact as she has won each time she has led this year heading into the fourth round. She finished in style making birdie on Nos. 12, 14, 15 and 18. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977196%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//8108853282954007.jpg | en | null | Red-hot Ariya blitzes field to win Canadian Open | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LOS ANGELES: Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn closed with a 12-foot birdie putt to easily win the Canadian Women’s Open by four strokes Sunday and post her fifth victory of 2016.
The 20-year-old Ariya entered the final round with a two-shot lead and never wavered as she stormed to victory on the Priddis Greens course in Calgary, Alberta.
Ariya, of Bangkok, also kept her perfect 54-hole record intact as she has won each time she has led this year heading into the fourth round. She finished in style making birdie on Nos. 12, 14, 15 and 18.
“I felt like I wanted to have fun and be happy on the course. No matter what’s going to happen, I can handle it,” said Ariya. “I feel really happy with myself right now.”
The world number two Ariya closed with a six-under 66 to finish at 23-under 265 and beat South Korea’s Kim Sei-Young by four strokes.
Ariya posted three consecutive wins in May. She added a fourth win at the Women’s British Open before going to the Olympics, where she pulled out due to a left knee injury.
Southeast Asian players dominated the top of the leaderboard Sunday, taking the first three spots. There was just one American in the top nine players.
Kim shot a closing 65. A two-time tour winner this year, Kim finished in the top 10 for the sixth time in 2016.
South Korean Chun In-Gee, the winner of the 2015 US Women’s Open, took third at 270 after a 69. Crowd favorite Alena Sharp, of Canada, wound up a career-best fourth after a 67 left her at 272.
Rounding out the top five were Karrie Webb of Australia and Anna Nordqvist of Sweden at 273. Webb closed with a 64 and Nordqvist with a 68.
The top-ranked Lydia Ko, who has won the event three times, tied for seventh at 275. Two of the her victories in Canada were as an amateur.
Ko entered the final round trailing Ariya by seven shots.
“I think I was a little far away going into today,” said Ko.
“But no, it’s been a great week. I played solid all week, and there’s a lot of positives to take from this week,” she added.
“I’m happy with it, and especially when I’m defending and I’m still able to have a top-10 finish.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977196/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/12275fdbd36aaa625de669f022f4906abe1dbc4578c8ee50ecdc3e9fd407d563.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:48:35 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | PESCARA DEL TRONTO: Hopes of finding more survivors from Italy’s powerful earthquake faded on Friday, with the death toll rising to 268 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off.Three days after the quake struck the mountainous heart of the country, sniffer dogs and emergency crews continued to scour the town of Amatrice, which was levelled in the disaster, but there was no sign of life beneath the debris. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975941%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472225464345429100.jpg | en | null | Italy quake: State funeral planned | null | null | www.arabnews.com | PESCARA DEL TRONTO: Hopes of finding more survivors from Italy’s powerful earthquake faded on Friday, with the death toll rising to 268 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off.
Three days after the quake struck the mountainous heart of the country, sniffer dogs and emergency crews continued to scour the town of Amatrice, which was levelled in the disaster, but there was no sign of life beneath the debris.
“Only a miracle can bring our friends back alive from the rubble, but we are still digging because many are missing,” town mayor Sergio Pirozzi told reporters, saying, around 15 people, including some children, had not been accounted for.
In nearby villages, such as Pescara del Tronto, rescuers pulled out after all the inhabitants had been accounted for.
Italy plans to hold a state funeral for around 40 of the victims on Saturday, which will be held in the nearby city of Ascoli Piceno. A day of national mourning was announced, with flags due to fly at half mast around the country for the dead, who include a number of foreigners.
The civil protection department in Rome said nearly 400 people were being treated for injuries in hospitals, and 40 of them were in critical condition. An estimated 2,500 people were left homeless by the most deadly quake in Italy since 2009.
Survivors with nowhere else to go are sleeping in neat rows of blue tents set up close to their flattened communities. The government has promised to rebuild the region, but some local people feared that would never happen.
“I’m afraid our village and others like it will just die. Most people don’t live here year round anyway. In the winter time the towns are virtually empty,” said Salvatore Petrucci, 77, who came from the nearby hamlet of Trisunga.
“We may be the last ones to have lived in Trisunga.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975941/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f30bb7f878689acdc9ffa1c0ee9b66544eb8c66d44e817848b1b64f362ec6466.json |
[
"Ghazanfar Ali Khan"
] | 2016-08-27T02:46:52 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | RIYADH: Several young boys, including citizens and some Arab expatriates, involved in car drifting have been detained and their vehicles confiscated by the Riyadh police. “At least five car drifters were seen sitting in police vehicles near the public park of Rawdah,” said Tahseen Malik, an eyewitness, who runs a grocery shop nearby. “The police also seized some vehicles on the spot.” The exact number of those detained was not immediately known. The Riyadh police spokesman could not be reached for more information. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975971%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1417634335223322100.jpg | en | null | Riyadh drifters detained, cars seized | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: Several young boys, including citizens and some Arab expatriates, involved in car drifting have been detained and their vehicles confiscated by the Riyadh police.
“At least five car drifters were seen sitting in police vehicles near the public park of Rawdah,” said Tahseen Malik, an eyewitness, who runs a grocery shop nearby. “The police also seized some vehicles on the spot.”
The exact number of those detained was not immediately known. The Riyadh police spokesman could not be reached for more information.
In a nail-biting moment, a drifting car which had someone riding on the back, narrowly missed hitting a parked vehicle on Thursday night. At another point, a rider crouched down and then went up and started dancing on the rooftop of the running car.
Referring to the problems caused by drifters, Chunnu M. Ahmed Khan, an executive working for a local company, said drifting is very dangerous, as the car can even hit a passer-by or a vehicle parked along the roads. “In fact, I have stopped going to the park with my family because of this menace.”
Khan said that some Pakistani boys were also detained recently by the Riyadh police, probably for drifting and waving the Pakistani flag from the window panes of their car. He, however, said that the new drifting legislation has deterred the youngsters.
According to the new law, first-time drifters will be fined SR10,000 and car impounded for a month. If he is caught for a second time, he will face up to a year in jail and fined SR10,000, besides confiscation of the vehicle for three months.
Third-time offenders will have their vehicle impounded from between one and five years and be fined SR40,000. Those found sitting with the drifter will also be fined.
The new regulations come in the wake of increased traffic-related accidents caused by irresponsible drifters. A recent study found that 19 people die each day in road accidents in Saudi Arabia.
A number of youths still perform stunts and indulge in drifting on roads despite warnings and the new legislation. The Riyadh Traffic Department has reiterated its warning to refrain from such dangerous behavior. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975971/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/67f5a611bbb11c788d4c47b10882f2adc33aa015841dd0fdc0fc138ee10756a6.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-29T02:48:35 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s official visits to China and Japan are his first since his appointment. They both are of great importance to boosting Saudi Arabia’s strategic relations with Beijing and Tokyo.According to Chinese and Japanese media, the high-level visit is part of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to boost political, economic and oil cooperation with these two Asian countries, as well as enhance ties and friendly relations in order to promote global stability and peace in the face of the growing threat of terrorism. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977071%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472417348807296300-1.jpg | en | null | Prince Mohammed’s visit to boost ties with economic power houses | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s official visits to China and Japan are his first since his appointment. They both are of great importance to boosting Saudi Arabia’s strategic relations with Beijing and Tokyo.
According to Chinese and Japanese media, the high-level visit is part of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to boost political, economic and oil cooperation with these two Asian countries, as well as enhance ties and friendly relations in order to promote global stability and peace in the face of the growing threat of terrorism.
At the G-20 summit, which will take place on Sept. 4 and 5 in Hangzhou, the deputy crown prince will present Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 as well as the Kingdom’s regional and international policies to the leaders of the G-20 countries.
The G-20 summit will address various topics of key importance, such as the contribution of creativity to growth, active global economic and financial management, and international trade and investment.
According to Chinese sources quoted in a local publication, the only Arab country participating in the G-20 meeting will play a significant role in setting the mechanism for the summit, and that China highly values its partnership with the Kingdom and welcomes its participation in efforts to reach substantial results that serve global interest.
During his visit to Beijing, the deputy crown prince will be signing a number of memorandums of understanding recently approved by the Council of Ministers, in the field of cooperation in the mineral resources and energy sector, industry, oil storage, water resources, as well as technical cooperation programs and an agreement for the establishment of a Saudi-Chinese Center for Technology Transfer.
The prince will also chair the first meeting of the Saudi-Chinese Joint Committee.
Saudi Arabia already signed, during the visit of the Chinese president to the Kingdom earlier this year, a number of agreements and memorandums of understanding to boost cooperation in the field of economy, as part of the Silk Road initiative, in addition to the 21st century Maritime Silk Road initiative. Other agreements covered cooperation in energy, science and technology, joint efforts to combat terrorism, development in the field of renewable energy, and an agreement for the establishment of a nuclear reactor with high-temperature coolant gas.
Chinese sources highlighted the importance of the new Silk Road initiative, which will enhance economic and cultural trade between China and other countries.
The road will start in Russia, pass through Central Asia and end in southwestern Asia. Energy will be the main focus of economic exchange between countries along the Silk Road, with Saudi Arabia having a prominent role in this regard.
In Japan, Prince Mohammed bin Salman will meet with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss means of deepening strategic cooperation between Riyadh and Tokyo in various fields, so as to move closer toward fulfilling the Vision 2030 objectives.
Japanese sources say Tokyo is giving significant importance and weight to the prince’s first visit, expected to have a positive impact on the relations between the two countries. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977071/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/da5c93aa1bd0e854e279caa73748f20045f503e7379e3d6f5a499d4db4081219.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-27T02:48:24 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | WASHINGTON: Hillary Clinton said Friday she was certain no revelations from e-mails or foreign entities’ ties to her husband’s charitable foundation will derail her bid for the US presidency.“I am sure, and I am sure because I have a very strong foundation of understanding about the foundation” and the good work it has done, the Democratic candidate said in an interview with MSNBC. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975956%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472225800455482300.jpg | en | null | Emails, foundation ties no threat to White House bid: Clinton | null | null | www.arabnews.com | WASHINGTON: Hillary Clinton said Friday she was certain no revelations from e-mails or foreign entities’ ties to her husband’s charitable foundation will derail her bid for the US presidency.
“I am sure, and I am sure because I have a very strong foundation of understanding about the foundation” and the good work it has done, the Democratic candidate said in an interview with MSNBC.
Clinton, who is leading in the polls, has come under withering scrutiny over whether Clinton Foundation donors received favored access at the State Department while she was secretary of state during President Barack Obama’s first term.
Republican rival Donald Trump earlier this week called for an independent investigation after a fresh batch of Clinton e-mails released as part of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit showed foundation donors lobbying her top aides for access. He accused Clinton of being a “bigot” in his latest appeal to minority voters.
The Associated Press, meanwhile, reported that more than half the people outside government who met Clinton while she was secretary of state donated money to the Clinton Foundation.
“My work is not influenced by outside sources. I made policy decisions to keep Americans safe. I believe my aides also acted appropriately,” she said on MSNBC.
“We have gone above and beyond most of the legal requirements, beyond the standards to voluntarily disclose donors and to reduce sources of funding that raised questions — not that we thought they were necessarily legitimate, but to avoid those questions,” she said.
Clinton said her critics should look at the good work the foundation has done, for instance making low-cost HIV medicines available to millions around the world.
Bill Clinton announced this week that if his wife is elected, the foundation will accept only US contributions, that he will step down from the board and will no longer raise funds for the charity.
Asked why the foundation didn’t simply turn over its programs to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation or some other charity, she said it was now looking for partners.
“We are going to be testing that. That’s why the foundation is looking for partners and, you know, there are potential partners for some of the work but not necessarily the same partner for all of the work. I think winding down the program takes time.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975956/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/e814ce25ef529cd9cbfe8680cfa28bf55001389d79ced8f63f01e85a05d37a95.json |
[
"Mohammed Rasooldeen"
] | 2016-08-29T02:47:23 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | RIYADH: Labor and Social Development Minister Mufrej Al-Haqabani on Sunday launched an awareness program here to combat begging via short messages through mobile phone users.Speaking to the press, Assistant Undersecretary for Social Welfare at the Ministry of Labor and Social Development Naif Al-Subhi said the campaign seeks to raise awareness among citizens to deal with begging in a negative manner. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977041%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//1466719370052395700.jpg | en | null | Anti-begging program launched | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: Labor and Social Development Minister Mufrej Al-Haqabani on Sunday launched an awareness program here to combat begging via short messages through mobile phone users.
Speaking to the press, Assistant Undersecretary for Social Welfare at the Ministry of Labor and Social Development Naif Al-Subhi said the campaign seeks to raise awareness among citizens to deal with begging in a negative manner.
While discouraging all forms of begging, the official said the messages will tell the citizens how to turn down beggars, requesting that they divert beggars to charitable organizations that are meant to look after and rehabilitate them. “There are several organizations spread throughout the Kingdom to serve these beggars,” he noted.
“The whole idea of the program is to eradicate begging from society and help the beggars lead a decent life,” he said.
Early this year, an anti-begging law was drafted by the Committee for Family, Social and Youth Affairs at the Shoura Council. The proposal stipulates that anyone found using children and the disabled as beggars could be jailed for two years and fined up to SR30,000. One article stipulates that first-time offenders must not stay in the welfare home for more than five days from the date of arrest. Another details the punishments for beggars. Saudi beggars cannot be held in the welfare home for more than six months or pay a fine of SR10,000. Arrested a second time, Saudi beggars can be held in the welfare home for one year or pay a fine of SR20,000 or both.
If they are caught a third time, adult Saudi beggars can be imprisoned for two years and fined SR30,000 or both. If caught a fourth time, punishments will be doubled according to the times of begging, and might include confiscation of money made through begging, which will be given to charitable societies.
In June, 150 beggars were arrested in the Eastern Province and Riyadh over a period of three weeks.
In Riyadh, 90 beggars, including 34 children, were arrested in the first four days of Ramadan, the police reported Monday. The individuals were of various nationalities and age groups.
In the Eastern Province, 60 beggars were arrested in raids. They included three Saudis, said Abdullatif Al-Naeem, director of the anti-begging committee. He said the Labor and Social Development Ministry has plans, with other government agencies, to combat the practice.
Al-Naeem said that there is a significant increase in begging every Ramadan because of the tendency of Muslims to be more charitable, so inspections are intensified near traffic lights, mosques, public gardens, markets and ATMs to arrest beggars. He said the government is working with private charities to create awareness about the negative effects of begging, and provide training to young Saudis in preparation to find work. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977041/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/65a412ade9a39c82bec93d185907a61ad740783d9868b514fe2db7e1e97f6994.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T02:48:02 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:48 | MOSCOW: Russian leader Vladimir Putin will hold talks on Syria with Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the Sept. 4-5 G20 summit in Hangzhou, China, a Kremlin aide said on Tuesday. He will also hold talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Sept. 3 as the “process of normalization of relations is underway,” Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said. On Sept. 4, Putin will discuss a need for “a new impetus in bilateral ties” with British Premier Theresa May. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977921%2Fmiddle-east.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//1434643520235606400.jpg | en | null | Prince Mohammed, Putin to discuss Syria at G20 | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MOSCOW: Russian leader Vladimir Putin will hold talks on Syria with Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the Sept. 4-5 G20 summit in Hangzhou, China, a Kremlin aide said on Tuesday. He will also hold talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Sept. 3 as the “process of normalization of relations is underway,” Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said. On Sept. 4, Putin will discuss a need for “a new impetus in bilateral ties” with British Premier Theresa May. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977921/middle-east | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/88de8c9b2a1082382598adce0a7161ae1d88b7bce9c24facf33547c3a139f538.json |
[] | 2016-08-26T20:48:16 | null | 2016-08-26T10:51:45 | LOS ANGELES: Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih tempered expectations that the world’s major oil producers would look to freeze production next month, telling Reuters on Thursday that the “market is moving in the right direction” already.“We don’t believe any significant intervention in the market is necessary other than to allow the forces of supply and demand to do the work for us,” he said in an interview following a speech at the US-Saudi Arabian Business Council in Los Angeles. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975651%2Feconomy.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//4457617291598156.jpg | en | null | Saudi energy minister: Oil market is moving in right direction already | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LOS ANGELES: Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih tempered expectations that the world’s major oil producers would look to freeze production next month, telling Reuters on Thursday that the “market is moving in the right direction” already.
“We don’t believe any significant intervention in the market is necessary other than to allow the forces of supply and demand to do the work for us,” he said in an interview following a speech at the US-Saudi Arabian Business Council in Los Angeles.
Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will meet on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum (IEF), which groups producers and consumers, in Algeria from Sept. 26-28.
Oil rallied last week in part on anticipation of a freeze, but those hopes have waned in the last couple of days.
Speaking publicly for the first time since talk about freezing production surfaced in the last few weeks, Al-Falih said there have not yet been any specific discussions of a production freeze by OPEC, even though world supply remains high.
His comments suggest the chances of a pact are minimal, as he pointed to a market rebalancing and steady demand.
Benchmark Brent crude has rebounded sharply since January but struggled to stay above $50 a barrel. Saudi Arabia recently hit a record in terms of barrels-per-day production, and other member nations, including Iran, have said they will boost output.
The Kingdom started to raise production from June to meet rising seasonal domestic demand as well as higher export requirements.
Saudi Arabia produced 10.67 million barrels per day of crude oil, the most in its history, in July, and Al-Falih said on Thursday that production has remained around that level, though he could not cite a specific number for August.
Al-Falih said no specific production level for a freeze has been broached yet.
“If there is consensus that emerges between now and the Algiers meeting, Saudi Arabia as always will be a constructive player in these discussions and we will be willing to participate,” he said Thursday. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975651/economy | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/fb8dd67514669625e85f8f1de4cd735b9a1116ad22f5ca99a95c390399c1f705.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:53:51 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman, who is also the chairman of the Madinah Center for Research and Studies, launched the book “Madinah,” which documents the history of the city through powerful and unique historical photographs.The book sheds light on the Saudi leadership’s endeavors to look after and maintain the Two Holy Mosques and Islamic heritage sites and urban landscape.It presents the most telling photos of the city, providing a visual of its history over time, its culture and impact on its visitors. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975606%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472145949735347700.jpg | en | null | Prince Faisal launches book on the history of Madinah | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman, who is also the chairman of the Madinah Center for Research and Studies, launched the book “Madinah,” which documents the history of the city through powerful and unique historical photographs.
The book sheds light on the Saudi leadership’s endeavors to look after and maintain the Two Holy Mosques and Islamic heritage sites and urban landscape.
It presents the most telling photos of the city, providing a visual of its history over time, its culture and impact on its visitors.
The governor pointed out the importance of the historical documentation in the book, which can be a valuable tool for those wishing to better understand the city, as well as a resource for researchers, helping them to know the humanitarian and urban characteristics of the city.
The book includes the most important and rare images of the city from different sources around the world and from the city itself.
Mohammed Al-Nomaan, director of the Madinah Center for Research and Studies, praised Prince Faisal’s support for the city and its development, and for his idea to document Madinah’s history through this pictorial book.
He said the governor personally supervised the launch of the book, which was published by the King Abdul Aziz Publishing House. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975606/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/fde653ffeabafcc55548e5c98a84079e3cae8ff542cd1e5059a572b1155da2b0.json |
[
"Abdan Al-Abdan"
] | 2016-08-26T12:51:19 | null | 2016-08-26T03:30:00 | JEDDAH: US Secretary of State John Kerry emphasized on Thursday that the safety of Saudi Arabia is a high US priority and that the US is committed to defending Saudi Arabia.Addressing a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir at the Royal Terminal, he said the two sides affirmed their commitment to rebuild Yemen's infrastructure. The two officials expressed their concerns and said efforts must be exerted to end the conflict in Yemen. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975636%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472119970042576400.jpg | en | null | Washington ‘committed to defending KSA’ | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: US Secretary of State John Kerry emphasized on Thursday that the safety of Saudi Arabia is a high US priority and that the US is committed to defending Saudi Arabia.
Addressing a joint press conference with Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir at the Royal Terminal, he said the two sides affirmed their commitment to rebuild Yemen's infrastructure. The two officials expressed their concerns and said efforts must be exerted to end the conflict in Yemen.
Al-Jubeir said: “We have no interest in Yemen… We are just responding to the attacks on our land.” He said the meeting held the day before to discuss Yemen was productive.
“Saudi Arabia has been providing, and will continue to provide, Yemen with humanitarian aid. Saudi Arabia has been the largest contributor of humanitarian aid to Yemen.”
Kerry thanked Saudi Arabia for its efforts to find a solution to the Yemeni issue and said that the US and the GCC countries understand very well that “we have to put an end to the Yemen issue as the conflict has lasted for very long and resulted in the displacement of over 2 million Yemenis, food shortages and the increase of food prices by 60 percent since last March.
“Over all, 80 percent of Yemenis are in need of humanitarian assistance,” he said, adding that “we (the US and the GCC countries) must find a way to end the war… and we know that military action is not the solution.”
Kerry added that the US and the GCC states are working alongside Yemenis to have a cease-fire in Yemen; they are also offering the Houthis the chance to hand over heavy weaponry and come to a collective and rational solution that involves a third party.
Both Al-Jubeir and Kerry said that Saudi military action is being taken in defense, since the Houthis have been targeting the Saudi territory with missiles, which resulted in deaths of innocent civilians and destruction of property. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975636/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/9f659f0cb2e8bb2874f113a031e35036930fe499639c6f82705e81045edcd61e.json |
[
"Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-28T20:47:41 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | PRIDDIS, Alberta: Ariya Jutanugarn missed a chance to take a big lead into the final round of the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, making two late bogeys Saturday at Priddis Greens.A week after withdrawing from the Rio Olympics because of a left knee injury, the 20-year-old Thai player bogeyed the par-4 16th and par-5 18th for a 5-under 67.“Feeling good,” Jutanugarn said. “I mean, I had two bogeys the last three holes, but I still shot 5 under, so it’s still good.At 17-under 199, she had a two-stroke advantage over South Korea’s In Gee Chun. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976691%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//28518073862992843.jpg | en | null | Ariya settles for 2-shot lead after late wobble | null | null | www.arabnews.com | PRIDDIS, Alberta: Ariya Jutanugarn missed a chance to take a big lead into the final round of the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, making two late bogeys Saturday at Priddis Greens.
A week after withdrawing from the Rio Olympics because of a left knee injury, the 20-year-old Thai player bogeyed the par-4 16th and par-5 18th for a 5-under 67.
“Feeling good,” Jutanugarn said. “I mean, I had two bogeys the last three holes, but I still shot 5 under, so it’s still good.
At 17-under 199, she had a two-stroke advantage over South Korea’s In Gee Chun.
“I keep the eye on me,” Jutanugarn said. “I’m not really care like who the leader is, like what I say yesterday. I really want to play my game and be happy on the course.”
Jutanugarn won the Women’s British Open in the event before the Olympics to tie Lydia Ko for the LPGA Tour victory lead with four. After a late meltdown in the major ANA Inspiration in April, Jutanugarn picked up the nickname “May” with three straight victories in the breakthrough month.
“After I won my first tournament, I kind of know how I play under pressure, so I know when I get really excited what I have to do,” Jutanugarn said.
Hitting 2-iron and 3-wood off the tee on the driving holes, Jutanugarn had seven birdies in an 11-hole stretch Saturday on the tree-lined layout.
Chun shot a 66.
“I could see the putting lines very well,” said Chun, the 2015 US Women’s Open champion. “I was so good at rolling the ball on those lines, and I made really good up-and-downs today. Those really got my game going.”
South Korea’s Sei Young Kim and Northern Ireland’s Stephanie Meadow were 12 under. Kim had a 68, and Meadow shot 69.
“Hitting fairways is key,” said Meadow, a former Alabama player. “The rough is pretty penal, especially with the greens being so firm, so if you can hit the fairways there’s a lot of wedges into holes here, and if you can kind of dial in your yardages, you’re going to make some birdies.”
Three-time champion Ko was tied for 10th at 10 under, and Canadian star Brooke Henderson was nine strokes back at 8 under.
“I hit the ball really solid and I gave myself so many looks at birdies, but really not one of them dropped,” Ko said after a 70. “When you’re having those kind of days, it’s really hard for you to go low. It was a little bit of a struggle with the putter.”
Ko won the event three of the last four years, the first two as an amateur. The 19-year-old New Zealander won in 2012 at Vancouver Golf Club at 15 years, 4 months to become the LPGA Tour’s youngest winner and fifth amateur champion. She successfully defended her title in 2013, winning by five strokes in Edmonton. Last year back at Vancouver as a pro, she beat Stacy Lewis in a playoff.
Henderson shot her second straight 68 after opening with a rain-delayed 72.
“I felt way better today, and I think feeling the energy from my massive crowds has definitely really helped that,” the 18-year-old Henderson said. “Through bad shots and good shots, they’re supporting me and giving me a little bit of extra energy and positive vibes. That’s really helped me the last two days.”
Henderson beat Ko in a playoff in June in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship for her first major title, and successfully defended her Cambia Portland Classic title last month.
Alena Sharp topped the five Canadians to make the cut in the national championship, shooting a 67 to move into a tie for fifth at 11 under with Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist (66), South Korea’s Ha Na Jang (67), Amy Yang (68) and Chella Choi (69).
“Started off kind of ugly,” Sharp said. “I was not hitting it well the first nine holes, but I hung in there. I think that’s something that’s gotten better with my game is when it’s not good, I realize, ‘OK, just keep grinding away, it’s going to change.’” And the last six holes were great.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976691/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5bf58bbc62c493cbf862260d418d6999e6114c76285b12353b7524721ab1dc86.json |
[
"Trisha Thomas",
"Vanessa Gera"
] | 2016-08-27T14:46:57 | null | 2016-08-27T16:00:00 | ASCOLI PICENO, Italy: Authorities on Saturday said the death toll in a Italy’a earthquake has risen yet again as bodies continued to be recovered and now stands at 290.The Civil Protection agency gave the updated figure late Saturday morning just ahead of a state funeral for some of the victims being attended by President Sergio Mattarella and Premier Matteo Renzi.The worst hit town was Amatrice, which now has 230 confirmed deaths. It is there that the death toll has been rising.Elsewhere, 11 were killed in Accumoli and 49 in Arquato del Tronto. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976101%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//8335211508391407.jpg | en | null | Toll rises to 290 as Italy prepares state funeral for quake dead | null | null | www.arabnews.com | ASCOLI PICENO, Italy: Authorities on Saturday said the death toll in a Italy’a earthquake has risen yet again as bodies continued to be recovered and now stands at 290.
The Civil Protection agency gave the updated figure late Saturday morning just ahead of a state funeral for some of the victims being attended by President Sergio Mattarella and Premier Matteo Renzi.
The worst hit town was Amatrice, which now has 230 confirmed deaths. It is there that the death toll has been rising.
Elsewhere, 11 were killed in Accumoli and 49 in Arquato del Tronto.
Mourners sobbed and caressed coffins, some of them holding the bodies of young children, as Italy prepared to hold a state funeral for some victims.
A young man wept over a little girl's small white coffin, while a woman nearby gently stroked another white coffin. Everywhere people hugged and cried as they stood amid 34 coffins laid out in a community gym in Ascoli Piceno, where the state funeral is to be held.
"It is a great tragedy. There are no words to describe it," said Gina Razzetti, a town resident who joined hundreds of local people for the funeral. "Each one of us has our pain inside. We are thinking about the families who lost relatives, who lost their homes, who lost everything."
Many children and elderly people were killed. Some of the older residents had grandchildren visiting in the last days of summer.
The magnitude 6.2 quake struck at 3:36 a.m. on Wednesday and was felt across a broad swath of central Italy. At least 284 people were killed, but the death toll could rise as recovery efforts continue. Several people are still unaccounted for.
"The melancholy grabs on to your heart, you feel a sense of weakness, of depression," said Fiore Ciotto, a resident of Ascoli Piceno who arrived for the funeral. "An event like this weakens you physically and mentally."
Funerals for some victims took place on Friday, while those for many others are expected in the coming days.
Ahead of the funeral, the president visited Amatrice, where 224 people died. There were also 11 deaths in nearby Accumoli and 49 in Arquata del Tronto, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Amatrice.
Mattarella arrived by helicopter at the edge of Amatrice, a once-picturesque stone town, and was shown the extent of the damage by the mayor, Sergio Pirozzi. The president met and thanked rescue workers who have been working since early Wednesday to save people trapped in rubble and recover the dead.
Due to the vast extent and severity of the damage, he could survey the town only at a distance because it was too dangerous to enter the sealed-off town center.
Overnight, residents of the area were rattled yet again by a series of aftershocks. The strongest, at 4:50 a.m., had a magnitude of 4.2, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, while the Italian geophysics institute measured it at 4.
The Italian institute and other authorities say that the ground below Accumoli sank 20 centimeters (8 inches) due to the earthquake, according to satellite images.
Many of the people left homeless have been spending their nights in tent cities where volunteers have been working to provide basic amenities. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976101/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/0ef40b8c64b216a16efeb4290dcc686973c9fd5f392469d77888c6b764f43cb5.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-30T14:48:58 | null | 2016-08-30T14:40:33 | KATMANDU: Nepal has imposed a 10-year mountaineering ban on an Indian couple who faked photographs purporting to show them at the top of Mount Everest, an official said Tuesday.Dinesh and Tarakeshwari Rathod, both police constables, said they reached the top of the world’s highest mountain on May 23. But fellow climbers cast doubt on their claim, saying their photos at the summit were doctored.Nepal’s tourism department initially certified their claim but later conducted an investigation. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977546%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//fake_everest_climb.jpg | en | null | Nepal bans Indian police couple for faking Everest climb | null | null | www.arabnews.com | KATMANDU: Nepal has imposed a 10-year mountaineering ban on an Indian couple who faked photographs purporting to show them at the top of Mount Everest, an official said Tuesday.
Dinesh and Tarakeshwari Rathod, both police constables, said they reached the top of the world’s highest mountain on May 23. But fellow climbers cast doubt on their claim, saying their photos at the summit were doctored.
Nepal’s tourism department initially certified their claim but later conducted an investigation.
“Our investigation shows that the couple faked their summit. We have imposed a 10-year ban against them from climbing any mountain in Nepal,” tourism department chief Sudarshan Prasad Dhakal told AFP of the decision made on Monday.
Dhakal said an analysis of the photos submitted by the couple showed they had superimposed themselves and their banners on photos taken by another Indian climber of his Everest summit.
“Despite several attempts to get clarifications from them, they did not cooperate with us during the investigation. The two Sherpas that assisted them are also absconding,” Dhakal said.
“The ban should serve as a warning for mountaineers to follow ethics,” he said.
Many of those who reach the top of the 8,848 meter (29,029 feet) mountain have gone on to make money or forge careers as motivational speakers and authors.
A total of 456 people, including more than 250 foreigners, summited Everest during the recently-ended spring season, after two consecutive years of deadly disasters that led to almost all attempts being abandoned.
Mountaineering is a major revenue-earner for the impoverished Himalayan nation. This year’s string of successful summits is expected to boost the industry, which was left reeling after an earthquake last year killed almost 9,000 people nationwide.
Hundreds fled Everest last year after an earthquake-triggered avalanche at base camp killed 18 people.
Only one climber reached the top in 2014 after an avalanche killed 16 Nepali guides that year. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977546/world | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/1de8e815203010a05b0a242413635bef0471c2235822dd4a4900f630c90d379e.json |
[
"Mohammed Rasooldeen"
] | 2016-08-28T08:48:48 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | RIYADH: As part of its health awareness campaign during Haj, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has prepared a mobile health awareness team that will provide health tips and guidelines to pilgrims in their own camps.The holy sites covered under the program are Makkah, Madinah, Minah, Muzdalaifah, Arafat, and the Jamaarat area. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976541%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472312039795535300.jpg | en | null | Health campaign to target Haj camps | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: As part of its health awareness campaign during Haj, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has prepared a mobile health awareness team that will provide health tips and guidelines to pilgrims in their own camps.
The holy sites covered under the program are Makkah, Madinah, Minah, Muzdalaifah, Arafat, and the Jamaarat area.
An MoH official said that his ministry has harnessed all its human capabilities and health facilities to provide maximum health care to pilgrims, and maintain their health and safety. The MoH continues activities of its health awareness campaign in collaboration with Sanofi.
The MoH has completed its arrangements to hold educational lectures for the medical missions accompanying the Haj campaigns, with a view to promoting health awareness among pilgrims, and commitment to apply health requirements set by the MoH.
The health awareness campaign, launched under the theme “Together for a Healthy Pilgrimage,” aims at promoting health awareness among pilgrims on the main health requirements during the Haj season. In addition, the campaign focuses on a number of topics, including yellow fever, meningococcal meningitis, poliomyelitis and vaccination against seasonal flu, as well as modifying some health misconceptions among pilgrims during the performance of Haj rites.
During the campaign, the Ministry of Health will send 2 million SMSs to pilgrims’ mobile phones to tell them of the preventive measures to be adopted during their stay in the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah.
The official said that the ministry has also launched a multimedia awareness campaign harnessing all media channels to reach the millions of pilgrims coming from across the world.
The ministry has also printed more than 500,000 brochures in 10 languages for distribution among Hajis. He said the brochures spell out the guidelines to prevent the spread of infection among the pilgrims and advise them of the precautionary measures against health problems. The booklets will be distributed among the pilgrims speaking different languages.
The ministry will also distribute leaflets containing picture messages of what the pilgrims should and should not do during their stay in the holy cities. “These pictures can be understood by all pilgrims,” he added. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976541/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/732c1960ccc05c33e466810db064f5d098a580921b9df7a2dddd5e74b553d62e.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-29T20:48:50 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | ARLINGTON, Texas: Texas survived a nervous ninth inning and beat Cleveland 2-1 on Sunday in the meeting of American League divisional leaders.The Indians loaded the bases in the ninth but could not manage the tying run and wound up losing three of four in the key series. Their lead in the AL Central is 4-1/2 games, while the Rangers widened the gap at the top of the AL West to 8-1/2 games with five weeks left in the regular season. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977156%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//3225871635258917.jpg | en | null | Rangers hang on to edge Indians, build AL West lead | null | null | www.arabnews.com | ARLINGTON, Texas: Texas survived a nervous ninth inning and beat Cleveland 2-1 on Sunday in the meeting of American League divisional leaders.
The Indians loaded the bases in the ninth but could not manage the tying run and wound up losing three of four in the key series. Their lead in the AL Central is 4-1/2 games, while the Rangers widened the gap at the top of the AL West to 8-1/2 games with five weeks left in the regular season.
Pitchers were also on top in Los Angeles as the Dodgers blanked the Cubs in a one-run game and maintained their two-game lead in the National League West.
Elsewhere, Kansas City beat Boston to drop the Red Sox two games off the pace in the AL East and only one game ahead of Baltimore after the Orioles shut out New York at Yankee Stadium.
Texas' Derek Holland, who missed two months with shoulder inflammation before returning to the majors last week, gave up only one run in six innings to lay the foundation for the Rangers victory.
He was aided by two superb catches by new left fielder Carlos Gomez, while Ian Desmond and Jonathan Lucroy each drove in a run.
Cleveland loaded the bases with one out in the ninth against closer Sam Dyson, who struck out Tyler Naquin and retired Abraham Almonte on a fly ball to end it.
Los Angeles' Brock Stewart and four relievers combined to shut out the Cubs and deliver a vital 1-0 victory for the Dodgers.
Stewart struck out eight in five innings, and Jesse Chavez, Grant Dayton, Joe Blanton and Kenley Jansen finished it off.
The sole run came in the bottom of the eighth. With one out, Andrew Toles was hit by a pitch, and then Chicago pitcher Trevor Cahill threw wide after Howie Kendrick's short roller, allowing Toles to reach third.
After an intentional walk and a strikeout, Adrian Gonzalez hit a grounder toward third, and Javier Baez did not glove it cleanly, so his throw to second for an innings-ending force play was too late, allowing Toles to score.
Kansas City scored eight runs in the sixth inning to overwhelm Boston and win 10-4 at Fenway Park.
Raul Mondesi hit a bases-loaded triple and Eric Hosmer added a two-run single for the defending champion Royals, who have surged into playoff contention with 17 wins from 21 games.
Boston's David Ortiz hit his 534th homer, a solo shot, for the Red Sox, tying Jimmie Foxx for 18th on the career list.
The Red Sox are only a game ahead of Baltimore, which won 5-0 at the Yankees.
Orioles starter Kevin Gausman pitched seven scoreless innings, striking out nine and walking none. He posted a rare road win after going 0-16 in his previous 25 starts away from Camden Yards.
Mark Trumbo lined his major league-leading 40th home run and Steve Pearce also connected for Baltimore, which ended New York's four-game winning streak.
Colorado's Nolan Arenado went 4 for 4, hitting his 35th home run and a triple, and drove in three runs to power the Rockies past Washington 5-3.
Arenado and David Dahl hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning.
Washington has dropped six of eight to leave the NL East door slightly ajar, but the Nationals still have a comfortable eight-game lead.
Chicago's Carlos Rodon pitched into the seventh inning, allowing one run, to guide the White Sox past Seattle 4-1.
Justin Morneau had a two-run single and Melky Cabrera drove in a run and scored twice as Chicago inflicted a defeat that left the Mariners three games off the last AL wildcard place.
Philadelphia's A.J. Ellis had an important hit in his Phillies debut, breaking a seventh-inning tie with a two-run double that set up a 5-1 win against the New York Mets.
The Mets, already without ailing sluggers Yoenis Cespedes (quad) and Neil Walker (back), lost shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera in the first inning due to knee soreness.
Oakland's Stephen Vogt and Khris Davis homered to lead the Athletics past St. Louis 7-4.
Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia gave up a three-run homer to Vogt with two out in the third and a two-run shot to Davis, his 34th, with two out in the first.
Rookie Athletics pitcher Andrew Triggs allowed four hits, walked none and struck out eight in six innings.
Los Angeles' Tyler Skaggs pitched six scoreless innings to lead the Angels to a 5-0 win at Detroit.
Toronto's Josh Donaldson had his first career three-homer game and Troy Tulowitzki also went deep as the Blue Jays beat Minnesota 9-6 to complete a three-game sweep and open a two-game lead in the AL East.
Tampa Bay's Corey Dickerson hit a three-run homer in a 10-4 victory for the Rays against Houston. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977156/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/d404d6fa75b7e5d9e5e1bce6f3b8575b6ffd1fa396ff99c60f81fc4ed47bed91.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T20:48:20 | null | 2016-08-31T20:22:55 | HARBIN, China: Team Abu Dhabi resumes its challenge for honors in the prestigious UIM F1 H2O World Championship, when Alex Carella and Thani Al-Qamzi represent the team out of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC) at this weekend’s Grand Prix of Harbin (Sept. 2-4) in northeastern China. Just days after sending a team to a round of the UIM F2 Championship in Lithuania, Team Abu Dhabi heads straight to Asia, where Carella hopes to defend his slender two-point lead in the championship and stay on course to give the ADIMSC a long awaited UIM F1 H2O world title. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977591%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//thani_al-qamzi_in_action_at_the_french_gp_with_team_abu_dhabi.jpg | en | null | Chinese F1 H2O racing challenge awaits Team Abu Dhabi’s Carella and Al-Qamzi | null | null | www.arabnews.com | HARBIN, China: Team Abu Dhabi resumes its challenge for honors in the prestigious UIM F1 H2O World Championship, when Alex Carella and Thani Al-Qamzi represent the team out of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC) at this weekend’s Grand Prix of Harbin (Sept. 2-4) in northeastern China.
Just days after sending a team to a round of the UIM F2 Championship in Lithuania, Team Abu Dhabi heads straight to Asia, where Carella hopes to defend his slender two-point lead in the championship and stay on course to give the ADIMSC a long awaited UIM F1 H2O world title.
Situated in the northernmost area of the People’s Republic of China, the new addition to H2O Racing’s F1 calendar will take place at the Hulan Estuary Wetland Park, with the race scheduled to start at 3pm local time (11 a.m. UAE time) on Sunday afternoon.
The last few races in this highly competitive series have been thrilling spectacles and Carella managed to overcome a technical issue at the last race in Portugal to coax his DAC over the line in fifth place and remain two points clear of the double World Champion, Philippe Chiappe, and a further four in front of the talented American driver Shaun Torrente of Dubai’s Victory Team.
These three drivers have edged clear of the rest of the field over the course of the first three rounds of the series in Dubai, France and Portugal, but Carella knows full well that several other drivers, including team-mate Thani Al-Qamzi, Sami Selio, Jonas Andersson, Erik Stark and Ahmed Al-Hameli, are more than capable of springing a surprise in Harbin and snatching points from the leading trio.
Al-Qamzi set some excellent lap times at the last race and the second of the Team Abu Dhabi drivers will be hoping for better fortune as the F1 H2O series heads east for two races in China, before returning to Abu Dhabi and Sharjah for the final two races in the calendar in December.
Team Abu Dhabi’s Rashed Al-Qamzi currently leads the UIM F-4S feeder championship standings by five points from Finland’s Kalle Viippo and the Emirati will be hoping to keep up his run of superb form as well. Team-mate Mohammed Al-Mehairbi holds eighth in the rankings heading to Harbin, but should be able to benefit from valuable boat time at last weekend’s F2 race in Lithuania, where he finished one place behind Rashed Al-Qamzi in 10th overall.
“The race in Harbin is the start of a series of important Asian races for the team,” said Salem Al-Romaithi, assistant general manager of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC). “Alex and Thani were particularly impressive at the last race and Alex is very well placed to continue his success and extend his lead in the World Championship in China. We are chasing title success on several fronts.
“Alex and Thani are battling for honors in the main F1 H2O series, where we are also challenging for the Teams’ title, but Rashed Al-Qamzi has already proved this year that he is the man to beat in F4-S and we hope that he can continue to deliver the results over the remaining races.”
Team Abu Dhabi is supported by Etihad Airways as the official carrier and sponsor and runs under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan, adviser to the Head of State and chairman of the board of directors of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC). The racing team runs under the auspices of the ADIMSC, racing manager Guido Cappellini and assistant general manager Salem Al-Remeithi.
Harbin is the capital and largest city of the Heilongjiang province in the northeast of the country. It is notorious for its bitterly cold winters and has the alternative name of the Ice City. It sits on the southern bank of the middle Songhua River and is the center for winter sports in China, having hosted the 1996 Asian Winter Games.
After technical scrutineering and documentation on Friday morning, the F1 and F4-S competitors will be permitted their own free practice sessions from 14.00hrs. Further free practice and time trials for the F4-S boats are followed by a second F1 free practice session from 10.30hrs on Saturday morning. The first of the two F4-S races is scheduled for 13.30hrs and BRM Qualifying is due to start at 15.00hrs.
After more practice on Sunday morning, the second of the F4-S races is pencilled in for 11.10hrs and the Grand Prix of Harbin takes center stage on the Hulan Estuary Wetland Park course from 15.00hrs (11.00hrs UAE time).
2016 UIM F1H2O World Championship – Drivers’ Championship standings:
1. Alex Carella (ITA) Team Abu Dhabi 42 pts
2. Philippe Chiappe (FRA) China CTIC Team 40 pts
3. Shaun Torrente (USA) Victory Team 36 pts
4. Jonas Andersson (SWE) Team Sweden 18 pts
5. Filip Roms (FIN) Baba Racing 17 pts
6. Sami Selio (FIN) Baba Racing 15 pts
7. Duarte Benavente (PRT) F1 Atlantic Team 12 pts
8. Cédric Deguisne (FRA) Maverick Racing 9 pts, etc | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977591/sports | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5e1a0a98f8dc35a160e25aa73836d0efb8615ee891f2f1013eb80f5d32d5b95d.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:50:46 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Social and religious figures in Qatif expressed appreciation for great professionalism displayed by police officers who were able to foil terrorist attacks that targeted a mosque, a restaurant and a café.They pledged full support for those fighting terrorists that aim to kill innocent people, highlighting the importance of cooperation with security forces in any situation arousing suspicion, in order to ensure safety for all.They said the Kingdom is a place of safety and security that has no tolerance for criminals. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975621%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//cqkplppweaaa67c.jpg | en | null | Qatif scholars condemn terrorists | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Social and religious figures in Qatif expressed appreciation for great professionalism displayed by police officers who were able to foil terrorist attacks that targeted a mosque, a restaurant and a café.
They pledged full support for those fighting terrorists that aim to kill innocent people, highlighting the importance of cooperation with security forces in any situation arousing suspicion, in order to ensure safety for all.
They said the Kingdom is a place of safety and security that has no tolerance for criminals.
Sheikh Zaki Sunbul underlined the vigilance of the security personnel who monitor criminals and were able to arrest and kill so many of them, working hard to keep the Kingdom safe.
Sheikh Mansour Al-Salman said: “A few days ago, terrorists tried to plant seeds of hatred between the people of Qatif and security men by killing a security guard who was performing his duties, but Qatif scholars condemn these terrorist attempts.”
Abdullah Shihab said “neither citizens of our precious town nor security men faced any harm. Thank God this terrorist attack that targeted innocent people and aimed to spread death and dissension among people failed.”
Businessman Shaker Al-Nuh stressed the importance of cooperating with the police and reporting any suspicious acts.
“I hope God saves the Kingdom and the security men. The terrorist attacks targeting innocent people everywhere are not religiously or morally acceptable,” he said, stressing that terrorists fight against civilizations and Islam.
Bandar Al-Ajran, a senior citizen in one of the cities of Qatif, said that terrorist attacks aim to sow hatred, stressing that they will never succeed in doing that.
“Everyone stands as one with the wise leadership against terrorism, and everyone cooperates with the brave security men who stay awake for the safety and security of the citizens,” he said.
He stressed that the people of Qatif condemn all the bloody acts of terrorism anywhere in the Kingdom. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975621/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/df1ad74475c7a4db3fd3bfbea663ff6e4e9fe7994bd31df56f67429301671618.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T02:47:51 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: The sales of ihram clothing and ready-made garments are on the rise these days as pilgrims are flocking to Makkah and Madinah.However, some investors are calling for Saudizing the industry of ihram and ready-made garments. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977511%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//1437129700445168100.jpg | en | null | Demands grow to Saudize ihram industry | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: The sales of ihram clothing and ready-made garments are on the rise these days as pilgrims are flocking to Makkah and Madinah.
However, some investors are calling for Saudizing the industry of ihram and ready-made garments.
“There is usually a high demand for ready-made clothes and ihram garments during the Haj season,” industry specialists said. But this year, there was less demand compared to the same period in the previous year. Reasons for sales decline include the lengthy period of summer vacation, the end of wedding season and the tendency of many Saudis to buy clothes from abroad or online.
Mohamed Al-Shehary, chairman of the textiles and garments committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, estimated the volume of sales during the pilgrimage season at SR900 million. He pointed out that more than 90 percent of the garments are imported from aboard. “This requires the creation of giant national projects to nationalize the clothing industry,” Al-Shehary noted.
Some shopkeepers in Jeddah revealed that there is less demand for ihram garments, whose prices range from SR50 to SR120 apiece. They explained that most pilgrims bring ihram clothes with them from their own countries, leading to the decline in sales.
Hisham Al-Barakati, a member of the textiles and garments committee, said that there a high demand for informal and casual clothes, while clothing suitable for formal social events, such as a wedding, are less in demand. This is because Saudi families do not usually hold wedding parties during Haj season.
Ibrahim Al-Marwani, another committee member, said that many Saudi families are inclined to buy clothes from abroad or online. “This resulted in the decline of garment sales. So, we need to Saudize the clothes industry and encourage domestic products,” Al-Marwani added. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977511/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/07a45fdb1f0b1107013a7c44e5d0c796d28fb528dd052b52f578cb6368205747.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:48:28 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Saudi scholarship students in the US have taken up the cudgels against attempts to distort the image of Islam and Muslims by getting involved in social and charity work.“We need to participate in the American community service to project the true picture of Saudi society,” said Ph.D. scholarship student Yusuf bin Ali Al-Rajhi.He took advantage of the summer vacation to work for a New York charity to take food from restaurants to the houses of the homeless and elderly, and then take the garbage and waste from there to the allocated dumping sites. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976521%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472318435426266900.jpg | en | null | Scholarship students in US make a mark with social work | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Saudi scholarship students in the US have taken up the cudgels against attempts to distort the image of Islam and Muslims by getting involved in social and charity work.
“We need to participate in the American community service to project the true picture of Saudi society,” said Ph.D. scholarship student Yusuf bin Ali Al-Rajhi.
He took advantage of the summer vacation to work for a New York charity to take food from restaurants to the houses of the homeless and elderly, and then take the garbage and waste from there to the allocated dumping sites.
Yusuf and his other compatriots in the US drew inspiration from a chapter entitled “An Ambitious Homeland” in Saudi Vision 2030 that says: “We make an instrumental and substantial contribution to charity work locally, regionally and globally.”
With the support of the Saudi cultural mission and the student clubs, the students are making a significant contribution to American society through their volunteer work.
Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Issa, the Saudi cultural attaché in the US, said: “Participating in voluntary work is the road to success. We always encourage our children here studying on scholarships to participate in all kinds of voluntary work.
He said there are more than 300 Saudi students’ clubs in the US in addition to a number of charity and social organizations that reflect the true image of Saudi society.
Omar Al-Awali, a scholarship student, is involved in voluntary work since 2013 in the Boston Rescue Mission society, which is involved in the rehabilitation of people suffering from difficult living conditions.
He helps in setting up training courses and programs to prepare these people to enter the labor market. He is the first Saudi person to work for this charity.
Another student, Malak Al-Daoud, is the first Saudi volunteer as a broadcaster for a talk show, “Talk US,” in Indianapolis. She said her goal is to develop herself and reflect the true picture of her homeland and give a good image of the Muslim community in general and Saudi Arabia in particular to the American society. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976521/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/66bba728dddc6b1425b081f58a29ed7fb707c18a3721371bcee7a90e7a733bfa.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:51:50 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | RIYADH: Gold dealers have warned against the spread of fake gold bullion traded at reduced prices outside authorized and licensed gold shops in Riyadh.Several customers fell victim to these fraudsters, buying gold mixed with glass from street gold vendors, said a local daily.Salih Al-Aqaili, owner of a gold shop, said some people were selling gold at prices lower than the going rate and warned against the low quality of gold.He said gold sales are expected to increase due to a surge in demand by customers expecting a gold price hike in the near future. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975616%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472150565235849700.jpg | en | null | Dealers warn against buying gold from street | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: Gold dealers have warned against the spread of fake gold bullion traded at reduced prices outside authorized and licensed gold shops in Riyadh.
Several customers fell victim to these fraudsters, buying gold mixed with glass from street gold vendors, said a local daily.
Salih Al-Aqaili, owner of a gold shop, said some people were selling gold at prices lower than the going rate and warned against the low quality of gold.
He said gold sales are expected to increase due to a surge in demand by customers expecting a gold price hike in the near future.
He said an ounce of gold is currently sold for $1,345, but is expected to hit $1,400.
Ghazi bin Talib, a gold dealer and former deputy head of the National Committee for Gems and Precious Metals, affirmed that no fake gold was sold in licensed shops, adding that if any fake gold is sold, it happens only outside authorized shops.
He said shop owners purchase gold from known and licensed gold workshops and that gold carries the logo and stamp of the manufacturing plant.
Talib attributed the drop in gold prices to market recession during the summer break.
One customers said he noticed a drop in gold prices compared to last month and attributed it to poor demand.
He also advised customers to buy gold only from licensed shops to avoid ending up with fake or poor quality gold. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975616/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/6684ba61dc6e8f53bf19aee212eda2ed170a5c0db63c2fdeb97cf073058fa900.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-26T20:47:14 | null | 2016-08-26T21:34:12 | SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium: Dutch teenager Max Verstappen delighted his army of fans in the forests of the Ardennes on Friday afternoon when he topped the times in second free practice for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix.The 18-year-old Red Bull driver, who was born 50 kilometers away from the sprawling and majestic Spa-Francorchamps circuit at Hasselt in Belgium, clocked a best lap of one minute and 48.085 seconds.That allowed him to outpace Australian teammate Daniel Ricciardo by two-tenths as the Renault-powered outfit delivered a strong one-two showing. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975691%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//4324448696019172.jpg | en | null | Verstappen on top in Red Bull one-two | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium: Dutch teenager Max Verstappen delighted his army of fans in the forests of the Ardennes on Friday afternoon when he topped the times in second free practice for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix.
The 18-year-old Red Bull driver, who was born 50 kilometers away from the sprawling and majestic Spa-Francorchamps circuit at Hasselt in Belgium, clocked a best lap of one minute and 48.085 seconds.
That allowed him to outpace Australian teammate Daniel Ricciardo by two-tenths as the Renault-powered outfit delivered a strong one-two showing.
It was the third time in Verstappen’s brief Formula One career that he had topped the session times and did so in front of thousands of supporters camping under the trees in the unexpected heat-wave conditions.
“Compared to our rivals, we showed great pace today,” said Vertstappen.
“I am very happy to finish P1, but of course it’s only practice. It’s not qualifying or the race.”
He dismissed suggestions that he could realize a dream by taking pole at his ‘home’ circuit.
“I never dream,” he said. “I just want to work and then we’ll see where we end up.”
With Hamilton due to start from the back of the grid after taking two successive new power units, Verstappen may have a chance to claim a memorable win.
Hamilton had accumulated a minimum 30-place grid penalty by the end of the day and it is expected to increase on Saturday if he takes another new power unit in final practice.
“I am cool about it and for sure, it is going to be an interesting race on Sunday,” said a smiling Hamilton.
German Nico Huelkenberg was third fastest for Force India ahead of his compatriot Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari, Mexican Sergio Perez in the second Force India and championship contender Nico Rosberg of Mercedes.
“I’m not entirely happy, as you can see,” said Vettel.
“I’m struggling a bit with the balance of the car. It didn’t feel great out there, but that’s up to us, myself and the team — to work on that and improve the car.”
Rosberg had been fastest in a Mercedes one-two ahead of championship leader and defending champion Hamilton in the morning session, but both men concentrated on preparation for the race with long runs on medium tires.
Finn Kimi Raikkonen, newly married during the month-long European summer break, was seventh in the second Ferrari ahead of Frenchman Romain Grosjean of Haas, Briton Jenson Button of McLaren and Mexican Esteban Gutierrez in the second Haas.
Hamilton, clearly focused on his race rather than qualifying, was 13th, one place behind Alonso, who was 12th for McLaren having missed out on the morning session due to a water leak.
The team was forced to change his power unit and install a new one, which led to him taking a grid penalty.
Both Rosberg, who trails Hamilton by 19 points in the title race with nine races remaining, and Hamilton were given new Mercedes power-units for the opening free session, a move that the team confirmed will bring Hamilton at least a 15-place penalty on the grid.
After taking a second power unit for the second session, Hamilton is expected to have another installed for third practice on Saturday morning, actions that may lead to him taking an overall record grid penalty of 75 places.
A series of engine failures early in the year meant Hamilton quickly reached the limit of new parts he is allowed for the season while Rosberg, who won the opening four races without problems, is within the limits.
Mercedes policy is aimed to be as fair as possible to both drivers and to give Hamilton sufficient new parts to last for the rest of the season with all of his penalties served at one race. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975691/sports | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/8e8985e2172aa8405eb7c156cfaa447deee18ec8c0060d3927cfd2dcc7562ed8.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-28T20:47:10 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | FARMINGDALE, N.Y.: Rickie Fowler kept bogeys off his card for the second straight day and closed with a 5-foot birdie putt for a 3-under 68, giving him a one-shot lead over Patrick Reed going into the final round of The Barclays.Fowler has gone 45 holes without a bogey at Bethpage Black, the site of two US Opens and among the toughest courses on the PGA Tour. Along with his three birdies Saturday, he made three par-saving putts of at least 10 feet, including one from 25 feet early in his round.And he needed them all. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976696%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1809206662451578.jpg | en | null | Flawless Fowler leads by 1 at Barclays | null | null | www.arabnews.com | FARMINGDALE, N.Y.: Rickie Fowler kept bogeys off his card for the second straight day and closed with a 5-foot birdie putt for a 3-under 68, giving him a one-shot lead over Patrick Reed going into the final round of The Barclays.
Fowler has gone 45 holes without a bogey at Bethpage Black, the site of two US Opens and among the toughest courses on the PGA Tour. Along with his three birdies Saturday, he made three par-saving putts of at least 10 feet, including one from 25 feet early in his round.
And he needed them all.
Reed overcame three bogeys in a four-hole stretch on the front nine and was tied for the lead on the back nine until the final two holes. Reed missed a 5-foot birdie putt on the 17th, and his 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole almost missed weakly to the right.
Fowler, who was at 9-under 204, now is in prime position to win for the first time on the PGA Tour in a year and play his way onto the US Ryder Cup team.
This is the final tournament for Americans to earn one of the eight automatic spots for the Ryder Cup matches at Hazeltine at the end of next month. Fowler was at No. 12 going into the opening FedEx Cup event with its $8.5 million purse and needed at least a third-place finish to earn a spot.
His work is not done.
Reed, who is No. 8 in the Ryder Cup standings, settled into his round and wound up with a 71, putting him in the final group with Fowler. Right behind was Adam Scott, who also saw his share of putts go in, especially a 45-foot birdie on the 15th hole. Scott started out his round by holing a lob wedge from 98 yards for an eagle, and his 65 was the lowest score of the tournament.
Scott, who hasn’t seriously contended since his back-to-back victories in Florida five months ago, was two shots behind at 7-under 206. Martin Laird (69) and Emiliano Grillo (71) were three shots back, while Justin Thomas got into the game a 66 and was in the group at 5-under 208, which included defending champion Jason Day.
For Fowler, the timing could not have been better.
“It’s nice to finally see some putts go in,” Fowler said. “With a few putts going in, it frees up the rest of your game. I’ve been swinging well for a long time, and I’ve been waiting for the putter to catch up.”
Fowler won against a strong field in Abu Dhabi at the start of the year, and he lost a two-shot lead with two holes to play in the Phoenix Open. Since then, he hasn’t been much of a factor has his ranking — in the FedEx Cup and the Ryder Cup — began to plunge.
Not wanting to take a chance on being among the four captain’s picks, he has a chance Sunday to secure his spot for Hazeltine.
“It’s pretty simple,” Fowler said. “I’ve got to take care of business tomorrow. It’s been awhile since I’ve been in this position. It’s going to be tough tomorrow. We’re on one of the — if not the — toughest golf courses we play all year. It’s been a long time coming, and it’s going to be fun.”
Reed, dressed all in black on another scorching afternoon on Long Island, managed to escape with a bogey from a horrible lie right of the third green. He muffed a chip on the fifth hole and made bogey, then drove well right into a bunker and made another bogey on the sixth hole. He bounced back with a pair of birdies, and made all pars on the back nine. Considering the difficulty of the Black’s back nine, that was more than enough to stay in the game.
Scott can relate to how Fowler is feeling with the putter. He had no complaints with how he played tee-to-green, but he was getting aggravated with his putting. One good round, finally, changed his outlook.
“The front nine is the gettable nine, and to turn in 4 under set up my round,” Scott said. “I knew anything under par on the back, I would have a great round, and that was kind of my goal. I rolled a couple long ones in, and that felt good and kept the momentum going. Hopefully, something to build on for tomorrow and beyond.”
Day was hopeful of more than a 70 as the No. 1 player in the world tried to get into position. Birdies on the par 3s on the back nine helped atone for some wild tee shots, and he was still very much in the mix.
Jordan Spieth scrambled his way out of the rough and the sand. Spieth didn’t hit a fairway from the second hole until the 15th, yet he still played even par. But on the par-3 17th, he flubbed a chip and took double bogey, and a birdie on the final hole gave him a 72. He was six shots behind. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976696/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/aa5ff572b2079355c4af1ada4bbdf1c872434434f0c30dabd5e69f4cbe6a1c5a.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-26T20:46:33 | null | 2016-08-26T21:26:39 | GENEVA: In a power shift toward Europe’s wealthiest clubs, UEFA has agreed to give more guaranteed Champions League group-stage places to the four highest-ranked leagues. Spain, Germany, England and Italy each get four slots from the 2018-19 season.UEFA also promises that annual prize money to the 32 group-stage teams — worth 1.32 billion euros ($1.49 billion) this season — will be “increased significantly” for the three seasons through 2021. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975686%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//uefa-champions-league-logo-vector.jpg | en | null | Top leagues win big in UEFA changes to Champions League | null | null | www.arabnews.com | GENEVA: In a power shift toward Europe’s wealthiest clubs, UEFA has agreed to give more guaranteed Champions League group-stage places to the four highest-ranked leagues. Spain, Germany, England and Italy each get four slots from the 2018-19 season.
UEFA also promises that annual prize money to the 32 group-stage teams — worth 1.32 billion euros ($1.49 billion) this season — will be “increased significantly” for the three seasons through 2021.
UEFA announced the deal on Friday after months of talks with the influential European Club Association, whose members raised an old threat of breaking away to form a closed Super League dominated by the rich and storied elite.
“I welcome UEFA’s decision, it reflects a serious and fair solution for European club football,” Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, the chairman of the ECA and Bayern Munich, said in a statement.
Still, the deal to give 16 guaranteed group-stage places instead of 11 currently to clubs from the big-four leagues will inevitable squeeze teams from lower-ranked leagues.
“UEFA, the clubs, the leagues and the national associations speak with one voice on these matters,” UEFA said in a statement.
Italy is the big winner in the new agreement, which had to be completed this year to let UEFA start selling broadcasting and sponsorship rights for the 2018-21 commercial cycle.
From 2018, the group stage will include the top four finishers in the previous season’s La Liga, Bundesliga, English Premier League, and Serie A who will have direct entry. They will avoid the risk of losing in the playoff qualifying round and miss tens of millions of euros (dollars) in UEFA prize money.
In recent seasons, Italy typically has had only two group-stage teams because Serie A’s third-place team often loses in the playoffs. Roma was eliminated this week by Porto, giving fifth-ranked Portugal three teams in the groups draw on Thursday.
Other changes announced on Friday are also likely to benefit the big four leagues.
From the 2018 season, a Champions League groups slot will be guaranteed to the previous season’s Europa League winner. Currently, the Europa winner can be made to qualify through the playoffs.
Sevilla has won the Europa League in both years since the incentive was offered, and Spain had five teams in the Champions League groups last season.
UEFA has helped storied clubs who have slumped in recent seasons and would slip in the rankings which determine draw seeding.
“Historical success in the competition will also be acknowledged in coefficient calculation (points for previous European titles),” UEFA said.
That is effectively a cushion to prop up former European champions who have failed to qualify for the Champions League in recent seasons.
Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, AC Milan and Inter Milan — all Champions League winners in the past 12 seasons — were missing from Thursday’s draw.
UEFA has yet to resolve how the changes will have a knock-on effect on smaller clubs’ access to the Champions League groups.
Currently, 22 of the 32 slots are guaranteed to teams from 12 different leagues, including titleholders from Belgium, Switzerland, and Turkey. Those look to be at risk.
Details of how the deal will squeeze clubs such as Belgium’s Bruges and Switzerland’s Basel will be “finalized by the end of the year,” UEFA said.
Still, clubs from smaller TV markets can potentially earn a greater share of UEFA prize money after another rule change in how money is distributed.
UEFA says the “market pool” system — which steers money to clubs in England, Germany, and Italy, where the rights deals are bigger — will be changed to reward better results in the competition.
In another concession to the clubs, UEFA said it will create a “subsidiary company which will play a strategic role in determining the future and the management of club competitions,” and the ECA will appoint half of the managing directors. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975686/sports | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/8761bb07cc40cb665ec4abc26006739e386fb0a5ed3031c023b7ebb40da26798.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:48:50 | null | 2016-08-30T23:28:22 | NOTTINGHAM, United Kingdom: England recorded the highest-ever team total in a one-day international when they made 444 for three against Pakistan at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.In what was the 3,773rd match at this level England’s total surpassed the previous record of 443 for nine by Sri Lanka against the Netherlands at Amstelveen in 2006.It was also the highest ODI total in a match between two Test nations, topping South Africa’s 439 for two against the West Indies at Johannesburg last year.Alex Hales, on his Nottinghamshire home ground, made an England ODI record 171 on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977616%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//9262883590590487.jpg | en | null | England sets new ODI record of 444-3 against Pakistan | null | null | www.arabnews.com | NOTTINGHAM, United Kingdom: England recorded the highest-ever team total in a one-day international when they made 444 for three against Pakistan at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.
In what was the 3,773rd match at this level England’s total surpassed the previous record of 443 for nine by Sri Lanka against the Netherlands at Amstelveen in 2006.
It was also the highest ODI total in a match between two Test nations, topping South Africa’s 439 for two against the West Indies at Johannesburg last year.
Alex Hales, on his Nottinghamshire home ground, made an England ODI record 171 on Tuesday.
Jos Buttler followed up with the quickest-ever England ODI fifty, off just 22 balls, on his way to an unbeaten 90 off 51 balls featuring seven fours and seven sixes.
Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Wahab Riaz, who twice took ‘wickets’ with no-balls, finished with figures of none for 110 in his maximum 10 overs.
That was the second-most expensive return in an ODI, behind Australian Mick Lewis’s none for 113 against South Africa at Johannesburg in 2006.
England lead their five-match series with Pakistan 2-0.
HIGHEST ODI TOTALS
444-3 – England vs. Pakistan, Nottingham, 2016
443-9 –Sri Lanka vs. Netherlands, Amstelveen, 2006
439-2 – South Africa vs. West Indies, Johannesburg, 2015
438-4 – South Africa vs. India, Mumbai, 2015
438-9 – South Africa vs. Australia, Johannesburg, 2006
434-4 – Australia vs. South Africa, Johannesburg, 2006
418-5 – South Africa vs. Zimbabwe, Potchefstroom, 2006
418-5 – India vs. West Indies, Indore, 2011
417-6 – Australia vs. Afghanistan, Perth, 2015
414-7 – India vs. Sri Lanka, Rajkot, 2009 | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977616/sports | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/14397928c3d5419667410dfd810f2d37228c0d958b9b52a5fbccdfa0ee311335.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T20:47:59 | null | 2016-08-30T21:47:47 | THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India: ITL World (www.itlworld.com), the travel and tourism arm of Saudi-based Eram Group, will open its first office in the United Kingdom on Aug. 31. The new office of the ITL World, one of the key ventures of the group, is coming up at Ilford, Essex in London. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977601%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//itl_logo_tm_jpeg.jpg | en | null | NADEC chief Abdulaziz Mohammed Al-Babtain to inaugurate ITL World’s UK Office | null | null | www.arabnews.com | THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India: ITL World (www.itlworld.com), the travel and tourism arm of Saudi-based Eram Group, will open its first office in the United Kingdom on Aug. 31. The new office of the ITL World, one of the key ventures of the group, is coming up at Ilford, Essex in London.
Abdulaziz Mohammed Al-Babtain, managing director and CEO, National Agricultural Development Company (NADEC), will inaugurate the office at a glittering function at 4 p.m. “A host of dignitaries, including members of British Parliament, GCC ambassadors to the UK, representatives of the Indian High Commission and prominent businessmen of UK will attend the function,” said Dr. Siddeek Ahmed, chairman and managing director, Eram Group.
“We first commenced our operations in Dubai in 2006. Today, we have over 35 fully-owned and operating offices in markets encompassing Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Oman, India, Malaysia and Thailand. ITL World is continuing to expand its presence into Europe by opening an office in London,” Ahmed said.
Rated consecutively as the fifth most powerful travel management company in the Middle East by Arabian Travel News, ITL World has been catering to a wide portfolio of clientele across Asia and the Middle East. It has been the preferred partner of several global travel brands and tourism boards in the region.
Recently, globally-renowned corporate travel giant — CTM (Corporate Travel Management) chose ITL World as their partner across the Middle East. With travel brands such as Miceminds, Arabian Experience, Tripmakers and EduVoyage under its portfolio, ITL World offers travel solutions to government entities, corporate business houses, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Events) segments, luxury travel, sports travel, wellness travel and student travel segments and much more.
Al-Babtain has been working in NADEC since 1984. He is also the vice chair and executive committee chair, National Center for Palms and Dates, 2014. NADEC is one of the largest agricultural and food-processing share stock companies in the Gulf and Mena regions.
Established in 1981 by royal decree, it is a joint stock public company – 20 percent owned by the Saudi government, with the rest publicly traded on the Saudi Stock Exchange. It is one of the very few and largest vertically-integrated dairy businesses in the world. Al-Babtain has been instrumental in the creation of NADEC Dairy and Beverages. NADEC Agriculture heralded a new era for the company, with the vision of long-term success as an independent company in open markets since he took over. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977601/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/993a58212ee5e33696857ab61a0e3bc3e9118e6d9ac78462bcb2fb3300ffd8b9.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-27T20:48:26 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | SYDNEY: Davis Webb threw four touchdown passes and ran for another score in a sensational debut for California, leading the Bears to a 51-31 win over Hawaii on Saturday in college football’s season opener at Sydney’s Olympic stadium.Khalfani Muhammad had 94 yards rushing and one touchdown, and Chad Hansen had 14 receptions for 160 yards and two scores to help Cal win the game played Down Under as a tourism initiative and to increase awareness of “gridiron” in the country. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976136%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//49482494073055305.jpg | en | null | Webb solid in Cal debut, Bears crush Hawaii 51-31 Down Under | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SYDNEY: Davis Webb threw four touchdown passes and ran for another score in a sensational debut for California, leading the Bears to a 51-31 win over Hawaii on Saturday in college football’s season opener at Sydney’s Olympic stadium.
Khalfani Muhammad had 94 yards rushing and one touchdown, and Chad Hansen had 14 receptions for 160 yards and two scores to help Cal win the game played Down Under as a tourism initiative and to increase awareness of “gridiron” in the country.
The teams provided plenty of early entertainment for unfamiliar fans, scoring two touchdowns each by midway through the opening quarter.
But Webb, the graduate transfer from Texas Tech replacing Jared Goff — the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick by the Los Angeles Rams — helped move Cal into control in the second quarter.
Hawaii fumbled on a kickoff following Matt Anderson’s second field goal for Cal, and Webb’s 34-yard pass to wide Hansen on the next play gave Cal a 27-14 lead.
Webb got into the act himself, rushing three yards off-tackle for another Cal touchdown and a 34-14 halftime lead. Webb was 38 for 54 and 441 yards total passing with no interceptions.
Hawaii was led by wide receiver Marcus Kemp with four receptions for 73 yards and one TD. Ikaika Woolsey was 17 for 34 and 234 yards passing with one TD and one interception.
Hawaii was without three key players for unspecified disciplinary reasons. A Rainbow Warriors spokesman said just before the game began that safety Daniel Lewis Jr., linebacker Jerrol Garcia-Williams and tight end Metuisela Unga were not with the team Saturday.
The takeaway
California: Webb’s strong debut reinforced the faith coach Sonny Dykes showed in him from the outset. Webb played in 23 games with 14 starts over three seasons at Texas Tech and had career totals of 5,557 yards and 46 touchdowns.
HAWAII: The Rainbows Warriors need to avoid Pac-12 opponents to open their season. It’s the seventh straight year that Hawaii, part of the Mountain West conference, has opened against a Pac-12 team, and Hawaii is 2-5 in that span. Told the Golden Bears were 20-point favorites coming into the match, new coach Nick Rolovich said: “It’s a funny-shaped ball, it can bounce different ways.” Not Hawaii’s way on Saturday.
Up next
California: The Golden Bears have another Mountain West Conference opponent — San Diego State. After a bye week, they’ll play the Aztecs at San Diego on Sept. 10. Cal beat SDSU 35-7 last year and holds a 4-3 head-to-head edge in games since 1982.
HAWAII: It gets doesn’t get any easier as the Rainbow Warriors make their first visit to the Big House when they play Michigan in Ann Arbor in Sept. 3. The Wolverines beat Hawaii 48-17 in 1998 in the only previous regular-season game between the teams.
Notes: Two former California players— NFL running back Marshawn Lynch and punter David Lonie — were Cal honorary captains for the game. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976136/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/51ed3899371e9238cab893e248a9b7ca0316cb4d99fedc5eaa11d5384eb8ff51.json |
[
"Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-27T14:47:18 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | CHICAGO: NBA star Dwyane Wade’s cousin was shot and killed in Chicago on Friday while pushing her baby in a stroller near a school where she intended to register her children.Her family said Nykea Aldridge, 32, had recently relocated to the area on the city’s South Side. Chicago police said she was killed when two males walked up and fired shots at a third man but hit Aldridge in the head and arm. She wasn’t the intended target, police said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976091%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//chicago_copy.jpg | en | null | In latest US violence, mom fatally shot pushing baby in stroller | null | null | www.arabnews.com | CHICAGO: NBA star Dwyane Wade’s cousin was shot and killed in Chicago on Friday while pushing her baby in a stroller near a school where she intended to register her children.
Her family said Nykea Aldridge, 32, had recently relocated to the area on the city’s South Side. Chicago police said she was killed when two males walked up and fired shots at a third man but hit Aldridge in the head and arm. She wasn’t the intended target, police said.
Family members are caring for the baby, who wasn’t hurt. Police said Friday evening that they were questioning witnesses in the shooting but had no suspects in custody.
Wade, a native of Chicago who signed with the Chicago Bulls in July after 13 years with the Miami Heat, posted on Twitter: “My cousin was killed today in Chicago. Another act of senseless gun violence. 4 kids lost their mom for NO REASON. Unreal. #EnoughISEnough.”
A day earlier, Wade had participated via satellite in a town hall meeting in Chicago on gun violence hosted by ESPN, along with his mother pastor Jolinda Wade.
Outside the emergency room where Aldridge was pronounced dead Friday, Jolinda Wade clutched Aldridge’s grief-stricken mother and spoke for the family as mourners stood in a circle holding hands and praying.
Jolinda Wade said she had participated in the town hall meeting on gun violence Thursday, “never knowing that the next day we would be the ones that would actually be living and experiencing it.”
“We’re still going to try to help and empower people like the one who senselessly shot my niece in the head,” Jolinda Wade said. “We’re going to try to help these people to transform their minds and give them a different direction.”
It is not the first time Dwyane Wade’s family in Chicago has been touched by gun violence.
His nephew, Darin Johnson, was shot twice in the leg in 2012 but recovered.
Chicago has been plagued by gun violence for years, especially in a few areas of the South and West sides of the city. Chicago recorded 65 murders in July, the most seen during that month since 2006.
Chicago had recorded 381 homicides by the end of July, up 30 percent from the same period of 2015. Its murder rate is higher than the more populous cities of New York and Los Angeles. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976091/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/eee1c4f9929c410c968c60062ad5460f4515e63f893a178cec21609e7a1c179f.json |
[
"Mohammed Rasooldeen"
] | 2016-08-26T12:52:21 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | RIYADH: The Ministry of Commerce and Investment launched an inspection campaign this week to ensure adequate availability of quality consumer goods for Haj pilgrims.An official from the ministry said these checks are being conducted in Makkah, Madinah and the holy sites, where the shops and outlets are mostly patronized by pilgrims.The plan also includes intensive supervision and inspection of jewelry and precious metals shops, gas stations and auto workshops. The ministry’s plan also covers mobile phone shops, commercial refrigerators and food trucks. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975596%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472137212634297000.jpg | en | null | Govt ensures Hajis get quality goods | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: The Ministry of Commerce and Investment launched an inspection campaign this week to ensure adequate availability of quality consumer goods for Haj pilgrims.
An official from the ministry said these checks are being conducted in Makkah, Madinah and the holy sites, where the shops and outlets are mostly patronized by pilgrims.
The plan also includes intensive supervision and inspection of jewelry and precious metals shops, gas stations and auto workshops. The ministry’s plan also covers mobile phone shops, commercial refrigerators and food trucks.
The ministry’s inspection teams are touring the markets and stores that sell jewelry and precious metals to ensure that the precious metals are according to set specifications and the scales used are accurate.
Field visits to gas stations are to ensure their pumps supply the correct volume of gas in accordance with the displayed prices.
Auto workshops that sell and change tires are on watch for their commitment to the standards and specification system.
Earlier, the ministry announced its preparations for the Haj season this year, and its readiness to deal with any emergency with an alternative plan. The ministry urged all its officials to give their best. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975596/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/399699cbe3a31bad9970a044f045553fbe22ea0d40cb9e9b312728aa25c646af.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-31T08:48:04 | null | 2016-08-31T04:05:04 | NOTTINGHAM,UK: Alex Hales’s stunning 171 provided the platform for England to post the highest ever one-day international total of 444 for three as they beat Pakistan by 169 runs at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.Victory in this day/night clash gave England an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match series after Pakistan were dismissed for 275 with 44 balls to spare.England’s total surpassed the previous record of 443 for nine by Sri Lanka against the Netherlands at Amstelveen in 2006. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977971%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//2687399466020616.jpg | en | null | Hales leads record-breaking England to Pakistan series win | null | null | www.arabnews.com | NOTTINGHAM,UK: Alex Hales’s stunning 171 provided the platform for England to post the highest ever one-day international total of 444 for three as they beat Pakistan by 169 runs at Trent Bridge on Tuesday.
Victory in this day/night clash gave England an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match series after Pakistan were dismissed for 275 with 44 balls to spare.
England’s total surpassed the previous record of 443 for nine by Sri Lanka against the Netherlands at Amstelveen in 2006.
It was also the highest ODI total in a match between two Test nations, topping South Africa’s 439 for two against the West Indies at Johannesburg last year.
In a match of records, opener Hales’s innings on his Nottinghamshire home ground was the highest ever-individual ODI score by any England batsman and together with Joe Root (85) he put on 248 for the second wicket.
Both Hales and Root fell in quick succession to leave England 283 for three in 38 overs.
But an unbroken stand of 161 in 76 balls between Jos Buttler (90 not out) and captain Eoin Morgan (57 not out) ensured the runs just kept coming.
Buttler’s innings featured England’s quickest ever ODI fifty, off just 22 balls, and he hit seven fours and as many sixes in total during his 51-ball knock.
It seemed England would fall short of a new record but the last ball of the innings saw Buttler, the standard bearer for England’s dynamic approach to ODI cricket following their woeful first-round exit at last year’s World Cup, thrash Hasan Ali over extra-cover for four to the delight of a capacity crowd of more than 17,000.
Hales had managed just 145 runs at an average of 18.12 during England’s preceding 2-2 Test series with Pakistan.
That was followed by meagre scores of seven and 14 in the first two ODIs at Southampton and Lord’s respectively.
“I was confident heading into this but it’s been a tough few weeks,” said man-of-the-match Hales.
“It’s pleasing to have won the series after three games but we want to be ruthless and win it five-nil,” added Hales, whose innings finally overhauled Robin Smith’s 167 not out against Australia at Edgbaston back in 1993 as England’s highest individual ODI score.
Delighted skipper Morgan said: “Quite a monumental knock from Alex Hales on his home ground, to score 171 in any form of the game is remarkable.”
Pakistan left-arm fast bowler Wahab Riaz finished with figures of none for 110 in his maximum 10 overs.
It was the second-most expensive return in an ODI, behind Australian Mick Lewis’s none for 113 against South Africa at Johannesburg in 2006.
To make matters worse for Riaz, who often over-steps, he took two ‘wickets’ with no-balls when Hales was caught on 72 and Buttler’s stumps were knocked over when he was on 75.
Pakistan, top of the Test rankings but a lowly ninth in the ODI table, let through a couple of early boundaries to set the tone for a desperately shoddy fielding display.
“I think it was an exceptional innings from Alex Hales and Jos Buttler,” said Azhar Ali, the Pakistan captain.
“On a wicket like this you really need to support the bowlers and that didn’t happen.”
Hales did give a chance on 114 when he flayed leg-spinner Yasir Shah to short extra-cover where Pakistan captain Azhar Ali dropped the head-high catch.
Next ball, Hales hoisted Shah for six.
Hales broke Smith’s record when he clubbed Hasan for four.
But next ball he was lbw to Hasan to end a 122-ball innings including 22 fours and four sixes.
Pakistan’s reply saw Sharjeel Khan make 58, but once the opener holed out off Chris Woakes (four for 41) his side’s slim chance of victory went with him.
Last man Mohammad Amir hit superbly in also making 58 — the highest ODI score by a No 11, beating compatriot Shoaib Akhtar’s 43 against England at the 2003 World Cup in Cape Town.
The left-hander’s fifty took just 22 balls — the same as Buttler and he reached the landmark with three successive well-struck sixes off leg-spinner Adil Rashid.
But he was merely delaying the inevitable and Amir was last man out when caught and bowled by Woakes. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977971/sports | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/46d3e1179615efd81b5e38d41b37b0294da3ab8f06e68de1bba6a79e4341b66f.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T02:49:13 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | MAKKAH: The Municipality of Makkah has revealed the extent of its recent work relating to public health and the monitoring of staple food stores in markets during the Haj season. This step comes within efforts to ensure the safety of all pilgrims and visitors to Makkah and its markets during the busy Haj season. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977501%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//makkah-municipality.jpg | en | null | Makkah implements plan to monitor 33,000 shops during Haj | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MAKKAH: The Municipality of Makkah has revealed the extent of its recent work relating to public health and the monitoring of staple food stores in markets during the Haj season. This step comes within efforts to ensure the safety of all pilgrims and visitors to Makkah and its markets during the busy Haj season.
The General Directorate of Environmental Health has formed a number of monitoring committees to monitor the markets, food stores, restaurants, and kitchens, as well as to counter other negative practices; in the market. This is being carried out in line with a number of government authorities as well as monitoring committees such as the kiosk distribution committee, nutritional surveillance of food committee, food poisoning committee, food prices committee, sterilization of water tankers committee, the Saudization committee and the security committee.
These steps will ensure that the best services are being provided to pilgrims, resulting in a healthy environment and a good level of public health in the municipality. The Director-General of Environmental Health, Dr. Mohammad Hashim Alfotawi, said Makkah Municipality has contracted a number of kitchens, restaurants, sweet shops and bakeries to provide services during the Haj season. These were contracted after ensuring that they met all of the requisite health and other requirements.
Alfotawi said there are around 33,000 food shops in Makkah including supermarkets, restaurants, bakeries, and so on. There are also 2,000 seasonal shops which are given permits during the Haj, according to demand. He added that a monitoring plan has been created to monitor the markets in cooperation with the municipality branches to ensure the professionalism of all shops, the meeting of all health requirements and the safety of workers. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977501/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f689553b0375034107056eeeb68dfdcf9294791f917c1bea6031ceb086183f15.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-29T20:48:40 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | SNOQUALMIE, Washington: By the time Bernhard Langer made the turn in the final round of the Boeing Classic, he was five shots out of the lead. At one point Sunday he was tied for 14th after not finishing lower than 13th in any tournament this year.A few hours later, Langer had outlasted Kevin Sutherland and Woody Austin in a playoff and was celebrating his fourth PGA Tour Champions victory this season and 29th overall on the 50-and-over tour.“I blew tournaments when I had a lead and I’ve come from seven behind, so you just never know,” Langer said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977186%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//013352247615145196.jpg | en | null | Langer claims Boeing Classic playoff for 29th senior title | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SNOQUALMIE, Washington: By the time Bernhard Langer made the turn in the final round of the Boeing Classic, he was five shots out of the lead. At one point Sunday he was tied for 14th after not finishing lower than 13th in any tournament this year.
A few hours later, Langer had outlasted Kevin Sutherland and Woody Austin in a playoff and was celebrating his fourth PGA Tour Champions victory this season and 29th overall on the 50-and-over tour.
“I blew tournaments when I had a lead and I’ve come from seven behind, so you just never know,” Langer said.
Langer made a 3-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a playoff with Austin and Sutherland to win the Boeing Classic for the second time. A day after his 59th birthday, Langer birdied the par-5 18th in regulation for a 5-under 67 to match Austin and Sutherland at 13-under 203 at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge. Austin also had a 67, and Sutherland shot 64, the low round of the week.
It took a special stretch for Langer to recover from a shaky front nine where he needed a few lengthy par putts to stay on the edge of contention. Langer went out in 1-over 37, but played the back nine in 6-under 30, also making birdies on Nos. 10-13 and 15.
“When he gets hot with that broom,” Austin said in reference to Langer’s putter, “you can’t beat that broom.”
Langer tied Lee Trevino for second on the career victory, still well behind leader Hale Irwin at 45. Langer also won the Boeing Classic in 2010.
Langer took advantage of Austin and Sutherland both finding bunkers on the 18th in the playoff. Sutherland ended up in a bunker off the tee, while Austin’s second to the par 5 found a greenside bunker. Langer’s second shot landed 10 yards short of the green and he nearly chipped in for eagle before making the birdie putt to win.
“You need to be precise and have the nerve and play the golf course the way it needs to be played,” Langer said. “There’s still a little bit of life left in me.”
Gene Sauers, the second-round leader and US Senior Open winner two weeks ago, shot a 72 to finish a shot out of the playoff. Sauers started his day with two straight birdies to reach 14 under. But he struggled on the back nine, bogeying three of the first five holes and allowed the chase group to catch up. Sauers was still in contention until making bogey at the 17th after his tee shot came up short. Sauers made birdie at the 18th to finish alone in fourth.
While Langer rolled through the back nine, Austin was hot on the front nine going out in 32. His first mistake of the round came at the 15th when he went for the green in two on the par 5 unaware he was in a tie for the lead because electronic scoreboards on the back nine were not working. Austin found a bunker and ended up making bogey.
“I would have laid up to the right for sure, absolutely, no question,” said Austin, who birdied Nos. 17 and 18 to get into the playoff.
Sutherland started the day seven shots behind Sauers and made eight birdies with no bogeys in his round. Sutherland was attempting to win his first stroke-play tournament on either the regular or senior tour. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977186/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f08b37e29a2c22b08a674e788da26ecb0d0bea12a17970e85f9b64edcecf4c3e.json |
[
"Osama Al Sharif"
] | 2016-08-31T02:48:43 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:00 | The outcome of the battle to recapture Mosul from Daesh, which appears to have started already, will trigger a number of variables that will eventually impact the future of Iraq as a country, the fate of Iraqi Kurdistan, Iran’s influence over the Baghdad government and Sunni-Shiite showdown. The successful retaking of the strategic base of Qayyara, 70 kilometers south of Mosul, will give the Iraqi Army and coalition forces an important foothold from which to manage the difficult task of conquering Iraq’s second largest city with a population of more than two million. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977946%2Fcolumns.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//osama_al-sharif.jpg | en | null | Mosul: Another Pandora's box | null | null | www.arabnews.com | The outcome of the battle to recapture Mosul from Daesh, which appears to have started already, will trigger a number of variables that will eventually impact the future of Iraq as a country, the fate of Iraqi Kurdistan, Iran’s influence over the Baghdad government and Sunni-Shiite showdown.
The successful retaking of the strategic base of Qayyara, 70 kilometers south of Mosul, will give the Iraqi Army and coalition forces an important foothold from which to manage the difficult task of conquering Iraq’s second largest city with a population of more than two million.
But there are already fears and accusations surrounding the role of the Kurdish Peshmerga; a pivotal force in fighting Daesh militants, and how far will they be allowed to occupy contested territory. The Peshmerga has successfully driven Daesh out of several villages north and east of Mosul. The government of Haidar Al- Abadi has warned Kurdish forces from entering the city. So did commanders in the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), a mainly Shiite force notorious for punishing Sunni residents of liberated towns and villages, most recently Fallujah in Al-Anbar province.
Al-Abadi’s support for the PMU is unshakeable even as Sunni leaders in Baghdad complain of their crimes and atrocities. They are joined by controversial Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr, who has become an important player in opposing the ethno-confessional system of government that was established by the US.
The battle for Mosul will be a difficult and bloody one even as the US claims that Daesh fighters are demoralized and are estimated to be 15,000 to 30,000 strong only. Being their largest and last remaining base in Iraq, Daesh will put up a big fight. It had plenty of time to prepare for it since it took the city swiftly in 2014. The size of destruction in Fallujah and Ramadi is a stark reminder of what awaits Mosul. The UN estimates that at least one million residents will flee toward Iraqi Kurdistan once the fighting begins. The humanitarian toll on those who remain will be enormous.
The fall of the city will be celebrated as a major victory against Daesh by Baghdad, the US coalition, the Kurds and Tehran. But no sooner the city is liberated than schisms will begin. Sunni residents of so-called liberated towns in Al-Anbar and Salahuddin remain displaced and many have been prevented from returning.
There are allegations that Iran is carrying out schemes to repopulate Sunni towns in a bid to create a new demographic reality that is sectarian in nature.
The Kurds will be unwilling to withdraw from villages and territory that they recently occupied and there are reports that the Peshmerga has dug out a 3-meter-wide, 19-kilometer-long trench, marking the new front line after recapturing the village of Qarqashah earlier this month. Driving them back to earlier positions will not be easy.
And then there is the PMU and their role in the upcoming battle. The US is weary of these forces entering the city and so are the local Sunni tribes in the region. But who will stop them from doing so? Iran has defended the PMU’s right in fighting Daesh in Mosul and reports speak of the arrival of Iranian Gen. Qassem Suliemani south of Mosul to lead these forces. A local force, called National Mobilization (NM), made up of volunteers from the region has vowed to fight PMU as fiercely as it would fight Daesh. They accuse the PMU of planning to occupy the city and hand it over to Iran.
The liberation of Mosul will lead to political, sectarian and military aftershocks that will be felt in Irbil, Tehran and Baghdad. For the US, whose strategy in Iraq has been focused on fighting Daesh and not influencing local politics, the liberation of Mosul will end its role in Iraq, leaving the country to face turmoil and possible partition.
For Iran the fall of the city will give it more power to implement a sinister policy of demographic reshuffle that falls within a grand scheme of weakening the Sunni component’s presence and influence over the political process.
For the Kurds the defeat of Daesh will bring to the forefront the issue of ceding from Iraq and setting up their independent state over new territory — equivalent to about 50 percent of the size of their recognized autonomous zone — that they believe they had rightly won. For the majority of Kurds who support independence the opportunity cannot be missed.
But for the Sunni tribes of Ninawa the lessons of what happened to their brethren in Al-Anabar and Salahuddin will not be forgotten and they will resist attempts to change the ethnic and sectarian make up of their city. Their confrontation with the PMU is inevitable. One thing is for sure and that is the outcome of the battle of Mosul will open a Pandora’s box that will take Iraq into the unknown. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977946/columns | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5918087542b7912d5d8a16cb0a7e9c976026f610936d44dcd3b90016160b8b9a.json |
[
"Martin Abbugao"
] | 2016-08-29T20:49:21 | null | 2016-08-29T21:33:46 | SINGAPORE: A US software firm which chose Singapore for the world’s first public trial of driverless taxis hopes to be operating in 10 Asian and US cities by 2020, an executive said Monday.Doug Parker, nuTonomy’s chief operating officer, said the firm is eyeing tests by early next year in three other Asian countries which he declined to name.He said an announcement of the test venues would be made within the next month or so.The company last week kicked off the world’s first driverless taxi service in a limited trial for invited people in a Singapore research campus. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977171%2Fmotoring.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//8855373206785875.jpg | en | null | Driverless taxi firm eyes operations in 10 cities by 2020 | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SINGAPORE: A US software firm which chose Singapore for the world’s first public trial of driverless taxis hopes to be operating in 10 Asian and US cities by 2020, an executive said Monday.
Doug Parker, nuTonomy’s chief operating officer, said the firm is eyeing tests by early next year in three other Asian countries which he declined to name.
He said an announcement of the test venues would be made within the next month or so.
The company last week kicked off the world’s first driverless taxi service in a limited trial for invited people in a Singapore research campus.
Parker, 41, said nuTonomy was also considering trials in the Middle East, the United States and Britain.
More than a dozen people in Singapore have already experienced a ride in the “robo-taxi” within the confines of one-north, an enclave of technology and science research institutes outside the central business district.
“I think people are pretty excited that the car is driving itself. I would say they start apprehensive and scared but by the second block they start to enjoy it,” Parker said.
The current test car — a modified Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric vehicle — plies a 2.5 square mile (4.0 square km) area with set pick-up and drop off points. Trips must be booked through the company’s smartphone app and are currently by invitation only.
Five other test cars — Renault Zoes — will be added to the fleet next month.
Data from the experiment will feed into the rollout of driverless taxis across Singapore in 2018, said Parker, adding that by 2020 “we would like to be in 10 cities in Asia, the United States and maybe Europe.”
He also said a number of real-estate developers from Asia and the United States have contacted the company “about how they can use autonomous cars in their eco-friendly communities.”
Parker said the vehicle, equipped with sophisticated laser, radar and cameras, has so far experienced navigating among buses, slowing down at pedestrian lanes and adjusting to unplanned street scenes.
“One day we pulled out of here and literally five buses of schoolchildren pulled up on this very narrow street. And the buses were trading positions,” he said
“We’ve seen forklifts, we’ve seen people with wheelbarrows just right here on this one street.”
Parker said nuTonomy chose Singapore for the public tests rather than Silicon Valley because of the presence of a “loyal technical talent” — including people with doctorates in robotics — whom it does not have to share with other companies like Ford and Apple.
The company also has the full support of the Singapore government and the city-state’s flat terrain, well-marked roads and disciplined drivers make it well suited for driverless cars, Parker said. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977171/motoring | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/9f1d1520219896df49dbfa2b90d1f8de08eab984cf7f5c380cd7f06115b54059.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T02:48:24 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | NEW YORK: Britney Spears is hitting up pop culture one more time, releasing a new album, singing retro karaoke hits and about to take the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) stage for the first time since 2007.Spears, 34, who became a teen pop phenomenon released new album “Glory” recently ahead of a much anticipated return to the VMA show on Sunday in New York. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976356%2Foffbeat.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1472326920347263800.jpg | en | null | Spears hits up pop culture ... one more time | null | null | www.arabnews.com | NEW YORK: Britney Spears is hitting up pop culture one more time, releasing a new album, singing retro karaoke hits and about to take the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) stage for the first time since 2007.
Spears, 34, who became a teen pop phenomenon released new album “Glory” recently ahead of a much anticipated return to the VMA show on Sunday in New York.
She also became the latest superstar to ride, sing and chat with US talk show host James Corden for his viral “Carpool Karaoke” segment, where both donned the schoolgirl uniforms that shot her to fame as a 16-year old in the 1998 music video for .”.. Baby One More Time.”
Spears dominated pop music before undergoing a personal and career meltdown in 2006-2007 that included losing custody of her two children and being placed under a court-ordered conservatorship.
She made a comeback in late 2008 and for the past three years has been performing a nightly show in Las Vegas. But the new album and the anticipation surrounding her VMA performance have thrust her back in the national spotlight.
Rolling Stone’s Rob Sheffield said “Glory” was “another fantastic comeback” for Spears, in which she “goes back to the fizzy electro-stomp mode she does best.” “Glory” was top of the iTunes charts in more than 40 nations on Friday, including Saudi Arabia, Chile and Russia.
Billboard’s Jennifer Keishin Armstrong said that with the single and music video for “Make Me,” Spear had reclaimed her standout talent, a distinctive dance style. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976356/offbeat | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7e97ed3070fb5565b106b5cbf5b7c0f5a59c1dfe8f60ba21bab31c0884fa41b6.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:55:18 | null | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will brief the leaders taking part in the G20 summit, to be held in the eastern city of Hangzhou, China, on Sept. 4-5, on Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s goal of diversifying its sources of income rather than relying solely on oil revenues.Chinese and Japanese banks are expected to play key roles in the Kingdom’s development of the non-oil sector. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975631%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//strategic-visits.jpg | en | null | Deputy crown prince to showcase Vision 2030 at G20 | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will brief the leaders taking part in the G20 summit, to be held in the eastern city of Hangzhou, China, on Sept. 4-5, on Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s goal of diversifying its sources of income rather than relying solely on oil revenues.
Chinese and Japanese banks are expected to play key roles in the Kingdom’s development of the non-oil sector.
The deputy crown prince will start an official visit to China next week, to discuss economic and security issues with officials in Beijing, and will visit Japan from Aug. 31 to Sept. 2 for talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
From Japan, Prince Mohammed returns to China to attend the G20 summit as head of the Saudi delegation.
Political observers say the deputy crown prince’s visit is significant and consistent with Saudi diplomatic efforts to expand strategic partnerships with both the West and the East.
Political thinker Mostafa Al-Fiqi said the visit comes within the framework of Saudi plan to implement its Vision 2030 and moves to diversify strategic partnerships with world countries. “China is a strategic ally and leading trade partner of Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Political analyst Amr Hashem Rabie said the Kingdom is moving to diversify its business and political alliances. He pointed out that the deputy crown prince’s visits to China and Japan bear a special significance because of the political and economic weight of these two major countries.
Political science professor Ammar Ali Hassan commended the deputy crown prince’s diplomatic efforts and the Kingdom’s active participation of the G20 summit, which will help it introduce Vision 2030 to the international arena.
Gamal Bayoumi, general-secretary of the Arab Investors Union, said the visits can be expected to have very positive results and will boost the already close relations between Saudi Arabia, and China and Japan.
He said the deputy crown prince’s visit to the US and France was fruitful; it witnessed the signing of a number of significant economic agreements that will support the strategic plan and vision of the Kingdom, which works to not rely on oil as the only source that helps its economic growth.
“Saudi-Chinese relations are growing, based on mutual respect and common interests in all fields. The visit comes to confirm their strength and sustainability, and to reinforce the commercial relations that date back several centuries,” he said.
Egyptian Businessmen Association chief Ali Issa said Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visits to Beijing and Tokyo are strategic.
The visit to Japan can be expected to result in agreements on several economic projects in the field of nuclear energy investment, he said.
Strategic expert Mahmoud Mouneer emphasized the importance the deputy crown prince’s visit will have for China and Japan. It will lend further political, economic and strategic weight to these two Asian countries, he said.
“China is a candidate to lead the world economy in 2019,” he said, adding that the keenness of the Kingdom and its belief in the importance of diversifying scientific expertise and taking advantage of all that is new and advanced is exactly what Prince Mohammed has sought to achieve through Vision 2030. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975631/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/c241f86ab7c055c9f3493ab61efcb4782e3131cf869d72be9a24adeb04b8deee.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-28T20:48:01 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | FORT WORTH, Texas: Graham Rahal made a last-lap pass and just held on to beat James Hinchcliffe in the closest finish ever for an IndyCar race at Texas.The only time Rahal led the race — competed over a 2 1/2-month span — was when he sliced to the bottom of the track coming off of the backstretch on that final lap Saturday night. He won by eight-thousandths (0.008) of a second, crossing the line only inches and side-by-side with Hinchcliffe, with Tony Kanaan right behind them. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976656%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//08717650233590146.jpg | en | null | Rahal makes last-lap pass to win IndyCar race at Texas | null | null | www.arabnews.com | FORT WORTH, Texas: Graham Rahal made a last-lap pass and just held on to beat James Hinchcliffe in the closest finish ever for an IndyCar race at Texas.
The only time Rahal led the race — competed over a 2 1/2-month span — was when he sliced to the bottom of the track coming off of the backstretch on that final lap Saturday night. He won by eight-thousandths (0.008) of a second, crossing the line only inches and side-by-side with Hinchcliffe, with Tony Kanaan right behind them.
Rahal almost celebrated a bit too early, pumping a fist over his head just before crossing the checkered flag with Hinchcliffe right beside him and still making a final push for the victory.
Hinchcliffe had led the Firestone 600 for 76 days. He was leading when the race was initially red-flagged June 12 because of rain after only 71 of 248 laps, and dominated after it resumed until three late restarts.
Rahal’s fourth career win came at the high-banked, 1 1/2-mile-oval where four years ago he appeared headed for victory before brushing the wall on the last lap and finishing second to Justin Wilson.
Hinchcliffe led 188 laps overall in the race, including 157 of the 177 laps run Saturday night.
Series points leader Simon Pagenaud was fourth, and extended his lead to from 20 to 28 points over Team Penske teammate Will Power with two races left. Power, who won four of the previous six races with runner-up finishes in the other two, was eighth at Texas.
Ed Carpenter twice had contact with other cars while running second behind Hinchcliffe in the later laps.
Carpenter was within about 2 seconds of the lead on Lap 213 when Scott Dixon, trying to get back on the lead lap, made contact coming off the frontstretch. That sent Dixon spinning, and Carpenter believes he might have cut a tire though he was able to stay on the track and even took the lead after that.
After the ensuing caution, Hinchcliffe and Carpenter restarted 1-2 on lap 221, and Carpenter went low coming off the backstretch and led at the line by a matter of inches. Hinchcliffe went back in front on the next lap, and was still there when Carpenter got loose coming out of Turn 4 on lap 225 and made contact with Helio Castroneves and slammed into the wall to end his race.
There was one more caution after that, when lead-lap car Mikhail Aleshin crashed, setting up the final sprint to the finish.
It was the fifth-closest finish in IndyCar Series history and the closest of any race ever at the Texas track that has hosted NASCAR and IndyCar races since 1997. At one point, the top four finishers were running side-by-side on the backstretch.
Some other notable items from IndyCar’s one-day return to Texas: | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976656/sports | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/9b08af36375abdf487ca3ca1850c3affe4dc0f450512ab423bf61aeecec79cfe.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T02:47:33 | null | 2016-08-28T02:06:59 | This is with reference to the article “Saudi desire for peace in Yemen” (Aug. 27) by Abdulateef Al-Mulhim. I do agree with the writer that the ball is now in Houthis’ court. Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners are more than willing to make peace with the Iranian-backed militia. The United States should try to understand that the main problem is the Iranian support for the Houthis. The ragtag militia cannot do anything on its own. If it were not for Iranian support, the problem in Yemen would have been resolved long ago. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976401%2Fletters.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/default_images/place-holder.jpg | en | null | Peace in Yemen | null | null | www.arabnews.com | This is with reference to the article “Saudi desire for peace in Yemen” (Aug. 27) by Abdulateef Al-Mulhim. I do agree with the writer that the ball is now in Houthis’ court. Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners are more than willing to make peace with the Iranian-backed militia. The United States should try to understand that the main problem is the Iranian support for the Houthis. The ragtag militia cannot do anything on its own. If it were not for Iranian support, the problem in Yemen would have been resolved long ago.
Without addressing the Iranian problem in Yemen, any meaningful political solution to the conflict should not be expected. The American policies in the Middle East are now creating problems. Its unwillingness to take any concrete measures against Iran — just to save the nuclear deal — is a major source of concern. We don’t have any problem with the US withdrawal from the region but it should not leave behind a troublesome legacy. — Pervez Mushtaque, Riyadh | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976401/letters | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/e401b877af439933163ee50479a7acfb6bf6a1d7509dec542321a6ef5a5306a8.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-28T02:47:22 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | NEW YORK: The MTV Video Music Awards have long been more about the show than the actual winners, and this year the network will go all-out by letting the stars run wild.Stepping back from award ceremonies’ traditional penchant for down-to-the-second scripts, MTV producers said they have simply selected the artists for Sunday’s extravaganza and will leave it to them to decide what to do. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976376%2Foffbeat.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1472326919237261400.jpg | en | null | MTV to let stars loose in awards extravaganza | null | null | www.arabnews.com | NEW YORK: The MTV Video Music Awards have long been more about the show than the actual winners, and this year the network will go all-out by letting the stars run wild.
Stepping back from award ceremonies’ traditional penchant for down-to-the-second scripts, MTV producers said they have simply selected the artists for Sunday’s extravaganza and will leave it to them to decide what to do.
The show, to be broadcast to more than 120 countries, will provide an open platform for outspoken stars including rapper Kanye West, who used last year’s show to announce, however improbably, that he will run for president in 2020.
The setup could encourage the outlandish — or allow for more serious gestures in a year marked by global conflict, souring race relations in the West, and one of the most foul-toned US presidential elections ever.
“Last year we took a bit more of a playful approach. This year it’s like this is a canvas for artists — not just for their art but for their statements, what they believe is going on in the world,” said Erik Flannigan, an executive producer of the show.
“You’ve got to strike a balance between topicality and being heavy — and this is also a gigantic party. We kind of want to do both,” he told AFP.
After shock diva Miley Cyrus took much of the limelight as last year’s MC in Los Angeles, the awards do not plan a single host, spreading the duties to a wide cast.
The show, which kicks off on Monday, will for the first time take place in New York’s iconic Madison Square Garden.
Scheduled performers include R&B chart-topper Rihanna, who will receive the Video Vanguard Award for lifetime achievement, as well as pop idols Ariana Grande and Britney Spears and rappers Nicki Minaj, Common and Future.
Pop icon Beyonce tops the nominations at 11 amid acclaim for “Lemonade,” her intertwined film and album.
She is followed by Adele, who was nominated in eight categories. All but one were for the English singer/songwriter’s blockbuster ballad “Hello,” the first music video in the high-resolution IMAX format. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976376/offbeat | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/376eac85263871233655789a42e30339a29b15b7be82e7b4fe37dc0b4ecfe36a.json |
[
"Mohammed Rasooldeen"
] | 2016-08-30T02:48:01 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | RIYADH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH) has applied the final touches to a number of new tourist routes that will provide tourists all options available to visit and discover the most beautiful and diverse locations in Saudi Arabia.The program will enable tourists to identify them by linking the 49 regions with each other through tourist paths, and coordinating between the tourism and the public administrations to provide tourism services throughout these routes. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977516%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//1472484873865042000.jpg | en | null | New routes to link tourism destinations in 49 regions | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH) has applied the final touches to a number of new tourist routes that will provide tourists all options available to visit and discover the most beautiful and diverse locations in Saudi Arabia.
The program will enable tourists to identify them by linking the 49 regions with each other through tourist paths, and coordinating between the tourism and the public administrations to provide tourism services throughout these routes.
Most of these routes were finalized and made ready for tourists, who wish to visit any of the provinces according to the customized routes. It will also allow them an opportunity to experience the Kingdom’s culture and history that has taken place in the Arabian Peninsula, besides allowing desert trekking, mountaineering and marine diving through organized and integrated tourism trips operated by investors in the tourism sector.
General Superintendent of Tourism Strategic Routes Development Project, Abdullah Metain, said that work is underway to develop 49 tourism routes covering all the Kingdom’s provinces, referring to the importance of finding attractive tourism programs for the visitors and tourists through activating the role of tour operators, in addition to developing the accommodations sector and improving transport services.
Metain further said, “SCTNH will provide the necessary support and incentives to investors to promote competitiveness in this sector, and to enable them to play their prospective role in the development and marketing of tourism trips, events and programs, in accordance with specific controls to ensure the development of this activity adheres to approved international standards.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977516/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/db8099e82492c839ddf3a66acc7f9795f9c302a89017ff607f9f8524fd1d74b5.json |
[
"Leila Saralayeva"
] | 2016-08-30T14:48:38 | null | 2016-08-30T16:30:00 | BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan: A suspected suicide bomber on Tuesday crashed a car through the entrance of the Chinese Embassy in the Kyrgyzstan capital of Bishkek, detonating a bomb that killed the attacker and wounded three embassy employees.China denounced the attack and appealed to Kyrgyz authorities to identify and harshly punish anyone involved. No group claimed responsibility. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977556%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//kyrgyz2.jpg | en | null | Suicide bomber hits Chinese Embassy in Kyrgyzstan; 3 hurt | null | null | www.arabnews.com | BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan: A suspected suicide bomber on Tuesday crashed a car through the entrance of the Chinese Embassy in the Kyrgyzstan capital of Bishkek, detonating a bomb that killed the attacker and wounded three embassy employees.
China denounced the attack and appealed to Kyrgyz authorities to identify and harshly punish anyone involved. No group claimed responsibility.
The Central Asian nation’s interior ministry said the person who drove the vehicle through the gate died when the bomb detonated. The three people injured are Kyrgyz nationals: two 17-year-old embassy gardeners and an unidentified woman.
Almaz Kubatbekov, chief physician at the Bishkek National Trauma and Orthopedics Institute, said the three victims suffered concussions and multiple bruises.
Photos from the scene showed the inner courtyard of the embassy compound littered with debris. Windows of one building were smashed and the plastered walls pockmarked with shrapnel.
The embassy in Bishkek’s southern suburbs neighbors the US embassy.
Kyrgyzstan’s interior ministry described it as a terrorist attack. Deputy Prime Minister Zhenish Razakov told the Interfax news agency it was a suicide bombing.
Kyrgyzstan, a landlocked former Soviet republic that borders China, has a predominantly Muslim population that is considered moderate in outlook.
A Kyrgyz news website, Kloop.kg, quoted Razakov as saying that he would lead a meeting Tuesday on tightening security ahead of Kyrgyz Independence Day on Wednesday and a summit of former Soviet nations in mid-September.
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying described the three victims’ injuries as minor but called for a stern security response.
“China is appalled and strongly condemns the violent act,” Hua told reporters at a daily briefing.
She said China’s foreign ministry has “demanded that Kyrgyz authorities take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of Chinese institutions and personnel in Kyrgyzstan, launch a thorough investigation to find out the truth of the incident and harshly punish the perpetrators.”
Kyrgyz authorities offered no guidance on the attacker or a possible motive.
The Chinese regularly have blamed separatists and religious extremists for attacks in China’s northwest region of Xinjiang, which borders Kyrgyzstan. Al-Qaeda and the Daesh group also have threatened to attack Chinese targets in retaliation for alleged repression of Chinese Muslims, particularly those from the Turkic-speaking Uighur majority native to Xinjiang.
__
Associated Press reporters Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow and Louise Watt in Beijing contributed to this report. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977556/world | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/082ac89875cd4f63b5e994e57902fd717fd26e536d9a33c63338b0e3bebba8aa.json |
[
"Lori Hinnant",
"Desmond Butler"
] | 2016-08-30T20:49:42 | null | 2016-08-30T20:37:00 | HARDAN, Iraq: Surrounded by smoke and flames, the sound of gunshots echoing around him, the young man crouched in the creek for hours, listening to the men in his family die.On the other side of the mountain, another survivor peered through binoculars as the handcuffed men of neighboring villages were shot and then buried by a waiting bulldozer. For six days he watched as the extremists filled one grave after another with his friends and relatives. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977576%2Fmiddle-east.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//mass_grave1.jpg | en | null | Daesh buried thousands in 72 mass graves in Iraq | null | null | www.arabnews.com | HARDAN, Iraq: Surrounded by smoke and flames, the sound of gunshots echoing around him, the young man crouched in the creek for hours, listening to the men in his family die.
On the other side of the mountain, another survivor peered through binoculars as the handcuffed men of neighboring villages were shot and then buried by a waiting bulldozer. For six days he watched as the extremists filled one grave after another with his friends and relatives.
Between them, the two scenes of horror on Sinjar mountain contain six burial sites and the bodies of more than 100 people, just a small fraction of the mass graves Daesh extremists have scattered across Iraq and Syria.
In exclusive interviews, photos and research, The Associated Press has documented and mapped 72 of the mass graves, the most comprehensive survey so far, with many more expected to be uncovered as the Daesh group’s territory shrinks. In Syria, AP has obtained locations for 17 mass graves, including one with the bodies of hundreds of members of a single tribe all but exterminated when IS extremists took over their region. For at least 16 of the Iraqi graves, most in territory too dangerous to excavate, officials do not even guess the number of dead. In others, the estimates are based on memories of traumatized survivors, Daesh propaganda and what can be gleaned from a cursory look at the earth.
Still, even the known numbers of victims buried are staggering — from 5,200 to more than 15,000.
Sinjar mountain is dotted with mass graves, some in territory clawed back from IS after the group’s onslaught against the Yazidi minority in August 2014; others in the deadly no man’s land that has yet to be secured.
The bodies of Talal Murat’s father, uncles and cousins lie beneath the rubble of the family farm, awaiting a time when it is safe for surviving relatives to return to the place where the men were gunned down. On Sinjar’s other flank, Rasho Qassim drives daily past the graves holding the bodies of his two sons. The road is in territory long since seized back, but the five sites are untouched, roped off and awaiting the money or the political will for excavation, as the evidence they contain is scoured away by the wind and baked by the sun.
“We want to take them out of here. There are only bones left. But they said ‘No, they have to stay there, a committee will come and exhume them later,’” said Qassim, standing at the edge of the flimsy fence surrounding one site, where his two sons are buried. “It has been two years but nobody has come.”
Daesh made no attempt to hide its atrocities. In fact it boasted of them. But proving what United Nations officials and others have described as an ongoing genocide — and prosecuting those behind it — will be complicated as the graves deteriorate.
“We see clear evidence of the intent to destroy the Yazidi people,” said Naomi Kikoler, who recently visited the region for the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. “There’s been virtually no effort to systematically document the crimes perpetrated, to preserve the evidence, and to ensure that mass graves are identified and protected.”
Then there are the graves still out of reach. The Daesh group’s atrocities extend well outside the Yazidi region in northern Iraq.
Satellites offer the clearest look at massacres such as the one at Badoush Prison in June 2014 that left 600 male inmates dead. A patch of scraped earth and tire tracks show the likely killing site, according to exclusive photos obtained by the imagery intelligence firm AllSource Analysis.
Of the 72 mass graves documented by AP, the smallest contains three bodies; the largest is believed to hold thousands, but no one knows for sure.
ALL THEY COULD DO WAS WATCH THE SLAUGHTER
On the northern flank of Sinjar mountain, five grave sites ring a desert crossroads. It is here that the young men of Hardan village are buried, under thistles and piles of cracked earth. They were killed in the bloody IS offensive of August 2014.
Through his binoculars, Arkan Qassem watched it all. His village, Gurmiz, is just up the slope from Hardan, giving a clear view over the plain below. When the jihadis swept over the area, everyone in Gurmiz fled up the mountaintop for refuge. Then Arkan and nine other men returned to their village with light weapons to try to defend their homes.
Instead, all they could do was watch the slaughter below. Arkan witnessed the militants set up checkpoints, preventing residents from leaving. Women and children were taken away.
Then the killings began. The first night, Arkan saw the militants line up a group of handcuffed men in the headlights of a bulldozer at an intersection, less than a kilometer (half mile) down the slope from Gurmiz. They gunned the men down, then the bulldozer plowed the earth over their bodies.
Over six days, Arkan and his comrades watched helplessly as the fighters brought out three more groups of men — several dozen each, usually with hands bound — to the crossroads and killed them. He didn’t always see what they did with the bodies. One time, he saw them lighting a bonfire, but he couldn’t see why.
Finally, the jihadis brought in artillery and prepared to make an assault on Gurmiz. Arkan and his comrades fled up the mountain to where their families had taken refuge.
Now, since IS fighters were driven out of the area, the 32-year-old has returned to his home. But he’s haunted by the site. As documented by the aid group Yazda, which has mapped the Sinjar sites, the graves are in a rough pentagon flanking the crossroads, largely unprotected. Around one of them is a mesh fence and a wind-battered sign. As Arkan spoke at the site, a shepherd herded his flock nearby.
“I have lots of people I know there. Mostly friends and neighbors,” he said. “It’s very difficult to look at them every day.”
“THIS BODY IS WEARING MY FATHER’S CLOTHES“
As IS fighters swarmed into the Sinjar area in early August 2014, Talal fled his town along with his father, mother, four sisters and younger brother. They and dozens of other men, women and children from his extended clan converged on an uncle’s farm outside the town of Tel Azer. They prayed it was remote enough to escape the killings that were already engulfing so many Yazidis.
It wasn’t.
The jihadis fired at the house from a distance. Then they rolled up in their vehicles and shot one man in the head as they stood in the yard. They surrounded the farmhouse, ordered everyone outside and demanded the impossible: Convert.
The Yazidi faith, one of the region’s oldest, has elements of Christianity and Islam but is distinct. Yazidis worship the Peacock Angel, fallen and forgiven by God under their tradition, and their shrines feature carved images of the birds and references to the sun. Muslim extremists condemned them as “devil worshippers” and over the centuries have subjected them to multiple massacres — 72, by the Yazidis’ count.
In its own propaganda, the Daesh group made clear its intention to wipe out the Yazidi community. In an issue of its online English-language magazine Dabiq, it scolded Muslims for allowing the Yazidis to continue existing, calling their ancient religion a form of paganism. It quoted Qur’anic verses to justify killing the Yazidis unless they become Muslim.
Thwarted in their halfhearted attempt at conversions, the fighters separated about 35 teenage girls and young women from the rest, crammed them into a few cars and drove away. The militants herded the older women and young children into the farmhouse and locked the door.
Then they lined the men and teenaged boys against the wall of the stables — around 40 in all, including Talal.
There were too many of them, too bunched up, to efficiently mow down, so the fighters then ordered them to lie on the ground in a row, Talal said. That was when his uncle told him to make a run for it. Talal bolted into his uncle’s hayfield, as did several other men. The militants fired at them, and the bullets ignited the hay, dry from the summer sun. The fire covered Talal’s escape, and he took shelter in a nearby creek.
There he hid, listening as the gunmen shot his family to death. He eventually fled toward the mountain, joined by three others who had survived the massacre. Four out of 40.
Back at the farm, the gunmen eventually left and the women and children emerged, looking around with growing horror.
Nouri Murat, Talal’s mother, found her husband. His body was untouched, but his head was shattered. Her daughters, she said, were confused at first. “This is strange, this body is wearing my father’s clothes,” one of them said. As Nouri frantically searched around the property for any surviving menfolk, her 9-year-old daughter Rukhan lay down beside her father’s corpse.
Finally, other women persuaded the family to head to the mountain before the Islamic State fighters returned.
As they began the long walk north, Nouri noticed Rukhan’s bloody fist. Fearing her daughter was wounded, she pried open the girl’s clenched fingers. Inside were a handful of her father’s teeth.
“THEY DON’T EVEN TRY TO HIDE THEIR CRIMES“
Nearly every area freed from Daesh control has unmasked new mass graves, like one found by the sports stadium in the Iraqi city of Ramadi. Many of the graves themselves are easy enough to find, most covered with just a thin coating of earth.
“They don’t even try to hide their crimes,” said Sirwan Jalal, the director of Iraqi Kurdistan’s agency in charge of mass graves. “They are beheading them, shooting them, running them over in cars, all kinds of killing techniques, and they don’t even try to hide it.”
No one outside IS has seen the Iraqi ravine where hundreds of Shiite prison inmates were killed point blank and then torched. Satellite images of scraped dirt along the river point to its location, according to Steve Wood of AllSource. His analysts triangulated survivors’ accounts and began to systematically search the desert according to their descriptions of that day, June 10, 2014.
The inmates were separated out by religion, and Shiites were loaded onto trucks, driven for a few kilometers (miles) and forced to line up and count off, according to accounts by 15 survivors gathered by Human Rights Watch. Then they knelt along the edge of the crescent-shaped ravine, according to a report cited by AllSource.
“I was number 43. I heard them say ‘615,’ and then one ISIS guy said, ‘We’re going to eat well tonight.’ A man behind us asked, ‘Are you ready?’ Another person answered ‘Yes,’ and began shooting at us with a machine-gun. Then they all started to shoot us from behind, going down the row,” according to the Human Rights Watch account of a survivor identified only as A.S.
The men survived by pretending to be dead.
Using their accounts and others, AllSource examined an image from July 17, 2014, that appeared to show the location as described, between a main road and the railway outside Mosul. The bodies are believed to be packed tightly together, side by side in a space approximately the length of two football fields end to end, in what the AllSource analysis described as a “sardine trench.” Tire tracks lead to and from the site.
“There’s actually earth that has been pushed over and actually moved to cover parts of the ravine. As we look across the entire ravine we only see that in this one location,” said Wood. “Ultimately there are many, many more sites across Iraq and Syria that have yet to be either forensically exhumed or be able to be detailed and there’s quite a bit more research that needs to take place.”
The key, Wood said, is having photos to indicate a grave’s location taken soon after its creation.
Justice has been done in at least one Daesh mass killing — that of about 1,700 Iraqi soldiers who were forced to lie face-down in a ditch and then machine-gunned at Camp Speicher. On Aug. 21, 36 men convicted in those killings were hanged at Iraq’s Nasiriyah prison.
But justice is likely to be elusive in areas still firmly under IS control, even though the extremists have filmed themselves committing the atrocities. That’s the case for a deep natural sinkhole outside Mosul that is now a pit of corpses. In Syria’s Raqqa province, thousands of bodies are believed to have been thrown into the giant Al-Houta crevasse.
Conditions in much of Syria remain a mystery. Activists believe there are hundreds of mass graves in IS-controlled areas that can only be explored when fighting stops. By that time, they fear any effort to document the massacres, exhume and identify the remains will become infinitely more complicated.
Working behind IS lines, local residents have informally documented some mass graves, even partially digging some up. Some of the worst have been found in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour. There, 400 members of the Shueitat tribe were found in one grave, just some of the up to 1,000 members of the tribe believed to have been massacred by IS when the militants took over the area, said Ziad Awad, the editor of an online publication on Deir el-Zour called The Eye of the City who is trying to document the graves.
In Raqqa province, the bodies of 160 Syrian soldiers, killed when IS overran their base, were found in seven large pits.
So far, at least 17 mass graves are known, though largely unreachable, in a list put together from AP interviews with activists from Syrian provinces still under IS rule as well as fighters and residents in former IS strongholds.
“This is a drop in an ocean of mass graves expected to be discovered in the future in Syria,” said Awad.
___
Butler reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Balint Szlanko and Salar Salim in Irbil, Iraq; Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad; Zeina Karam and Philip Issa in Beirut, and Maya Alleruzzo in Cairo contributed to this story. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977576/middle-east | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/536fb925e30c692695cd8e84ffc3644a07ef30f1f3a0124f0c1bc805844a238e.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-31T02:48:22 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman issued a directive to host 1,000 Palestinian members of the families of martyrs to perform Haj this year.Sheikh Saleh Al-Asheikh, chief of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Program for Haj and Umrah, expressed appreciation for the efforts King Salman exerts to extend bridges of friendship and strengthen brotherly relations between Saudis and Palestinians, and to help the latter perform the annual pilgrimage. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977936%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//1472554635043813800-1.jpg | en | null | King hosts 1,000 Hajis from families of Palestinian martyrs | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman issued a directive to host 1,000 Palestinian members of the families of martyrs to perform Haj this year.
Sheikh Saleh Al-Asheikh, chief of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Program for Haj and Umrah, expressed appreciation for the efforts King Salman exerts to extend bridges of friendship and strengthen brotherly relations between Saudis and Palestinians, and to help the latter perform the annual pilgrimage.
He prayed to Almighty God to bless the efforts of the guardians of the Kingdom for providing great services to Muslims in general, and the Palestinian people in particular.
Al-Asheikh confirmed that this generous gesture is an expression of Islamic brotherhood by leaders of this country toward Palestine and the Palestinian people.
He said the gesture toward the families of Palestinian martyrs would greatly contribute to easing their suffering. “It is yet another gesture that demonstrates the Kingdom’s support for the Palestinian people and their just cause,” he said.
Al-Asheikh confirmed that the Palestinian people deserve all respect for their great sacrifices to maintain Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs has deployed 700 preachers and translators to work during the current Haj season. They will abide by the approach of call and guidance and provide services to pilgrims so that they can perform Haj with ease.
According to Talal Al-Aqeel, an adviser at the ministry, most of the preachers during Haj are professors at various universities and have different specializations.
They have modern ideas, are moderate and do not harbor any extremist thought, he said.
He said that the preachers and translators would address around two million pilgrims in more than 30 languages to make them understand the issues they might face regarding Shariah. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977936/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/3d9a8c0085053fd15dfcd43babd68d9d978d51c88513042c3849e3902d7b6460.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:54:18 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | RIYADH: An Indian worker in Al-Faisaliah district stabbed his colleague to death and set fire to the body in an attempt to conceal his crime.The Riyadh police said that the crime was discovered when fire-fighting units of the Civil Defense responded to a fire in a carpet warehouse in the district. After extinguishing the fire, they found a burned body; at that point, forensic examiners and investigators began their investigations. The body was that of an Indian man in his 40s who worked in the warehouse and who, evidence showed, was stabbed before being set on fire. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975626%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//screen-shot-2016-08-26-at-1.52.31-am.jpg | en | null | Indian stabs colleague to death, burns body | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: An Indian worker in Al-Faisaliah district stabbed his colleague to death and set fire to the body in an attempt to conceal his crime.
The Riyadh police said that the crime was discovered when fire-fighting units of the Civil Defense responded to a fire in a carpet warehouse in the district.
After extinguishing the fire, they found a burned body; at that point, forensic examiners and investigators began their investigations.
The body was that of an Indian man in his 40s who worked in the warehouse and who, evidence showed, was stabbed before being set on fire.
“Investigators learned that the victim had a problem with an Indian co-worker over money,” the police spokesman said.
“The accused confessed to having committed the murder as the victim was holding his passport because of a debt.”
He also confessed to having taken SR3,000 which he stole before starting a fire in the warehouse.
The knife used as a murder weapon was recovered and the perpetrator is now being held by the police awaiting trial. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975626/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/6d84b60e212a40207871f2c14a9835700844214004ea3b226f08fe95d6ff6610.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:48:07 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: As Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman embarks on a historic visit to China, Beijing's Ambassador to Riyadh Li Huaxin has stressed that terrorism is a common threat to humanity.He said that terrorism could be battled by promoting economic and social development, appropriately addressing regional conflicts and promoting mutual respect among civilizations, religions and nations.“China and the Kingdom are both victims of terrorism. The Chinese government rejects terrorism in all its forms, and refuses to link it with a certain religion or sect,” Li said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976556%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472333051567720400.jpg | en | null | China refuses to link terrorism with religion | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: As Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman embarks on a historic visit to China, Beijing's Ambassador to Riyadh Li Huaxin has stressed that terrorism is a common threat to humanity.
He said that terrorism could be battled by promoting economic and social development, appropriately addressing regional conflicts and promoting mutual respect among civilizations, religions and nations.
“China and the Kingdom are both victims of terrorism. The Chinese government rejects terrorism in all its forms, and refuses to link it with a certain religion or sect,” Li said.
“China will work with other countries on confronting the threats of terrorism, on the basis of mutual respect, equality and cooperation,” he stressed.
The Chinese ambassador pointed out that China and Saudi Arabia communicate and cooperate on issues of terrorism, having created an effective mechanism for consultations.
The Chinese side appreciates the Saudi effort to create a counterterrorism center at the United Nations, and its formation of the Islamic coalition to fight terrorism. China supports Saudi Arabia, a country that took the lead in fighting terrorism, the envoy added.
Li expressed appreciation for Saudi Arabia's support and cooperation in the fight against terrorist forces, ethnic separatists and militants.
Meanwhile, the Kingdom maintained its position as the largest supplier of oil to China in the first seven months of this year, having pumped a record production in July.
The Kingdom shipped 1.05 million barrels of oil per day to China this year up to July 31, making its share of the Chinese market about 14 percent. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976556/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f2255595562c81ab6da54fe49464b9df901415c630c923ab9794d63c18a2a0e1.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T20:47:30 | null | 2016-08-28T22:30:40 | WASHINGTON: A former top adviser to President Barack Obama on Sunday labeled Donald Trump a “psychopath,” saying the Republican presidential nominee met the clinical definition of the personality disorder.With a little more than two months to go before the Nov. 8 US election, the comments by David Plouffe, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama and manager of his 2008 presidential campaign, mark another escalation in a series of blows exchanged between Trump’s camp and that of his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976681%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//trumpcopath.jpg | en | null | Former Obama aide calls Trump a ‘psychopath’ | null | null | www.arabnews.com | WASHINGTON: A former top adviser to President Barack Obama on Sunday labeled Donald Trump a “psychopath,” saying the Republican presidential nominee met the clinical definition of the personality disorder.
With a little more than two months to go before the Nov. 8 US election, the comments by David Plouffe, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama and manager of his 2008 presidential campaign, mark another escalation in a series of blows exchanged between Trump’s camp and that of his Democrat rival Hillary Clinton.
“Basically, you have a psychopath running for president. I mean, he meets the clinical definition,” Plouffe said in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
When challenged, Plouffe acknowledged he had no degree in psychology but rattled off what he said were the New York businessman’s symptoms: “grandiose notion of self-worth; pathological lying; lack of empathy and remorse.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last week, Clinton accused Trump of fueling America’s “radical fringe” with racist rhetoric, while Trump said Clinton was letting down black Americans with failed policies and called her a “bigot who sees people of color only as votes, not as human beings.”
Obama has also lambasted Trump, saying of him: “Somebody who makes those kinds of statements doesn’t have the judgment, the temperament, the understanding to occupy the most powerful position in the world.”
(Reporting by David Morgan) | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976681/world | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/a122f7d206131abc2cf9d50dd294d51a27cc9007747331a23acc5da3489a663a.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T08:48:39 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh has praised the security forces for thwarting the recent attack on a mosque in Qatif and busting of a network of drug traffickers.“Those who seek to create anarchy and sedition in this blessed country will fail, because the Two Holy Mosques and other holy sites in the Kingdom are protected by Allah the Almighty, then by brave men who are willing to sacrifice their souls, money and children for it,” he said.The grand mufti was speaking during his weekly radio program “Yanabi Al-Fatwa,” which is aired by Nedaa Al-Islam station. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976046%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1427750420229754300.jpg | en | null | Grand mufti hails security forces for foiling attack | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh has praised the security forces for thwarting the recent attack on a mosque in Qatif and busting of a network of drug traffickers.
“Those who seek to create anarchy and sedition in this blessed country will fail, because the Two Holy Mosques and other holy sites in the Kingdom are protected by Allah the Almighty, then by brave men who are willing to sacrifice their souls, money and children for it,” he said.
The grand mufti was speaking during his weekly radio program “Yanabi Al-Fatwa,” which is aired by Nedaa Al-Islam station.
He said that the efforts the Kingdom puts in to serve Muslims and Islamic sites are reasons for Allah’s protection against evil plots.
Al-Asheikh quoted the Qur’anic verse: “and any whose purpose therein is profanity or wrong-doing — them will We cause to taste of the most grievous penalty.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976046/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7cd1f98af7017690974ce91e5ff9ac11bebbd6f8d1f4a9eba70cce1586af5888.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-27T02:48:14 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | OTTAWA: Canada’s former Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Friday he was quitting politics, 10 months after voters tossed his Tories out of office in a general election.The awkward career-politician, who was more at home plowing through economic theory than glad-handing voters on the campaign trail, said in a statement that he was stepping down as a member of Parliament after nearly 18 years of public service. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975936%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472225519705439400.jpg | en | null | Canada’s former premier quits politics | null | null | www.arabnews.com | OTTAWA: Canada’s former Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced Friday he was quitting politics, 10 months after voters tossed his Tories out of office in a general election.
The awkward career-politician, who was more at home plowing through economic theory than glad-handing voters on the campaign trail, said in a statement that he was stepping down as a member of Parliament after nearly 18 years of public service.
Summarizing the previous Tory government’s accomplishments over nearly 10 years with him at the helm, Harper pointed to tax cuts, stiffer criminal sentences, and steering the economy “through the worst global recession since the Great Depression” in 2008.
Of the Group of Seven industrialized nations, he noted, Canada “came out in the strongest position of them all.”
Harper’s spokeswoman Anna Tomala said the former prime minister has formed a consulting group to provide advice to international clients.
“The firm will work in tech, finance, energy, infrastructure and manufacturing along (with) other files, in the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia,” she said in an e-mail.
Regulatory documents show Harper created a company last December called Harper & Associates Consulting Inc. with former aides Ray Novak and Jeremy Hunt.
Since his party’s defeat at the hands of Justin Trudeau’s Liberals on Oct. 19, 2015, Harper has kept a low profile, appearing only once in public in May at a Tory rally in Vancouver.
It was the first time he addressed his party and Canadians since his election defeat, and the last time as an elected politician.
In a campaign-style stump speech, he told the party: “The past is no place to linger” and “the best is yet to come.”
The partisan crowd responded with a standing ovation.
The Tories are scheduled to pick his successor in May 2017.
During his years in politics, Harper united the political right and led three successive governments since 2006 before he was defeated in a come-from-behind Liberal landslide last October.
He rejected the Kyoto Protocol climate agreement, more than doubled the number of free trade deals with other nations, including with the European Union, and posted the largest budget deficit in Canadian history in an effort to counter the 2008 global economic slump, before balancing the budget in his last term. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975936/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/042d1dab4aee4c72e5a162bc8fae40f582356f5f37e0196a08a377910bec0bef.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T20:48:09 | null | 2016-08-29T22:55:12 | CENTURION, South Africa: South Africa held on to a strong position despite a top-order batting collapse in their second innings on the third day of the second Test against New Zealand on Monday.South Africa were 105 for six at the close, an overall lead of 372 runs on a pitch at Centurion’s SuperSport Park offering assistance to bowlers, with swing, seam and uneven bounce. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977181%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//4895737493149849.jpg | en | null | South Africa holds aces despite collapse | null | null | www.arabnews.com | CENTURION, South Africa: South Africa held on to a strong position despite a top-order batting collapse in their second innings on the third day of the second Test against New Zealand on Monday.
South Africa were 105 for six at the close, an overall lead of 372 runs on a pitch at Centurion’s SuperSport Park offering assistance to bowlers, with swing, seam and uneven bounce.
New Zealand hit back after conceding a first innings lead of 267, with Tim Southee and Trent Boult taking two wickets each to reduce South Africa to 47 for four. Doug Bracewell and Neil Wagner also picked up wickets, with only Quinton de Kock shining for the South Africans, with his second half-century of the match.
South Africa’s three-pronged pace attack was mainly responsible for New Zealand being bowled out for 214 in their first innings.
Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada took three wickets each and Vernon Philander claimed two.
Only captain Kane Williamson was able to provide sustained resistance for New Zealand. He was last man out for 77. While his teammates struggled, Williamson remained calm and well-organized, seemingly with time to spare as he combatted the pace threat. He batted for 286 minutes and faced 133 balls in an innings, which included eight fours and a six.
With star bowlers Steyn and Philander both returning from long-term injuries, it was the first time they had played in the same Test match as Rabada, South Africa?s 21-year-old cricketer of the year.
The combination proved relentless, although it took South Africa more than an hour to take the first wicket of the day, when Rabada trapped Henry Nicholls leg before wicket for 36.
Williamson and Nicholls put on 60 for the fourth wicket and enabled New Zealand to make an encouraging start to the day after resuming at 38 for three.
New Zealand’s resistance crumbled after the breakthrough, although South Africa lost control briefly when Rabada and Steyn peppered number ten batsman Neil Wagner with bouncers, probably in retaliation for Wagner’s short-pitched assault during South Africa’s first innings of 481 for eight declared.
Wagner was struck on the helmet by Rabada but responded by slogging four fours and a six in an innings of 31 before he was caught behind off Steyn.
Off-spinner Dane Piedt picked up the wicket of Tim Southee, while Ross Taylor was run out during
New Zealand’s collapse on the second evening.
Three of the first five wickets came through successful reviews by South Africa after their initial appeals had been turned down.
After a maiden over from Southee to Stephen Cook to start the second innings, De Kock hit the first four balls of the next over from Boult for fours before hitting Southee for four and six off successive deliveries in the third over.
New Zealand hit back, however, with three wickets in 10 balls. Cook was trapped in front by Boult for four before Southee dismissed Hashim Amla, caught at first slip, and JP Duminy, leg before wicket, in the next over.
Captain Faf du Plessis and De Kock tried to rebuild the innings but first innings centurion Du Plessis made only six before he was caught at first slip off Boult.
De Kock seemed untroubled by the struggles of his teammates, going to his second half-century of the match off 42 balls, with eight fours and a six. But one ball later he received a vicious bouncer from Doug Bracewell, which he gloved to gully.
SCOREBOARD
South Africa (first innings): 481-8 decl
New Zealand (first innings):
M. Guptill c Van Zyl b Philander 8
T. Latham c De Kock b Steyn 4
K. Williamson c De Kock b Rabada 77
R. Taylor run out (Bavuma) 1
H. Nicholls lbw Rabada 36
B. Watling c De Kock b Steyn 8
M. Santner b Philander 0
D. Bracewell lbw Rabada 18
T. Southee c De Kock b Piedt 8
N. Wagner c De Kock b Steyn 31
T. Boult not out 0
Extras: 23
Total: (58.3 overs) 214
Fall of wkts: 1-13, 2-13, 3-26, 4-86, 5-106, 6-111, 7-144, 8-169, 9-214.
Bowling: Steyn 20-3-66-3, Philander 15-1-43-2, Rabada 16.3-4-62-3 (2w), Piedt 7-0-36-1
South Africa (second innings)
S. Cook lbw b Boult 4
Q. de Kock c Williamson b Bracewell 50
H. Amla c Guptill b Southee 1
J. Duminy lbw Southee 0
F. du Plessis c Taylor b Boult 6
T. Bavuma not out 25
S. van Zyl c Watling b Wagner 5
V. Philander not out 3
Extras: 11
Total: (for 6 wkts, 34 overs) 105
Fall of wkts: 1-31, 2-32, 3-32, 4-47, 5-82, 6-98.
Bowling: Southee 10-5-27-2 (1w), Boult 8-0-38-2, Bracewell 7-2-19-1, Wagner 9-1-17-1 (1nb, 1w). | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977181/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/a890877db08ab05285b050b0c1de73c1a76c501508a057cb96537db0e7d99914.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-29T02:48:45 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Chinese Ambassador to the Kingdom Li Huaxin said that during Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to China, the high-level Saudi-Chinese Joint Committee will hold its first meeting, chaired by the prince and China’s Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.The ambassador said that a series of important cooperation agreements will be signed by Saudi Arabia and China during the visit, while discussions will be meant to enhance cooperation in the fields of police work, economy, trade, energy, investment, culture, science, technology and tourism. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977056%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//1472417348417295700-1.jpg | en | null | Saudi-Chinese Joint Committee to hold first meeting in Beijing | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Chinese Ambassador to the Kingdom Li Huaxin said that during Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to China, the high-level Saudi-Chinese Joint Committee will hold its first meeting, chaired by the prince and China’s Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.
The ambassador said that a series of important cooperation agreements will be signed by Saudi Arabia and China during the visit, while discussions will be meant to enhance cooperation in the fields of police work, economy, trade, energy, investment, culture, science, technology and tourism.
“The Chinese side is placing great importance on this visit, and all arrangements have been finalized in great detail. We believe that the high-level joint committee presents an opportunity to enrich elements of strategic cooperation between Saudi Arabia and China,” he said.
Relations between Saudi Arabia and China have developed significantly since they established diplomatic ties in 1990, and expanded to cover various fields.
“Earlier this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia and signed several bilateral agreements to launch a new phase between both countries,” said the ambassador.
“The leaders of the two countries said relations entail comprehensive strategic cooperation, including the agreement to establish a high-level joint committee to plan and work on enhancing cooperation in all fields,” he said.
“Fourteen cooperation agreements were signed in different fields, including the economic belt and Silk Road, nuclear and renewal energy, combating terrorism, culture and industry,” he added.
Regarding politics, the Chinese and Saudi sides agree on the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries and are aligned in their positions on major international and regional issues, said the envoy, adding that the two sides seek to deepen political ties and strengthen cooperation under the umbrella of the United Nations, G-20, the Chinese-Arab Cooperation Forum, and other international frameworks.
Regarding economic cooperation, the ambassador said: “Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter and the largest trading partner of China, while China is also the largest trade partner of the Kingdom.”
Both countries are keen on developing economic ties and on constantly improving the quality of life of their citizens, and wish to enhance cooperation in different areas.
“I am confident, in light of the interest of the leaders of both countries and of the close cooperation between our two societies, that Saudi-Chinese cooperation in different fields will get better, and will have larger and better returns for stability and development,” said Li. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977056/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7ca5b06a488aa4f20043babb3464a3fa873c9a9d42b6421a6ee2c515f39e4ae2.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T02:49:33 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman opened the new building of the Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) in Madinah in the presence of Saudia Director General Saleh Al-Jasser and other officials.The new building contains all departments of the national carrier, including those delivering services like booking and sales.The governor toured all sections in the new building, including a training hall. The building is composed of four floors and occupies an area of 6,000 sq. meters. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977491%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//1472493054536005200.jpg | en | null | Prince Faisal opens new Saudia building in Madinah | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman opened the new building of the Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) in Madinah in the presence of Saudia Director General Saleh Al-Jasser and other officials.
The new building contains all departments of the national carrier, including those delivering services like booking and sales.
The governor toured all sections in the new building, including a training hall. The building is composed of four floors and occupies an area of 6,000 sq. meters.
Prince Faisal viewed a presentation of the National Transformation Program 2020 with the major initiatives to be undertaken by Saudia, such as investment in human resources, upgrading the fleet of planes, increasing domestic and foreign seating capacity and improving services.
The presentation included a briefing on what has been achieved in the context of the NTP in the first year since the launch of the program: Signing a deal on sending 5,000 Saudi youths to study avionics and aircraft maintenance, a deal for the delivery of 50 planes, part of which were delivered two weeks ago, Al-Bayraq and Adeel Air, and development of electronic services system.
Prince Faisal also was briefed on the operational plans of the Haj season and services provided to the pilgrims at the arrival and departure lounges at Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz International Airport in Madinah.
He instructed officials to redouble efforts in a manner that will allow pilgrims to perform their rituals easily and comfortably.
Prince Faisal said the new building is an added, outstanding, advantage to the region, and is expected to provide the best services to citizens, and Haj and Umrah pilgrims.
He thanked Al-Jasser, his colleagues and all the Saudia staff in Madinah for their efforts to improve performance of the national carrier.
Al-Jasser thanked Prince Faisal for inaugurating the new building and for his continued support to the airline’s activities.
Madinah is one of major stations of Saudia, ranking fourth after Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977491/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f3cbb805384349910efb9eea516b6083679f40cc631f34b10304235312d3ec67.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T20:48:32 | null | 2016-08-28T22:19:20 | CENTURION, South Africa: South African captain Faf du Plessis ground out a century and was rewarded for his patience when New Zealand lost three quick wickets before the close of play on the second day of the second Test at SuperSport Park on Sunday.New Zealand finished the day on 38 for three, 443 runs behind South Africa’s first innings total of 481 for eight declared.In an era of rapid scoring in Test cricket, much of South Africa’s innings was a return to a more attritional age, with the run rate hovering at around three runs an over. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976671%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//7510338993737291.jpg | en | null | South Africa strikes at New Zealand top order | null | null | www.arabnews.com | CENTURION, South Africa: South African captain Faf du Plessis ground out a century and was rewarded for his patience when New Zealand lost three quick wickets before the close of play on the second day of the second Test at SuperSport Park on Sunday.
New Zealand finished the day on 38 for three, 443 runs behind South Africa’s first innings total of 481 for eight declared.
In an era of rapid scoring in Test cricket, much of South Africa’s innings was a return to a more attritional age, with the run rate hovering at around three runs an over.
Du Plessis was particularly cautious as he tiptoed to a fifth Test century off 225 balls.
But it paid off for South Africa as reunited fast bowling pair Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander ripped out both openers before Ross Taylor was run out.
It left New Zealand in deep trouble in a match, which will decide the series after the weather-hit, abandoned first Test in Durban.
Martin Guptill survived a sharp chance to Stiaan van Zyl at third slip off Philander when he was on four, with the ball bursting through the fielder’s hands for four more runs. But he gave a more straightforward chance to the same fielder in Philander’s next over without adding to his score.
Steyn then had the left-handed Tom Latham caught behind off an inside edge for four, although it seemed a controversial decision. Umpire Paul Reiffel gave the batsman not out and South Africa sought a review.
It was clear that the ball had deviated off the batsman’s trousers but only the faintest flicker on the ultra-edge device gave any indication that it had touched the bat first. But television umpire Richard Illingworth decided it was enough evidence to overturn his colleague’s decision.
Much then depended on New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor, his most experienced teammate. Taylor was struck twice, on the shoulder and arm, by lifting deliveries from Steyn and scored only one before pushing a ball from Kagiso Rabada to midwicket. He set off for a run, was sent back by Williamson and was beaten by a direct hit from Temba Bavuma.
Du Plessis bemoaned the failure of his batsmen to convert good starts into big scores in the first Test and seemed determined to set an example against steady bowling on a pitch still offering some help to the seam bowlers.
Apart from a burst of scoring immediately after lunch, it was slow going for Du Plessis, who reached fifty off 130 balls.
A largely defensive innings included one extravagant shot, which almost cost him his wicket. After laboring to 18 off 86 balls, he pulled a short ball from Trent Boult and the ball went for six through the hands of Henry Nicholls, running along the midwicket boundary.
It took South Africa 66 overs to add 198 runs to their overnight total of 283 for three. JP Duminy, 67 not out overnight, made 88 off 158 balls, with 13 fours, before he was caught behind off Tim Southee, getting a faint edge to an attempted pull against a bouncer.
SCOREBOARD
South Africa (first innings):
S. Cook c Williamson b Bracewell 56
Q. de Kock c Boult b Wagner 82
H. Amla c Watling b Wagner 58
J. Duminy c Watling b Southee 88
F. du Plessis not out 112
T. Bavuma c Bracewell b Wagner 8
S. van Zyl c Taylor b Wagner 35
V. Philander b Wagner 8
K. Rabada c Nicholls b Santner 7
D. Steyn not out 13
Extras: 14
Total: (for 8 wkts decl) 481
Fall of wkts: 1-133, 2-151, 3-246, 4-342, 5-342, 6-426, 7-442, 8-463.
Bowling: Southee 35-4-114-1, Boult 35.4-7-107-0, Bracewell 30.2-9-98-1, Santner 14-1-62-1, Wagner 39-8-86-5.
New Zealand (first innings):
M. Guptill c Van Zyl b Philander 8
T. Latham c De Kock b Steyn 4
K. Williamson not out 15
R. Taylor run out (Bavuma) 1
H. Nicholls not out 4
Extras: 6
Total: (for 3 wkts) 38
Fall of wkts: 1-13, 2-13, 3-26.
Bowling: Steyn 8-2-18-1, Philander 4-1-10-1, Rabada 4-0-9-0 (1w). | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976671/sports | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/a6d8b70e1cde7ddc0090401e1bf2004ce9df304a127d47b015c7e9927a4db3e2.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T02:48:55 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:52 | RIYADH: The employees of a private hospital in the Eastern Province have stopped working over the issue of non-payment of salaries for two to three months. The employees, who have been on strike for three days, have sought help from the Ministry of Labor and Social Development. “The complaint has reached the ministry, but their cases have been transferred to the commission for the settlement of labor disputes for resolution,” Nada Mansour, spokesperson of the labor bureau in the Eastern Province, said. “It’s still under consideration for possible solutions.” | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975976%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1400261930238188700.jpg | en | null | Pending pay: Hospital staff strike | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: The employees of a private hospital in the Eastern Province have stopped working over the issue of non-payment of salaries for two to three months. The employees, who have been on strike for three days, have sought help from the Ministry of Labor and Social Development. “The complaint has reached the ministry, but their cases have been transferred to the commission for the settlement of labor disputes for resolution,” Nada Mansour, spokesperson of the labor bureau in the Eastern Province, said. “It’s still under consideration for possible solutions.”
Quoting a hospital employee, an online report said: “In some cases, the hospital management failed to give the salaries of some employees for the last three months. In other cases, the delay is two months.
The employee said that a number of her colleagues relayed their grievances to the top management and requested that back salaries be paid. “But there was no positive response from the management.”
She added that many of those who had complained against delayed salaries are graduates of the hospital’s nursing institute and decided to eventually work at the hospital after graduation. “However, their idealism has turned into illusion. They cannot be blamed. They have financial needs or families to feed or to help in their respective countries,” she said.
She said the case of delayed salaries at the hospital was not new. “It has been recurring from time to time. It used to happen in one department only, but was eventually solved. Now it has become frequent,” she said. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975976/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/d197151b2a38d3fe6dcf88124b82e3a423d81be903a936ff6ddab81cefe531d1.json |
[
"Turki Al-Dakhil"
] | 2016-08-31T02:49:36 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:00 | American official on Oct. 11, 2011 revealed an Iranian plot to assassinate then Saudi Ambassador to the United States Adel Al-Jubeir. The Iranian plan was to blow up a restaurant that Al-Jubeir was supposed to visit followed by the bombing of the Saudi embassy building.The would-be perpetrators confessed to the plot, which the American FBI called Operation Red Coalition. Manssor Arbabsiar and Gholam Shakuri were arrested and charged by the federal court in New York with plotting to assassinate Al-Jubeir. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977956%2Fcolumns.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//turki.jpg | en | null | Iran’s support for terrorism | null | null | www.arabnews.com | American official on Oct. 11, 2011 revealed an Iranian plot to assassinate then Saudi Ambassador to the United States Adel Al-Jubeir. The Iranian plan was to blow up a restaurant that Al-Jubeir was supposed to visit followed by the bombing of the Saudi embassy building.
The would-be perpetrators confessed to the plot, which the American FBI called Operation Red Coalition. Manssor Arbabsiar and Gholam Shakuri were arrested and charged by the federal court in New York with plotting to assassinate Al-Jubeir.
A few days ago, plots to assassinate Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Awad Assiri and Saudi Ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan were revealed. Iraq’s government went as far as being alert when it asked Al-Sabhan to leave the country. Such a behavior reflects the extent of Iranian interference in Iraq’s internal matter.
Let us briefly look at the history of Iran’s targeting of embassies. In November 1979, the US embassy was attacked and occupied in Tehran, and 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days. In June 1980, the first secretary at Kuwait’s embassy in India, Mustafa Al-Marzouq, was assassinated. In Sept. 1982, Kuwaiti diplomat in Madrid Najib Al-Refai was assassinated. In April 1983, the US Embassy in Beirut was blown up.
In December 1983, a bomb was detonated targeting the French Embassy in Kuwait. In December 1983, a truck was blown up targeting the US Embassy in Kuwait, killing 17 people. In August 1987, the Saudi Embassy in Tehran was attacked and 275 diplomats were detained. In February 1990, Saudi diplomats were killed in Thailand. In Feb. 2011, Saudi diplomat Hassan Al-Qahtani was killed in Pakistan.
These are the most significant events that could be easily listed. There are many others. Iran has tried to intimidate diplomats who make rare efforts to communicate with the different spectra of societies where they work.
Saudi embassies in Lebanon and Iraq are trying to communicate with people belonging to different segments of society and who espouse different political views. Al-Sabhan managed to enter Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish homes, and break the political monotony in Iraq that depends on supporting one faction with pure Iranian characteristics.
Responding to Iranian verbal attacks made through Iraqi officials, Al-Sabhan said: “Saudi Arabia’s policy is steady… Saudi Arabia won’t give up on the Arabism of Iraq.”
The main reason behind Saudi Arabia’s disagreement with Lebanon’s government was the country’s departure from Arabism. Some politicians in Iraq are doing the same. Iran does not like Al-Sabhan’s emphasis on Iraq’s Arabism. Meanwhile, Shiite politicians, including Moqtada Al-Sadr, demand a return to Arab visions, and to the Arab — not Persian — sphere of interests. Saudi diplomacy has found its way into areas of influence that Tehran could not compete with. Our ambassadors’ success put them in Iran’s firing line. Until today, Al-Jubeir, Al-Sabhan and Al-Assiri are serving their nation and Arab interest through political and diplomatic means. There is no point choosing force against diplomacy, as this would be a militant and terrorist approach.
Iran proves daily that it acts outside the context of an institutional state, and is closer to having a bloody revolutionary status as it does not recognize international conventions regarding embassies and consulates, does not hesitate to assassinate any political figure, and intervenes anywhere at any time. Iran is more a militant organization than a state — how can a state plan to assassinate an ambassador by blowing up a restaurant?
A state’s power is in its diplomats, who turn the impossible into reality and this is what the Saudi ambassadors do. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977956/columns | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7b14433a981e5b5a1717a4a38b6cf451d447bd98e640a261d61e322c9cf0aff1.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T02:48:55 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | With the declining oil prices challenging the Middle East government budgets, the continuing expansion of airport infrastructure across the region will require alternative financing solutions. Deloitte’s latest report on the construction industry in the region highlights the alternative forms of funding available to deliver the required infrastructure across Middle East airports and to counteract the potential reduction in the ability to raise necessary finance. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976346%2Fcorporate-news.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1472325978067110800.jpg | en | null | Global airport operators eyeing Mideast business | null | null | www.arabnews.com | With the declining oil prices challenging the Middle East government budgets, the continuing expansion of airport infrastructure across the region will require alternative financing solutions.
Deloitte’s latest report on the construction industry in the region highlights the alternative forms of funding available to deliver the required infrastructure across Middle East airports and to counteract the potential reduction in the ability to raise necessary finance.
“Airport privatization and the appeal of public-private partnerships (PPPs) have long been talked about in the region with varying application of PPPs as a financing solution,” explains Deloitte Corporate Finance Ltd. Middle East’s Head of Aviation Dorian Reece.
“However, there is a broad spectrum of differing financing options across the risk, return and control considerations when tapping the PPP market,” Reece said.
“The track record of successful airport PPPs provides a cautionary tale and one that the Middle East region’s governments and investors should consider. Some of the challenges witnessed include lack of regulatory clarity, optimism bias, and weak dispute resolution,” he added.
According to the Deloitte report, there are varying models being applied to airports across the spectrum of privatization options.
The art and the science of structuring an optimal airport PPP centers around achieving the best value for money, which comes from carefully arriving at the appropriate risk allocation between the public and private sectors. It is also important that the required controls needed to protect the traveling public are in place while at the same time putting in place a pricing mechanism, which maximizes financial returns.
A strong reflection of the appetite for airport PPPs is the current interest from leading global airport operators seeking to secure airport transactions or management agreements in the region, including Malaysian Airports, the Airport Company of South Africa, and Changi Airport Group’s rumored interest in the operate and maintain concessions in Saudi Arabia currently in the market.
The Deloitte reports predicts continuing success of the Middle East region’s airports, particularly Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, enabling them in the future to seek to leverage their global brand and pursue international opportunities.
With declining funding from government for major projects, we are also observing the region’s airports increasing their focus on maximizing returns from existing assets as well as leveraging PPPs delivery models of standalone projects such as baggage system upgrades, security and car parks.
“We are increasingly seeing airports within the region seeking to better understand opportunities to generate additional revenue to improve overall profitability," said Cynthia Corby, partner and construction leader at Deloitte in the Middle East.
“This is likely to see further airports in the region implementing similar charges to enhance the financial returns that airports deliver. We are also seeing the need to drive improvements in performance through airport operators gaining greater insight into the true performance (Return on Investment, Return on Equity) of their assets. This is through airports improving cost allocation and improving the modelling to assess the whole life cost of the assets to ensure the right level of capital investment is being made as efficiently as possible,” Corby added. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976346/corporate-news | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/fd34b55ba5ce0647fa2e8e6dad2f46918b4c9ef02c93e3f1c9d0ca3fff1e7196.json |
[
"Linda S. Heard"
] | 2016-08-31T02:48:53 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:00 | Growing up in the United Kingdom, I used to watch a hilarious sitcom called the “The Rag Trade” based on the clothing industry. At the close of the day the bossy shop steward would yell “Everybody out!” which became the show’s catchphrase. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977951%2Fcolumns.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//linda_heard.jpg | en | null | A playground for flexing muscles | null | null | www.arabnews.com | Growing up in the United Kingdom, I used to watch a hilarious sitcom called the “The Rag Trade” based on the clothing industry. At the close of the day the bossy shop steward would yell “Everybody out!” which became the show’s catchphrase.
Witnessing the tangled web of protagonists, appearing to believe the answer to the country’s pain is more bombs, tanks, guns, death and destruction, I wish there was a steward with a megaphone screaming “Everybody out!” Everybody that is apart from the Syrian people whose wants and needs are treated as secondary to the muscle-flexing of foreign state actors out to gain geopolitical advantage over their rivals.
Scrolling down my Facebook news feed this morning I came across a video of a trembling wounded toddler covered in blood as a result of a barrel bomb attack on the stricken city of Aleppo. This child was one of the “lucky” ones; some 15 civilians were killed, including 11 children. Earlier this month, 18 convulsed women and 10 children fighting for breath were hospitalized when chlorine gas was dropped on one of the city’s neighborhoods.
Tens of thousands of children have suffered a similar fate; millions are spending their childhood in squalid camps boiling in summer, freezing in winter, or are suffering from severe malnutrition caused by Assad’s wars of attrition, while thousands of others have washed up on foreign shores or have been co-opted by terrorists into becoming heartless killers.
An iconic photograph of a traumatized little Vietnamese girl running down a road after a US napalm attack weighed heavily on the world’s collective conscience and was instrumental into that war’s end. There have been so many iconic pictures and videos showing the Syrian carnage; they make us feel uncomfortable, we may even shed a tear, but there is little clamor in the planet’s capitals to keep the children of Syria safe. Instead the clamor centers on keeping them and their parents far from our own countries.
Yes, the Assad regime bears the brunt of the blame for turning its guns on its own people but foreign interventions have made the situation worse. Firstly, they’ve been ineffective and secondly, they are arguably responsible for prolonging the conflict.
If Iran, Hezbollah, Russia and the United States had stayed out of it, I strongly believe Syrians would have found a way to resolve their differences through dialogue before spaces were created for Daesh, Al-Nusra and other hard-line extremist groups to get a foothold.
The more protracted the fighting, the more sacrifices made, the more hatred has been generated and the harder it is for those who’ve lost loved ones to cut their losses. And even if they want to open a new page, they are being manipulated by their foreign orchestrators and funders, plus they fear retribution for any war crimes they may have perpetrated.
Basically, Syrians from all sides of the spectrum have lost control over their own destiny that’s now rests in the hands of America, Russia and Iran. Their country’s sovereignty has been breached by all and sundry after a piece of the pie, whether retention of Mediterranean naval bases, the expansion of Shiite ideology, the reserves of oil discovered under the Golan Heights, the enlargement of the so-called Caliphate, or regional domination. They are all motivated by interests; the Syrian people are mere disposable pawns in this horrendous chess game.
And now Turkey has got in on the act ostensibly to eviscerate the presence of Daesh close to its border with northern Syria following various bombings on Turkish soil for which Daesh has taken credit or are suspected of carrying out. But given that President Erdogan has openly admitted that his country’s number one enemy are Kurdish PKK and associated YPG militants, who’ve been working closely with the US military to beat back Daesh, the chances of escalation are high.
Foreign meddling, competing interests and opposing agendas have poisoned any chance of peace in the near future. Sure, John Kerry and his Russian buddy Sergei Lavrov come together every now and again for a photo-op, hinting at solutions in the pipeline or a conference is organized to which core parties aren’t invited. Do those powers care about the babies pulled out of rubble, dead, maimed or barely alive, almost daily?
Somehow, I doubt it because if Presidents Obama and Putin were sincere, either separately or together they could have imposed a peaceful solution and sent the terrorist cockroaches fleeing years ago. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977951/columns | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/845fb193161a1408611d25f2d702c2fe8b05a4b94c5bfe9a2d34d26a3b32fefb.json |
[
"Bikram Vohra"
] | 2016-08-27T08:46:55 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | When it comes to immigration, it is amazing how the individual perception differs from the “mob mentality” stirred by media frenzy. If one was asked if there was hostility in the general public in Britain after Brexit one would be inclined to say yes, there is undoubtedly a closing of ranks. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976056%2Fcolumns.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//bikram_vohra.jpg | en | null | The ‘outsider menace’ | null | null | www.arabnews.com | When it comes to immigration, it is amazing how the individual perception differs from the “mob mentality” stirred by media frenzy. If one was asked if there was hostility in the general public in Britain after Brexit one would be inclined to say yes, there is undoubtedly a closing of ranks.
This is especially so since the migration from the Middle East war zones was the predominant issue in the referendum. But now comes a revelation that completely stands the surmise on its head. Only about a third of the public think the government will meet its net migration target in the next 5 years, even after Brexit, according to polling for a new British Future report, What’s next after Brexit? Immigration and integration in post-referendum Britain.
The study shows immigration ranking alongside the economy and the NHS as the issues that they care about the most, it’s an indicator of just how low public trust has fallen in governments’ competence to manage immigration. Only 12 percent of people would like to see a reduction in the numbers of highly skilled workers migrating to Britain; nearly four times as many (46 percent) would like to see more of it, with 42 percent saying that it should stay the same. Among people who voted Leave in the referendum these numbers remain broadly the same: 45 percent would like to see an increase, 40 percent say that the numbers should stay as they are and just 15 percent would like to see them reduced.
Only a fifth of people (22 percent) would like the number of international students coming to study at Britain’s universities to be reduced, less than the 24 percent who would be happy for them to increase. People are less positive about low-skilled workers moving to the UK, however, while four in ten would be happy for numbers to stay the same or increase, six in 10 would prefer the numbers to be reduced.
Consulting the public should form part of a comprehensive immigration review that takes a 360-degree look at all aspects of immigration policy — different types of immigration, policy options and their impacts, the staffing needs of business and public services and the pressures that rapid population change can place on local communities. More effective measures are needed to ease some of those pressures — on housing, school places and health services — through a migration impacts fund that is well-resourced and is seen to make a difference to frontline services in the areas that need some help.
The only unspoken part in this survey is the ethnicity woven into the welcoming map. Unless immigration largesse is open to all regardless of color or religion or region the exercise becomes pointless. Paradoxically, the skilled workers are from Asian countries and the less skilled are from the poorer parts of Europe and the former border states of the erstwhile Soviet Union. UK’s office of national statistics indicates the trend has been downward these past few years.
South Asian work force does not go to the UK, not even through the underground. The flow of migrants from Syria is a war casualty and an anomaly in the present times, not an integral element in migration.
That the British sense of tolerance has survived the battering it has been given by the extreme right hard-liners about “outsider menace” is a blessing. Will it stay that way is the question that needs to be asked as Brexit unravels across indistinct milestones. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976056/columns | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7181a282dfba86589792033ba068257174cc6ec6d490ad38ba0d1043f9aa7b8b.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-29T20:49:11 | null | 2016-08-29T22:45:17 | LAGOS DE COVADONGA, Spain: Colombian Nairo Quintana moved back into the leader’s red jersey of the Tour of Spain with a stunning ascent to win Monday’s 10th stage.Chris Froome battled back after being dropped early in the 12.2km special category climb to the end of the 188.7km ride from Lugones to Lagos de Covadonga to finish third on the stage and move up to third in the general classification, 58 seconds back on Quintana.Alejandro Valverde is just one second ahead of Froome in second overall. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977176%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//9298023949105816.jpg | en | null | Quintana storms to stage 10 win, back in Vuelta lead | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LAGOS DE COVADONGA, Spain: Colombian Nairo Quintana moved back into the leader’s red jersey of the Tour of Spain with a stunning ascent to win Monday’s 10th stage.
Chris Froome battled back after being dropped early in the 12.2km special category climb to the end of the 188.7km ride from Lugones to Lagos de Covadonga to finish third on the stage and move up to third in the general classification, 58 seconds back on Quintana.
Alejandro Valverde is just one second ahead of Froome in second overall.
Quintana crossed the line in a time of 4hr 50min 31sec ahead of the Netherlands’ Robert Gesink, who finished 24 seconds back, and just a second ahead of Froome.
“A day like this gives me great confidence to continue,” Quintana told Spanish TV station.
“We have a deserved day’s rest (on Tuesday) then we will prepare well and continue on the same road.”
Three-time Vuelta winner Alberto Contador suffered another damaging blow to his chances of a record fourth win on home soil as he finished 1min 05 sec back on Quintana to fall nearly three minutes adrift in fifth overall.
Overnight leader David de la Cruz slipped to seventh in the general classification.
Froome’s chances of becoming the first man in 38 years to win the Tour de France and Tour of Spain in the same year looked to be fading as he slipped behind his rivals, falling nearly a minute behind Quintana at one stage.
However, he surged through the chasing pack in the final five kilometers, passing Contador and Valverde on his way to limiting the damage to Quintana.
And Quintana insists Froome’s superior time-trial ability means he remains the favorite with a 37km race against the clock to come on stage 19.
“He continues to be very close given what is to come,” added Quintana, who said he will only be comfortable with a three minute lead ahead of the time-trial.
“We have to look to continue what we have done until now to distance ourselves from him because if he stays at this time (behind) he is still the favorite.”
Quintana had failed to challenge Froome’s procession to a third Tour de France win in July, but looks in much better shape having skipped the Olympics to concentrate on landing the second Grand Tour title of his career.
The Movistar rider made his first move along with Contador seven kilometers from the end. However, Contador couldn’t live with Quintana’s acceleration when he kicked for home 3.5 km from the finish.
Gesink was alone at the front of the race at that stage as the sole survivor from a 16-man breakaway.
He was quickly pulled in by Quintana, who surged to victory to add 10 bonus seconds to the time he made on the day over the chasing pack.
Gesink just held on to pip Froome to second, whilst Valverde followed the Sky rider home to take fifth. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977176/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/3393b064ff99c4cf4f21577a19084370c7e06b57de9d894ad6c4274c1dd0a01e.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-30T20:49:01 | null | 2016-08-30T23:05:59 | LONDON: Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero is in danger of missing the Manchester derby after he was charged with violent conduct by England’s Football Association on Tuesday.The charge relates to an incident during City’s 3-1 home win over West Ham United last Sunday when Aguero appeared to swing his left elbow toward visiting defender Winston Reid.He faces a three-game ban if found guilty, which would rule him out of City’s trip to Manchester United on Sept. 10, a home game with Bournemouth and a trip to Swansea City in the League Cup. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977611%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//767104763421116.jpg | en | null | Man City’s Aguero charged with violent conduct | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LONDON: Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero is in danger of missing the Manchester derby after he was charged with violent conduct by England’s Football Association on Tuesday.
The charge relates to an incident during City’s 3-1 home win over West Ham United last Sunday when Aguero appeared to swing his left elbow toward visiting defender Winston Reid.
He faces a three-game ban if found guilty, which would rule him out of City’s trip to Manchester United on Sept. 10, a home game with Bournemouth and a trip to Swansea City in the League Cup.
“Sergio Aguero has been charged for an alleged act of violent conduct which was not seen by the match officials but caught on video,” the FA said in a statement on its website.
“The Manchester City forward was involved in an incident with West Ham United’s Winston Reid in the 76th minute of the game on Sunday [28 August 2016].”
Match referee Andre Marriner did not punish Aguero at the time, but footage of the incident was reviewed by a panel of three former referees, all of whom deemed it a red-card offense.
Aguero, 28, has until 1800 local time (1700 GMT) on Wednesday to respond to the charge.
He has already been ruled out of Argentina’s forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Venezuela due to a calf injury.
City and United will go into their meeting at Old Trafford level on points at the top of the Premier League after each winning their first three matches. Chelsea also have an unblemished record. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977611/sports | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/45966a8c31eb309a8688a06c9f2175c53289863884c7b963442e5360f85d0ae6.json |
[
"Khalil Hanware"
] | 2016-08-28T08:48:38 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Economists see considerable benefits for the Kingdom from the government’s plans to issue at least $10 billion worth of bonds in early October in its first international bond sale.Saudi Arabia’s low debt-to-GDP ratio provides it with ample room to grow its bond issuance program in a relatively lower rate environment, said John Sfakianakis, director of economic research at the Gulf Research Center.“The issuance of sovereign bonds by Saudi Arabia are extremely important for its revenue diversification efforts,” he told Arab News. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976571%2Feconomy.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//growth_0.jpg | en | null | $10bn boost: Global bond sale plans hailed | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Economists see considerable benefits for the Kingdom from the government’s plans to issue at least $10 billion worth of bonds in early October in its first international bond sale.
Saudi Arabia’s low debt-to-GDP ratio provides it with ample room to grow its bond issuance program in a relatively lower rate environment, said John Sfakianakis, director of economic research at the Gulf Research Center.
“The issuance of sovereign bonds by Saudi Arabia are extremely important for its revenue diversification efforts,” he told Arab News.
The issuance of bonds will help reduce the deployment of foreign reserves, he said.
The move also helps Saudi Arabia to maintain a high reserve-to-GDP ratio which is crucial for its macro-prudential health, Sfakianakis added.
Tamer El Zayat, a senior economist at the National Commercial Bank, commented: “International bonds will diversify funding sources while benefiting from flattening yield curves globally.”
The economists were reacting to a Bloomberg report which stated that the Saudi government is expected to hold a roadshow for potential investors during the last week of September, and sell bonds the following month.
Citing sources, Bloomberg said that the exact timing and size of the sale may change, depending on market conditions.
Proceeds are likely to be used to help finance Saudi Arabia’s economic reform plan.
Bloomberg reported in June that Citigroup, HSBC, and JP Morgan Chase & Co., were hired as global coordinators for the sale.
“Saudi Arabia decided to resort to the international markets rather than issue these bonds in the Saudi market in order to be safe economically,” said Sami A. Al-Nwaisir, chairman, Al-Sami Holding Group.
Authorities have implemented aggressive and tough measures in running the country’s financial affairs and the budget, he pointed out. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976571/economy | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/62905a5f080e96687a91159166867ad145ce2bf7ef9af78156295295c1247bc4.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T20:48:22 | null | 2016-08-29T19:28:55 | JEDDAH: Filmmaster, the company that has been awarded the Olympic and Paralympic ceremonies for Rio 2016 and the Olympic torch relay, along with its partner SRCOM, gained another feather in its cap after it has successfully concluded the closing ceremony of this year’s magnificent and stirring 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976661%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//filmmaster-rio_olympics_games_closing_ceremony_2.jpg | en | null | Filmmaster: Wowing global audience at Rio 2016 | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Filmmaster, the company that has been awarded the Olympic and Paralympic ceremonies for Rio 2016 and the Olympic torch relay, along with its partner SRCOM, gained another feather in its cap after it has successfully concluded the closing ceremony of this year’s magnificent and stirring 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil.
Filmmaster, known as a market leader in events and content creation, has presented a creative, vibrant and entertaining production encompassing the beauty and diversity of the city and the clear message of communion and fellowship celebrating achievements, friendship and breaking down of cultural barriers.
Filmmaster MEA Chairman, Piero Cozzi, said, “It would be an understatement to say that it was great opportunity to be part of the exciting 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. An immense event like this where the whole world is watching and anticipating is something that will push your creativity to the limits to deliver an entirely captivating experience for everyone. We are really grateful for all efforts and hardwork of those who have made this project possible, a truly unforgettable one. To our partner SRCOM, who has done a great job as well, thank you.”
Huge production numbers full of art displays, dancing, singing and drumming have been put together for the closing ceremony to show Brasil’s culture and how the country has reinvented itself. Held at Maracanã Stadium with over 12,000 volunteer performers, the renowned Brazilian artists and personalities such as actor Tuca Andrada, the group Barbatuques — trendsetter in body percussion and choral singing inside and outside Brazil, singer & composer Martino Di Vila, Marisa Monte, Seu Jorge, Pelé, Paralamas do Sucesso are just a few names that graced the spectacular event.
In addition, Filmmaster substituted the high tech and the obsession with huge electronic and mechatronic effects for an old school and analogic ingenuity. The company showed a solid concept rich in visual exuberance and true emotion.
Fast facts of the Olympic ceremony :
• 12,000 volunteer performers
• 150 professionals from around the world – production staff
• 1,000 production volunteers
• 3,000 kg of fireworks
• 2,000 lights
• Fernando Meirelles, Brazilian director, Oscar nominee in 2004, is one of the three directors of the Olympic ceremonies. Two other talented directors — Daniela Thomas and Andrucha Waddington, joined him.
• Paralympic ceremony directors – Vik Muniz, Rubens Paiva and Fred Gelli | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976661/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/cbbd1018b050ee93fd828fb34c3046a9a20e75c313eba421ceb26fa9e2962c3a.json |
[
"Grace B. Castillo"
] | 2016-08-28T20:47:51 | null | 2016-08-29T20:37:41 | MANILA: Needing to come up with its trademark comeback early, Barangay Ginebra won this one pulling away.The Gin Kings worked hard to overhaul a 17-point second quarter deficit and then put in their skates in the final half to hammer Star, 116-103, to clinch a playoff seat in the PBA Governors’ Cup before an animated throng of more than 16,000 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976701%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//img_2662.jpg | en | null | Ginebra pulls away in final half for 116-103 victory over Stars | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MANILA: Needing to come up with its trademark comeback early, Barangay Ginebra won this one pulling away.
The Gin Kings worked hard to overhaul a 17-point second quarter deficit and then put in their skates in the final half to hammer Star, 116-103, to clinch a playoff seat in the PBA Governors’ Cup before an animated throng of more than 16,000 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Justin Brownlee kept the Gin Kings in the thick of the fight in the first half with 23 of his 38 points, before the rest of the team helped him out in the last two quarters as Ginebra improved to 6-2 and caught idle giant-killer Mahindra in second spot at 6-2.
The win not only assured Ginebra of advancing past the eliminations, it also kept the league’s top draw solidly in the running for a place in the top four as Greg Slaughter, the Kings franchise player, makes his first appearance in their next game, which will be interestingly enough, against the Enforcers in less than two weeks.
Star jumped out of the gates hard and threatened to leave Ginebra behind with leads that ballooned to as large as 49-32.
But it only awakened a sleeping giant as Ginebra, after pulling even late in the third period, left the Hotshots dumbfounded and erected margins of as large as 19 that seaed Star’s fourth straight loss in a 1-6 card.
While Ginebra is now assured of playing past this round, the future has become more uncertain for Star, with coach Jason Webb still failing to find a solution to what has now become the Hotshots’ fumbling finish almost every game.
“We were a little bit shellshocked at how they played us early,” Barangay Ginebra coach Tim Cone told reporters. “But after the shock wore off, and after we righted the ship somewhat, the game got a lot easier for us.
“I was tearing my hair out in the first half,” he said as he tried to find the combinations that would click with only Brownlee hitting his mark.
Signs of things turning sour for Star started appearing late in the second, as the Hotshots were forced to settle for a 58-50 lead after establishing that 17-point cushion with less than five minutes left in the second period.
Ginebra then limited the Hotshots to just 18 points in the third and dropped 28 of its own, taking the driver’s seat into the fourth quarter before taking the first of several 19-point leads with under four minutes to play.
“Justin (Brownlee) carried us in the first half and everybody kind of chipped in in the second (half),” Cone explained after Brownlee also contributed eight rebounds and played it cool by refusing to let Star’s Joel Wright get into his head.
“If Justin wasn’t there (in the first two quarters), we would have been down 25 (points) at halftime. We were happy being down by eight at halftime,” Cone went on. “We broke their spirit (with the third quarter rally) and we carried it to the end.”
Wright scored 14 points in the first quarter and jumpstarted the Star offense. He even tried heckling Brownlee several times.
But Brownlee and the Kings had the last laugh, and dealt Wright and the Hotshots the lost that could sting the most in the end.
Meanwhile, Alaska got back in the playoff hunt earlier in the night after routing a walking wounded Blackwater side, 107-87.
LeDontae Henton scored 33 points and had eight rebounds in just three quarters as the Aces found the Elite easy foes to conquer, leading by as large as 30 points to jack up their record to 3-5.
The loss was the sixth straight for the 1-7 Elite, who played without import Eric Dawson, starting center JP Erram, Mike Cortez and Reil Cervantes, who were nursing different injuries.
Blackwater, though, will bring in a new import for its last three games in a last-ditch effort to make the playoffs. Management, however, refused to reveal the name of the man who will replace Dawson.
In a related development, San Miguel Beer, which dropped to fourth spot because of the Ginebra win, has signed up Michael Singletary to take the place of the injured Arizona Reid.
Singletary played for defunct Barako Bull in 2013. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976701/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/2d24804341393e50ce88beb6a080bbd5aa25ef7cc67edb4e603f76668a3b3915.json |
[
"Ghazanfar Ali Khan"
] | 2016-08-29T02:47:43 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | RIYADH: The Kingdom’s East Asia policy is about to receive a significant push, when Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman undertakes visits to China and Japan this week.Prince Mohammed, who is also minister of defense and chief of the influential Council of Economic and Development Affairs, plans to visit China on Aug. 29-31 and Japan for four days.From Japan, Prince Mohammed will return to China to chair the Kingdom’s delegation to the Sept. 4-5 summit of G20 leaders in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, said a royal court statement, Sunday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977051%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//g20_0.jpg | en | null | Royal visit to Japan and China will lend new dimension to ties | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: The Kingdom’s East Asia policy is about to receive a significant push, when Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman undertakes visits to China and Japan this week.
Prince Mohammed, who is also minister of defense and chief of the influential Council of Economic and Development Affairs, plans to visit China on Aug. 29-31 and Japan for four days.
From Japan, Prince Mohammed will return to China to chair the Kingdom’s delegation to the Sept. 4-5 summit of G20 leaders in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, said a royal court statement, Sunday.
The deputy crown prince is likely to present to the G20 his economic reform plan, which envisages state spending of around SR270 billion in the next five years on projects to diversify the Saudi economy.
Speaking on the occasion of the visit of Prince Mohammed to Japan, Setsuo Ohmori, charge d’affaires at the Japanese embassy, said: “We would like to extend our wholehearted welcome to Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed… he is well-known in Japan as he has launched a wide range of initiatives to bring about reforms in the Kingdom.”
This visit should be a good opportunity for Japanese leaders and businessmen to look to Saudi Vision 2030, he added.
Ohmori said that “the Kingdom and Japan would agree upon renewal of economic cooperation in different fields, such as energy, industrial development, promotion of small and medium enterprises among others.”
The visit of Prince Mohammed to Tokyo is also expected to pave the way for diversification of the bilateral ties including security cooperation and cultural exchanges, he said.
Discussions with Japan for an MOU for cooperation in the energy sector is likely to be on agenda as it was recently approved by the Saudi cabinet, according to an SPA report.
Japan, which imports about 1.2 million barrels a day, and China, about 1 million barrels a day, are not only major energy customers of Saudi Arabia but also partners on a variety of energy-related joint ventures and partnerships.
In fact, Saudi Aramco continues to seek investment in Asian refineries in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam as well as China.
On several occasions in the past, China and Saudi Arabia have discussed growth prospects and areas of cooperation and found mutual interests in crude oil storage, logistics, infrastructure, industrial development, mining, technology, energy, renewables and sovereign wealth funds.
According to a Reuters report, Saudi Arabia plans to discuss energy cooperation agreements with China and Japan.
The report has referred to a decision made by the Saudi cabinet last Monday.
The Cabinet has approved to delegate a number of ministers to discuss with the Chinese side the following projects: a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to cooperate in the energy sector; an initial cooperation memorandum in the field of crude storage, said the report.
Referring to the visit of Prince Mohammed to China, Lu Kang, a spokesman of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that “at the invitation of Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of the State Council, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will visit China from Aug. 29 to Aug. 31 and join Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli for the first meeting of the high-level committee between governments of China and Saudi Arabia.”
Prince Mohammed will also attend the 11th G20 Summit, he added.
On the expanding energy cooperation between the Kingdom and Asia, a report said that Saudi Arabia has traditionally accounted for most of the crude imports by Asia, the world’s biggest oil-consuming region.
China and Japan are the front runners in term of oil consumption.
But the Kingdom is keen to diversify its relations with these two major countries in non-oil sector within the framework of the Saudi Vision 2030. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977051/world | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7417199474b3038bcd646e3ee8b9f84338b4ff5c0cfe21437abf824d460e830f.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T20:47:00 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | NAJRAN: A three-year-old boy was killed and three others were wounded in Najran in the latest cross-border rocket attack from Yemen, a Civil Defense official said on Saturday.Major Ali Al-Shahrani, civil defense spokesman in southwest Saudi Arabia, said a nine-year-old brother of the boy was also wounded when a Katyusha rocket hit their family’s home.Al-Shahrani said the rocket strike happened at about 8:50 a.m. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976171%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//jazan3.jpg | en | null | Houthi rocket kills 3-year-old in Najran | null | null | www.arabnews.com | NAJRAN: A three-year-old boy was killed and three others were wounded in Najran in the latest cross-border rocket attack from Yemen, a Civil Defense official said on Saturday.
Major Ali Al-Shahrani, civil defense spokesman in southwest Saudi Arabia, said a nine-year-old brother of the boy was also wounded when a Katyusha rocket hit their family’s home.
Al-Shahrani said the rocket strike happened at about 8:50 a.m.
The attack came a day after rockets fired from Yemen struck a power station in Najran, marking a rare hit on Saudi Arabia’s infrastructure after months of periodic bombardment of the area.
Attacks have intensified since the suspension in early August of UN-brokered peace talks between the Shiite Houthi rebels and their allies, and Yemen’s internationally recognized government which has the military support of a Saudi-led Arab coalition.
Ten people have been killed in Najran since August 16, when a single strike claimed seven lives.
The Arab coalition has also stepped up its air raids in Yemen since the peace talks collapsed.
The coalition intervened in March last year to support President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after the Houthis and their allies seized much of Yemen.
(Additional input from agencies) | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976171/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/1caca95bd5a4e7ceb4a02a2fa019692649833811e5aab0121428488a44966448.json |
[] | 2016-08-29T14:47:44 | null | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | KARBALA, Iraq: Daesh group has claimed it was behind a suicide attack that killed 18 people near Karbala, southwest of Baghdad.Five attackers armed with suicide vests, rifles and grenades killed its victims at a wedding party in the oasis town of Ain Al-Tamer, southwest of Baghdad, local officials said Monday. All the attackers were killed by security forces.“They were carrying Kalashnikovs, hand grenades. One of them blew himself up and the others were killed by the security forces,” the head of the central Euphrates operations command, Qais Khalaf, said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977086%2Fmiddle-east.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//7639655474118014.jpg | en | null | Suicide attackers kill 18 at wedding party in Iraq | null | null | www.arabnews.com | KARBALA, Iraq: Daesh group has claimed it was behind a suicide attack that killed 18 people near Karbala, southwest of Baghdad.
Five attackers armed with suicide vests, rifles and grenades killed its victims at a wedding party in the oasis town of Ain Al-Tamer, southwest of Baghdad, local officials said Monday. All the attackers were killed by security forces.
“They were carrying Kalashnikovs, hand grenades. One of them blew himself up and the others were killed by the security forces,” the head of the central Euphrates operations command, Qais Khalaf, said.
A member of the local council and a source at the provincial health directorate confirmed the death toll in the attack, which took place late on Sunday, and said at least 26 people were also wounded.
A statement on the Amaq news agency that supports Daesh said the attack was carried out by four of its suicide fighters against a “gathering of Shiites.”
Initial reports in local media late, citing security sources, blamed the killings on a dispute between two tribes at the wedding party.
Ain Al-Tamer is located about 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of the holy Shiite city of Karbala and lies on the edge of the province of Anbar, which was long a haven for jihadists.
Officials said the attackers started opening fire in a neighborhood of Ain Al-Tamer at around 1830 GMT on Sunday, although it was not immediately what their target was.
Five members of a same family were among the dead, according to a health official from Karbala province.
“The five terrorists were carrying lots of weapons and one of them blew himself up in the midst of our citizens,” said Farhan Jassem Mohammed, from the local council.
The military commanders said the attackers came from the Anbar desert to the west.
Karbala lies on the edge of the sprawling province of Anbar, which is overwhelmingly Sunni and has borders with Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria.
Iraq’s security forces have for months been battling Daesh fighters in Anbar, notching up key victories in the capital Ramadi and jihadist bastion Fallujah earlier this year.
Daesh claimed a truck bomb that killed at least 325 people in Baghdad’s Karrada shopping street in July, the deadliest attack since the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977086/middle-east | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/21fb7267638fe43bfed8fe1e3a5b5cc7fefe7562c4984b9a657302748d592e54.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T02:49:44 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: While five provinces registered a noted increase in the number of labor cases, reaching 23,416, sources at the Human Rights Commission said Saudis from private companies who filed complaints ranked first in labor issues which were received by the commission during 2015 and 2016. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977486%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//saudi-human-rights-commission.jpg | en | null | HRC records 23,416 labor cases | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: While five provinces registered a noted increase in the number of labor cases, reaching 23,416, sources at the Human Rights Commission said Saudis from private companies who filed complaints ranked first in labor issues which were received by the commission during 2015 and 2016.
The number of Saudis who filed complaints reached 259, while Egyptians ranked second with seven complaints, Syrians came third with five complaints, Yemenis followed with four cases, Palestinians, Indians and Pakistanis had three complaints each. Bangladeshis and Sri Lankans filed two complaints each, and Jordanian, Somali, Mali and Indonesians filed one complaint each.
The number of complaints against sponsors and private companies reached 142 individuals; while the number of complainants from Saudi banks reached 21 individuals; those who complained from recruitment offices stood at one person; and the number of complainants against hospitals reached 12 people. Cases in conflicts between individuals and companies reached 95 cases; demands to adopt suggestions reached five; legal consultations reached 21; objections to administrative decisions reached 39; review applications reached 32; compensations applications reached 16; medical mistakes reached seven; and complaints against long procedures reached nine.
The preliminary and higher committees at the Ministry of Labor stated in a report that the number of labor cases reached 23,416 cases in five provinces. The number of affected Saudis reached 2,326 people, while residents reached 5,463.
Makkah province registered 709 affected Saudis and 1,332 residents; the number of affected Saudis in Jeddah reached 3,702, and residents reached 4,565; Madinah had 1,562 Saudis and 1,336; Abha had 425 Saudis and 1,241 residents; Jazan had 172 Saudis and 367 residents; Yanbu had 286 Saudis and 490 residents; while Taif had 430 Saudis and 559 residents.
Lawyer and legal adviser Tahfer Saeed Al-Salem said the majority of labor problems in Jeddah, Makkah and Riyadh result from unfair dismissals, saying that unpaid salaries of workers are due to the problems related to loss of capital because of unsuccessful projects.
He added that around 80 percent of these cases end with a judicial ruling from the labor committee. He revealed that preliminary and higher committees suffer from lack of clear vision, and are unable to notify workers about the length of time each issue stays with each committee. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977486/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/af349ead0f22655d00d1a18e189f403645ee725d6ef8f755dd9c5657d7a668c1.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:47:43 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | BERLIN: Paul Wolfowitz, a Republican adviser to former US President George W. Bush, plans to vote for Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November presidential election despite his “serious reservations,” Der Spiegel magazine reported on Friday.Wolfowitz, who served as deputy defense secretary under Bush and also as president of the World Bank, said he viewed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as a security risk because of his admiration of Russian President Putin and his views on China, the magazine reported. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975966%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//paul-wolfowitz.jpg | en | null | Wolfowitz, former Republican adviser to Bush, on Clinton side | null | null | www.arabnews.com | BERLIN: Paul Wolfowitz, a Republican adviser to former US President George W. Bush, plans to vote for Democrat Hillary Clinton in the November presidential election despite his “serious reservations,” Der Spiegel magazine reported on Friday.
Wolfowitz, who served as deputy defense secretary under Bush and also as president of the World Bank, said he viewed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as a security risk because of his admiration of Russian President Putin and his views on China, the magazine reported.
“It’s important to make it clear how unacceptable he is,” the magazine quoted Wolfowitz as saying in an interview. Wolfowitz joins a long list of Republicans who have said they will not vote for Trump.
“I wish there was a candidate whom I could support enthusiastically. I will have to vote for Hillary Clinton, although I have serious reservations about her,” he said.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll this week showed that Clinton would win the key swing states of Florida, Ohio and Virginia, and have a 95 percent chance of beating Trump if the election were held now. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975966/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f3274cc4faf501fe913e9ef02a65601da14a617f3ba14ace8c3b7aaefb476fc6.json |
[
"Mohammed Fahad Al-Harthi",
"Editor In Chief"
] | 2016-08-30T02:49:03 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:46 | Saudi Arabia is presently making intensive international diplomatic and economic efforts. It is seeking strategic partnerships and beneficial relations that have a positive influence on its citizens as well as the region. The visits of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Pakistan, China and Japan come as part of these steps. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977526%2Fcolumns.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//mohammed-fahad-al-harthi.jpg | en | null | Saudi Arabia and strategic partnerships | null | null | www.arabnews.com | Saudi Arabia is presently making intensive international diplomatic and economic efforts. It is seeking strategic partnerships and beneficial relations that have a positive influence on its citizens as well as the region.
The visits of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Pakistan, China and Japan come as part of these steps.
After recent successful high-level trips to the US and France, Saudi Arabia is now looking East to build partnerships and further improve international relations. This comes after Saudi Arabia launched Vision 2030, which includes a plan for economic progress, huge development projects and tremendous opportunities.
Many countries and major global corporations have paid close attention to the Kingdom’s vision, realizing that partnership with Saudi Arabia will produce excellent opportunities and returns.
All eyes are thus on the G20 summit which brings together the world’s Top 20 countries. At the summit, Prince Mohammed will present Saudi Vision 2030 to the most important and the most powerful global forum.
Saudi Arabia is going through a transformation, which aims to build a modern and effective state with a comprehensive strategic vision; this is a project that many believe will take Saudi Arabia to a new stage with a different development plan. The new vision will decrease dependency on oil, diversify the economy and raise the level of competitiveness.
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the architect of Vision 2030, is working to implement the plan on the ground while, at the same time, maintaining an interest in strengthening political relations and interest-based relations with influential countries in the world.
With Pakistan, there is a deep-rooted and strategic relationship between the two countries. The deputy crown prince’s previous visit to Pakistan reinforced and strengthened the two countries’ strategic ties.
In China, a business giant, Saudi Arabia is seeking to build an economic partnership as both countries have a desire to open investment opportunities for companies to invest and build relationships that link Saudi-Chinese interests.
The visit to China comes in the wake of the successful visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to Riyadh last January. During that visit, 14 agreements and memorandums of understanding were signed.
The visit to Japan is also of great importance and focuses on building a strategic relationship with Tokyo. Saudi Arabia is considered one of Japan’s most important economic partners. In turn, Japan considers Saudi Vision 2030 a great opportunity to develop and promote relations.
Prince Mohammed’s visit to Tokyo is expected to lead to important agreements, and partnerships that will be to the advantage of both countries. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977526/columns | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/318085114b1f07a11606f65ba5cf4ebbf90e3c216ff16d348f16efc5625b808d.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:48:18 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: The Ministry of Haj and Umrah has assigned female units to assist pilgrims, inspect departments dealing with women during Haj, take needed notes and help them receive appropriate services.The women’s department at the ministry has played an important role in serving pilgrims over the years, carrying out several administrative, legal or social tasks, in addition to monitoring all women's issues during Haj and Umrah. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976531%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472313711995732000.jpg | en | null | Female units assigned to assist pilgrims | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: The Ministry of Haj and Umrah has assigned female units to assist pilgrims, inspect departments dealing with women during Haj, take needed notes and help them receive appropriate services.
The women’s department at the ministry has played an important role in serving pilgrims over the years, carrying out several administrative, legal or social tasks, in addition to monitoring all women's issues during Haj and Umrah.
The department employees conduct extensive field visits to women’s sections in civil institutions, pilgrims’ affairs offices, Haj missions, Umrah companies, as well as charities and hospitals in Makkah.
The aim of these visits is to boost public performance and services offered to female pilgrims.
An operational plan was adopted for the period starting with the first of Rajab to the first of the Muharram of the next Hijri year.
The women’s department pays field visits to get first-hand information about the administrative structure and human resources dedicated to providing services to women pilgrims, especially the elderly.
The women’s department receives complaints, records notes and serve as monitoring tool. It also activates services for women who work in civil institutions and tawafa establishments.
Coordination between women who are part of women committees at various institutions and the tawafa establishments covers all aspects of assistance provided to female pilgrims, like an annual operation plan about work of women’s committees in civil institutions, tawafa establishments in addition to the tasks and programs to be implemented during Haj 2016. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976531/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/3675ee54684cc771b4fba6fe7114a9ae735e0ccbf6159d8459ea88bb14de1c32.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-28T14:47:17 | null | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | ILIGAN, Philippines: Terrorists have staged a daring jailbreak in the southern Philippines, freeing 28 detainees in the latest in a series of mass escapes, officials said Sunday.About 50 heavily armed members of the Maute group, which has pledged allegiance to the Daesh group, raided the local jail in the southern city of Marawi on Saturday, freeing eight comrades who were arrested barely a week ago, police said.Twenty other detainees, held for other offenses, also escaped in the raid, provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Agustine Tello said.The f | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976591%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//phils.jpg | en | null | Daesh followers stage mass jailbreak in S. Philippines | null | null | www.arabnews.com | This photo taken on August 23, 2016 shows Philippine soldiers guarding members of the Maute extremist group aboard a military vehicle in Marawi City in the southern island of Mindanao, a day after they were arrested at a military checkpoint and who were later on August 27 freed by their comrades in a daring jailbreak. (AFP / RICHELE UMEL)
ILIGAN, Philippines: Terrorists have staged a daring jailbreak in the southern Philippines, freeing 28 detainees in the latest in a series of mass escapes, officials said Sunday.
About 50 heavily armed members of the Maute group, which has pledged allegiance to the Daesh group, raided the local jail in the southern city of Marawi on Saturday, freeing eight comrades who were arrested barely a week ago, police said.
Twenty other detainees, held for other offenses, also escaped in the raid, provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Agustine Tello said.
The freed members of the Maute group were arrested on August 22 after soldiers manning an army checkpoint found improvised bombs and pistols in the van they were driving.
The Maute group is one of several gangs in the southern region of Mindanao.
The group has carried out kidnappings and bombings and is believed to have led an attack on an army outpost in the Mindanao town of Butig in February.
The fighting there lasted a week, leaving numerous fatalities and forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes as helicopter gunships fought off the attackers.
During the Butig fighting the group's members were seen carrying black flags of the Daesh group, and bandanas bearing the jihadists' insignia were found in their base, the military said.
Authorities said they were investigating why the jail's guards did not resist Saturday's raid or why security had not been increased after high-risk suspects were brought in.
The jailbreak is just the latest mass escape from poorly secured Philippine jails, with the incidents often involving Muslim extremists.
In 2009, more than 100 armed men raided a jail in the strife-torn southern island of Basilan, freeing 31 prisoners, including several Muslim guerrillas.
The southern Philippines has been plagued by a Muslim separatist insurgency for over four decades, with the conflict leaving more than 120,000 dead.
President Rodrigo Duterte has been pursuing peace talks with the larger, more established Muslim insurgent groups, the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Ceasefires with these groups are still in force.
However the smaller groups like the Maute group and the Abu Sayyaf group, are not covered by the ceasefires and are not part of the peace process. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976591/world | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/cd46a1cdda442d86f1bdd43d6e41f4ec4b146afdfbafb8279b8069ee637b2d95.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-27T14:47:08 | null | 2016-08-27T11:50:52 | DHAKA: Bangladesh police stormed a militant hideout just outside Dhaka on Saturday, shooting dead three Islamist extremists, including the suspected mastermind of an attack on a cafe that killed 22 mostly foreign hostages last month.“We can see three dead bodies here,” senior police officer Sanwar Hossain told AFP.“Tamim Chowdhury is dead. He is the Gulshan attack mastermind and the leader of JMB (Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh),” he said, referring to a Bangladeshi-Canadian citizen believed to be behind the attack on the cafe in Dhaka. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976096%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//dhaka.jpg | en | null | Dhaka police kill 3 extremists, including attack 'mastermind' | null | null | www.arabnews.com | DHAKA: Bangladesh police stormed a militant hideout just outside Dhaka on Saturday, shooting dead three Islamist extremists, including the suspected mastermind of an attack on a cafe that killed 22 mostly foreign hostages last month.
“We can see three dead bodies here,” senior police officer Sanwar Hossain told AFP.
“Tamim Chowdhury is dead. He is the Gulshan attack mastermind and the leader of JMB (Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh),” he said, referring to a Bangladeshi-Canadian citizen believed to be behind the attack on the cafe in Dhaka.
Police earlier staged an hour-long gun battle with extremists at Paikpara in Narayanganj, a city 25 kilometers (16 miles) south of Dhaka, Hossain said.
Bangladesh national police chief A.K.M Shahidul Hoque told AFP police were “99 percent sure” that Tamim Chowdhury was in the hideout when police launched the assault.
Chowdhury, who returned from Canada in 2013, has been leading the banned JMB, which police say carried out the cafe attack in which 18 foreigners were shot and hacked to death in the country’s worst terror attack. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976096/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7e7d67a8d990bcf3746c660328031bf1b7275b543aa3e35488f3461ff2fec9a2.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-27T20:48:01 | null | 2016-08-27T22:28:34 | LONDON: Chelsea swept to the top of the Premier League with a 3-0 victory over Burnley, while Arsenal won 3-1 at Watford to ease the pressure on Arsene Wenger on Saturday.After a dismal title defense last season, Chelsea look revitalized under new manager Antonio Conte and the Italian was able to celebrate his third successive win after the most emphatic display of his brief reign. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976176%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//9744240399086826.jpg | en | null | Chelsea takes pole position; Arsenal ends winless run | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LONDON: Chelsea swept to the top of the Premier League with a 3-0 victory over Burnley, while Arsenal won 3-1 at Watford to ease the pressure on Arsene Wenger on Saturday.
After a dismal title defense last season, Chelsea look revitalized under new manager Antonio Conte and the Italian was able to celebrate his third successive win after the most emphatic display of his brief reign.
So disappointing last term, Eden Hazard has made a vibrant start to the new campaign and the Belgium midfielder put Chelsea ahead with a superb run and clinical finish from the edge of the penalty area in the ninth minute at Stamford Bridge.
Willian was back for Chelsea after recovering from a calf injury and the Brazil winger doubled their lead in the 41st minute before Nigeria’s Victor Moses came off the bench to net the hosts’ third in the 89th minute.
At Vicarage Road, Arsenal’s first victory of the season should silence Wenger’s critics at least temporarily.
Failing to win their first two matches while struggling to make an impact in the transfer market had prompted some Arsenal fans to turn on Wenger again after many protested against him last season.
But there were no complaints as Arsenal took the lead in the ninth minute when Santi Cazorla stroked home a penalty after Nordin Amrabat elbowed Alexis Sanchez.
Chile forward Sanchez increased Arsenal’s advantage five minutes before half time with a deft touch over Watford goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes.
Mesut Ozil was making his first start of the season after being rested following Euro 2016 and Arsenal’s German playmaker made up for lost time with a headed goal in first-half stoppage time.
Watford’s Roberto Pereyra reduced the deficit in the 57th minute, but the Hornets remain winless.
Leicester City finally secured the first win of their title defense with a 2-1 success against Swansea City at the King Power Stadium.
Claudio Ranieri’s side took the lead in the 32nd minute when Jamie Vardy finished off a typically efficient counter-attack from the champions and captain Wes Morgan lashed in the second in the 52nd minute.
Riyad Mahrez wasted a chance to make it three when the winger’s penalty was saved by Lukasz Fabianski and there was more frustration for Leicester when goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel came off injured.
But Leroy Fer’s 80th-minute goal for Swansea came too late to rescue a point for the visitors.
Danny Rose’s 72nd-minute equalizer earned Tottenham Hotspur a 1-1 draw with Liverpool at White Hart Lane.
James Milner gave Liverpool a deserved lead with a penalty in the 43rd minute after Roberto Firmino went down under the slightest contact by Erik Lamela.
But a sustained spell of second-half pressure climaxed when the unmarked Rose drilled home to preserve Tottenham’s unbeaten record.
“It’s not easy when you play a team that are perfect on the counter-attack and you need to take risks. The draw is a fair result,” Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino said.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp added: “When you take a point at Tottenham, for 99 percent of teams it would be a good thing, but it doesn’t feel too brilliant at the moment.”
Everton climbed to second place with a 1-0 win against Stoke City at Goodison Park.
Ronald Koeman’s team enjoyed a stroke of luck in the 51st minute when Leighton Baines’ penalty — awarded for a foul on Ashley Williams — was pushed onto a post by Shay Given, only for the ball to rebound off the Stoke goalkeeper’s head into the net for an own goal.
Southampton rescued a dramatic 1-1 draw against Sunderland as Jay Rodriguez’s 85th-minute strike crept past goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to cancel out Jermain Defoe’s 80th-minute penalty at St. Mary’s.
Scott Dann’s late leveller gave Crystal Palace a 1-1 draw against fellow strugglers Bournemouth at Selhurst Park.
Josh King fired Bournemouth in an 11th-minute lead before former Liverpool striker Christian Benteke won a penalty on his Palace debut.
Artur Boruc saved Yohan Cabaye’s spot-kick, but Palace defender Dann spared his teammate’s blushes with an equalizer three minutes into second-half stoppage time.
Manchester City host West Ham United on Sunday and West Bromwich Albion face Middlesbrough. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976176/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/37f4c6c7a45be0a807c28652d510231dd60c1b01589520d0d427317d5f66ecd4.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T08:49:10 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: The Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution in Riyadh has charged a Saudi man with the premeditated murder of his wife in an arson attack in a hotel two months ago.According to a local publication, the crime was described by the criminal investigation officers and also in the forensic report as “outrageous.”The report of the incident stated that the “crime was arson because large amounts of gasoline were found in the room,” and that “some evidence demonstrated unequivocally that someone was responsible for the fire.” | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976031%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//the-bureau-of-investigation1.jpg | en | null | Drug addict burns wife to death | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: The Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution in Riyadh has charged a Saudi man with the premeditated murder of his wife in an arson attack in a hotel two months ago.
According to a local publication, the crime was described by the criminal investigation officers and also in the forensic report as “outrageous.”
The report of the incident stated that the “crime was arson because large amounts of gasoline were found in the room,” and that “some evidence demonstrated unequivocally that someone was responsible for the fire.”
The victim’s family lawyer said that according to the investigation and some audio recordings, the woman was exposed to continuous domestic violence by her drug- addicted husband which makes him the prime suspect.
The lawyer also revealed that after investigation it was found that the wife had filed a complaint with the police which stated that she had been exposed to violence from her husband who was taking her money and forcing her to borrow money from her family in order for him to buy drugs.
The investigations also showed that the victim had been referred to the Social Affairs Department and then to the social welfare protection center but she preferred not to stay there and returned to her husband in order to care for her three children.
According to the lawyer, the police have provided the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution with audio recordings found on the suspect’s phone which contain forced confessions by the woman speaking to the husband, saying she planned to commit suicide as a result of the problems he had caused her.
The lawyer further disclosed that in the last section of one of the recordings the woman said to her husband, “Do you want me to continue and say more?” This showed that the wife was following her husband’s orders. It was clear to the investigators that the husband was responsible for his wife’s murder.
The case will be referred to the Criminal Court in Riyadh for trial. The prosecutors will charge the husband with murder and demand the death penalty for his crimes.
The incident occurred in a hotel after the defendant moved his family there because he was unable to pay rent for his apartment after being dismissed from his job.
On the night of the incident, according to the investigations, the husband met a cleaner at the hotel and gave him his cigarettes and a lighter and told him not to go into the room in the event he heard any cries or screams. The husband then went to a nearby mosque.
The investigations explained that shortly after fire broke out in the room where the woman and her three children were, she threw the children one by one from a window, but she unfortunately failed to escape and was consumed by fire. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976031/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/ce30762ea97e5f3338deb871911c270e75c99bf97c2f0fc87335fc6884f318dc.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:47:46 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Crown Prince Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy premier and interior minister, has approved the appointment of Waheeb Mohammed Al-Sahli as undersecretary for Madinah Governorate.The appointment was based on the selection of Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976561%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//waheeb-and-mohammed.jpg | en | null | Crown prince OKs key appointment | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Crown Prince Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy premier and interior minister, has approved the appointment of Waheeb Mohammed Al-Sahli as undersecretary for Madinah Governorate.
The appointment was based on the selection of Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman.
Al-Sahli is considered one of the outstanding and qualified cadres in administrative work, where he has held a number of jobs at the Madinah Governorate. He was secretary of the Haj Committee in the Madinah Region, secretary-general of the Region Council, acting director general of services and assistant undersecretary for developmental affairs. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in political sciences from California University, USA.
Al-Sahli expressed his thanks to the crown prince and Madinah governor for the confidence they have placed in him, hoping to live up to their expectations.
In another development, the Madinah governor issued a directive on the assignment of Mohammed Ibrahim Abdulhamid Abbas as assistant undersecretary for developmental affairs and media spokesman of the governorate.
Abbas obtained a master’s degree in Projects Engineering Management from the Jeddah-based King Abdulaziz University. He is highly qualified with extensive work experience.
Abbas expressed happiness over the confidence reposed in him, which, he said, will be an incentive for more efforts and work. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976561/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f09dcb74611f93595901688b8f470cfd094daba47f36f96c304dade3f97e298b.json |
[
"Carlos Valdez"
] | 2016-08-26T20:47:35 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | LA PAZ, Bolivia: Striking Bolivian miners kidnapped and beat to death the country’s deputy interior minister in a shocking spasm of violence following weeks of tension over dwindling paychecks in a region hit hard by falling metal prices. The miners were demanding they be allowed to work for private companies, who promise to put more cash in their pockets. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975661%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//6014371551022831.jpg | en | null | Officials: Striking miners kill deputy minister in Bolivia | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LA PAZ, Bolivia: Striking Bolivian miners kidnapped and beat to death the country’s deputy interior minister in a shocking spasm of violence following weeks of tension over dwindling paychecks in a region hit hard by falling metal prices. The miners were demanding they be allowed to work for private companies, who promise to put more cash in their pockets.
The issue has bedeviled President Evo Morales, who began as a champion of the working class and privatized the nation’s mining industry, only to see his support crater amid the downturn. Miners say Morales has become a shill of the rich, and done little to help them make ends meet as the economy slows.
Deputy Minister Rodolfo Llanes had traveled Thursday to the scene of the violent protests in an effort to negotiate with the strikers who armed themselves with dynamite seized several highways.
Instead, Illanes was “savagely beaten” to death by miners, Defense Minister Reymi Ferreira told Red Uno television, his voice breaking.
Government Minister Carlos Romero called it a “cowardly and brutal killing” and asked that the body of Illanes, whose formal title is vice minister of the interior regime, be turned over to authorities.
Earlier, Romero had said that Illanes had been kidnapped and possibly tortured, but wasn’t able to confirm reports that he had been killed by the striking informal miners, who are demanding the right to associate with private companies, among other issues.
“This is a political conspiracy,” Morales said at a news conference on Friday. Calling for three days of official mourning, he criticized the “cowardly attitude” of the protesters and insisted that his government had “always been open” to negotiation.
The fatal beating came after the killings of two protesters in clashes with police, deaths that likely fueled the tensions.
Illanes had gone to Panduro, 80 miles (130 kilometers) south of the La Paz, to open a dialogue with the striking miners, who have blockaded a highway there since Monday. Thousands of passengers and vehicles are stranded on roads blocked by the strikers.
Officials say he was taken hostage by the miners on Thursday morning. At midday, Illanes said on his Twitter account: “My health is fine, my family can be calm.” There are reports that he had heart problems.
Bolivia’s informal or artisan miners number about 100,000 and work in self-managed cooperatives. They want to be able to associate with private companies, but are currently prohibited from doing so. The government argues that if they associate with multinational companies they will no longer be cooperatives.
The National Federation of Mining Cooperatives of Bolivia, strong allies of Morales when metal prices were high, was organized in the 1980s amid growing unemployment in the sector that followed the closure of state mines.
Federation members went on an indefinite protest after negotiations over the mining legislation failed. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975661/world | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/096bd5a7d3e86e841f7a28d77330ae684a409cec0577ebe22aad1ed124c1dc8e.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-27T20:47:51 | null | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | LONDON: Prime Minister Theresa May wants to trigger Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union without a vote in Parliament beforehand, a report said Saturday.A source in her Downing Street office said the Daily Telegraph report was speculation but added that May was “committed to delivering on the verdict the public gave” in the June referendum, when 52 percent voted for Britain to leave the EU.May’s government already faces a legal challenge to stop it beginning the process of leaving the EU without an act of parliament. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976161%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//5153914019086075.jpg | en | null | British PM to trigger EU pull-out ‘without Parliament vote’ | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LONDON: Prime Minister Theresa May wants to trigger Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union without a vote in Parliament beforehand, a report said Saturday.
A source in her Downing Street office said the Daily Telegraph report was speculation but added that May was “committed to delivering on the verdict the public gave” in the June referendum, when 52 percent voted for Britain to leave the EU.
May’s government already faces a legal challenge to stop it beginning the process of leaving the EU without an act of parliament.
Lawyers from the Mishcon de Reya lawfirm are poised to challenge the government in the English High Court, arguing that May cannot trigger Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty — the legal process for leaving the bloc — without a parliamentary debate and vote authorizing it to do so.
A majority of members of parliament’s lower House of Commons campaigned for Britain to remain in the EU, including May.
Once Article 50 is triggered, it would start a two-year countdown on Britain’s exit from the EU.
May has said it will not be triggered this year, the government needing time to shape Britain’s exit objectives first.
Meanwhile Gus O’Donnell, the former head of the civil service, said Brexit was not inevitable and Britain could still remain a part of a changed EU.
“It very much depends what happens to public opinion and whether the EU changes” before Britain was ready to leave, he told The Times newspaper.
“It might be that the broader, more loosely aligned group, is something that the UK is happy being a member of.”
He told BBC radio that, elections in France and Germany next year meant “it is not even clear which leaders our prime minister will be negotiating with, so I don’t think there’s any great rush to do it.”
Bookmakers believe there is a one in eight chance of a second Brexit referendum before the end of 2020. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976161/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/7de81744fcea739de1fd6ad185ae92ddde2e39ae4a261b1fed581d212c870954.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T08:49:00 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Saudi Ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan has said that the Iraqi government has not yet acted against the threats to his life by Shiite militant groups.The envoy posted the comment on his Twitter account after threats against him were issued by a Shiite leader close to the government.Ethel Najafi, leader at the Iraqi National Army in Mosul, said that the ongoing hate rhetoric by the Popular Mobilization Militias (Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi) against the Saudi ambassador is an act of terror. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976036%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//thamer.jpg | en | null | Baghdad not doing enough to protect Saudi envoy | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Saudi Ambassador to Iraq Thamer Al-Sabhan has said that the Iraqi government has not yet acted against the threats to his life by Shiite militant groups.
The envoy posted the comment on his Twitter account after threats against him were issued by a Shiite leader close to the government.
Ethel Najafi, leader at the Iraqi National Army in Mosul, said that the ongoing hate rhetoric by the Popular Mobilization Militias (Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi) against the Saudi ambassador is an act of terror.
After the failed assassination attempt against the Saudi ambassador, Aws Al-Khafaji, a leader of Shiite faction Abu Al-Fadl Al-Abbas militia, said in TV remarks that Al-Sabhan’s hostility toward Iraq is clear and that the militia does not want him to stay in Iraq.
“We don’t want Al-Sabhan in Iraq, we hold a vendetta against him. If he is assassinated, it will be an honor for everyone,” another Shiite militia leader said.
Najafi said that such a threat against an ambassador who works legally in Iraq and is recognized by the Iraqi government is unacceptable.
He urged the Iraqi government to take act against the instigators and provide protection to the ambassador, who cooperates with all Iraqi factions alike.
An Iraqi political source said that Aws Al-Khafaji has received orders to attack Al-Sabhan from Ali Akbar Mohammadi, leader of the Iraqi popular mobilization at the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad.
Al-Khafaji is the person who runs the popular mobilization militias and plans, controls and issues orders. He works with Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force, an Iraqi source said. “The main tasks of these militias are to carry out and comply with orders coming from Akbar Mohammadi.”
Al-Khafaji’s faction is the weakest Shiite group, especially after it lost a large number of its members in Sayyidah Zaynab, in the southern suburbs of Damascus. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976036/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/eb8628931616688950532a2bc941661969518d82c60b9fa1c3c4cd06aa1fd875.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-31T02:48:12 | null | 2016-08-31T03:00:00 | BEIJING: Housing Minister Majid Al-Hogail and the Chinese vice minister of commerce on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two governments for cooperation in the area of housing, Saudi Press Agency reported.The MoU coincides with the visit of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the People’s Republic of China. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977916%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016/1472567005504808800_0.jpg | en | null | KSA, China sign MoU for housing units in Al-Ahsa | null | null | www.arabnews.com | BEIJING: Housing Minister Majid Al-Hogail and the Chinese vice minister of commerce on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two governments for cooperation in the area of housing, Saudi Press Agency reported.
The MoU coincides with the visit of Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the People’s Republic of China.
The Saudi minister also signed another MOU between the Ministry of Housing and the Government of the Ningxia Region, for the development of Al-Asfar District in Al-Ahsa and construction of 100,000 housing units with all required service facilities.
The deal also included the establishment of a joint company in the Kingdom to implement the housing project in Al-Ahsa.
In a press statement, the Saudi minister said the MOUs with the Chinese companies come as an extension of other deals with local and global real estate development companies, with the intent of increasing housing supplies and providing products with high quality at affordable prices.
Giving more details on the new project, the minister said Al-Asfar District, in Al-Ahsa, occupies an area of 54 million square meters, where some 100,000 housing units will be built, including high quality villas and apartments with different options.
This step comes in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, and demonstrates the keen interest of the two governments to bolster cooperation between the two countries in all areas including housing, expanding investments, activating business and commercial facilities, and achieving joint development and prosperity, he said.
He stressed that the ministry would continue signing with reputed real estate development firms to benefit from their experiences in developing housing projects of highly technical specifications that would meet aspirations of the ministry and citizens as well.
He said housing projects, carried out with private sector companies, would cover all parts of the Kingdom.
The ministry aims to find partnerships in the area of housing to develop and transfer new building technologies, train cadres to operate and maintain them, encourage investors to implement projects and real estate development companies to enter housing programs, he said. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977916/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5e0f1c2918840da6121c6c3957a25b56074edf1c1dc7e9e3cf51b1f8861e77a8.json |
[
"Frank Jordans"
] | 2016-08-28T20:47:20 | null | 2016-08-28T22:30:00 | BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday slammed those countries in Europe who say they won’t take in Muslim refugees, a position that several eastern European governments have taken in response to the influx of migrants from the Islamic world.Merkel said she was hopeful that European Union members would reach an agreement on outstanding questions arising from the migrant crisis, one of which is how to fairly distribute asylum-seekers among all the bloc’s 28 member states. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976676%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//merkel.jpg | en | null | Merkel rejects Muslim migrant ban, urges fair distribution | null | null | www.arabnews.com | BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday slammed those countries in Europe who say they won’t take in Muslim refugees, a position that several eastern European governments have taken in response to the influx of migrants from the Islamic world.
Merkel said she was hopeful that European Union members would reach an agreement on outstanding questions arising from the migrant crisis, one of which is how to fairly distribute asylum-seekers among all the bloc’s 28 member states.
She told German public broadcaster ARD that “everybody has to do their bit” and didn’t rule out the possibility of letting some countries take in fewer migrants if they contribute more financially instead.
“How the individual components are weighted will have to be seen,” said Merkel.
But she reiterated her stance that blocking refugees based on their religion was misguided.
“What I continue to think is wrong is that some say ‘we generally don’t want Muslims in our country, regardless of whether there’s a humanitarian need or not,’” she said. “We’re going to have to keep discussing that.”
Her comments come almost a year after Merkel’s decision to allow hundreds of thousands of migrants stuck in other European countries to come to Germany.
That move prompted a further wave of migration through the Balkans that culminated in the daily arrival of more than 10,000 asylum-seekers at German borders at one point.
Officials have spoken of more than a million arrivals in 2015, but Germany’s top migration official said the actual figure was likely lower once duplicate registrations and people who traveled on to other countries are excluded.
Frank-Juergen Weise, the head of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, said in an interview in the German weekly Bild am Sonntag that he expects a sharp drop in numbers in 2016 compared with last year.
Weise told German weekly Bild am Sonntag that his agency is planning for between 250,000 and 300,000 new arrivals this year.
The influx prompted countries such as Hungary to sharply criticize Merkel, and even accuse her of threatening Europe’s stability.
In Germany, anti-migrant feeling has increased too. A nationalist party to the right of Merkel’s Christian Democrats has received a surge in support and chancellor, who has stuck by her motto “we will manage,” has seen her popularity ratings fall.
A poll published Sunday by Bild am Sonntag found that 50 percent of respondents opposed a fourth term for Merkel, should she decide to run again in 2017. The survey of 501 voters, conducted Aug. 25 by the research firm TNS Emnid, had a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points.
In her interview Sunday, Merkel declined to be drawn on whether she would run again, or even when she might announce her intention to stand again. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976676/world | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/b53fb88bd64743dbad6bf67f89c947900f8f32399430f52e8148a77e48197538.json |
[] | 2016-08-28T02:48:14 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | MUMBAI: Actress Manisha Koirala is back in Bollywood with “Dear Maya” after she took a break for her battle with cancer. However, she doesn’t call the film her second innings. According to The Indian Express, the actress, who hails from Nepal, was recently seen shooting for the film at the zoo in New Delhi.“This movie has an interesting script. This is not my second innings. I was always here … And I am around, but yes I will do one film in a year.” Manisha said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976371%2Foffbeat.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1472326920007262600.jpg | en | null | ‘Dear Maya’ not Koirala’s 2nd innings in Bollywood | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MUMBAI: Actress Manisha Koirala is back in Bollywood with “Dear Maya” after she took a break for her battle with cancer. However, she doesn’t call the film her second innings. According to The Indian Express, the actress, who hails from Nepal, was recently seen shooting for the film at the zoo in New Delhi.
“This movie has an interesting script. This is not my second innings. I was always here … And I am around, but yes I will do one film in a year.” Manisha said.
“You have to evolve with time. I feel one should age gracefully, tastefully and with acceptance. So that is really important. I feel one should evolve with the time,” said the actress, who was in Mumbai to walk the ramp for a brand named Chola at the Lakme Fashion Week (LFW).
Just like young designers who are trying to push boundaries through their creations in the industry, Manisha also wants Bollywood actresses to do the same rather than just focusing on glamor.
“We had it (path-breaking roles) in the times of Smita Patil and Shabana Azmi and in between we lost it.” | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976371/offbeat | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/e6fe9fd0383e1d00aa6d1d36cec46c8abb33cefac2557be047bcea63bc58d970.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:47:04 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: The Health Ministry called on citizens and residents returning from Brazil and other Zika virus-affected countries to take steps to prevent importing the virus into the Kingdom.“Those who are coming from Brazil and other affected countries, which are listed on the ministry’s official website, are asked to see a doctor and disclose the date of travel in case the symptoms appeared, such as high temperature, rash, joint and muscle pain or eye redness within two weeks of returning from these countries.” the ministry said in a statement. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976536%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//ministry-of-health-moh-logo.jpg | en | null | Travelers from Brazil told to take precaution | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: The Health Ministry called on citizens and residents returning from Brazil and other Zika virus-affected countries to take steps to prevent importing the virus into the Kingdom.
“Those who are coming from Brazil and other affected countries, which are listed on the ministry’s official website, are asked to see a doctor and disclose the date of travel in case the symptoms appeared, such as high temperature, rash, joint and muscle pain or eye redness within two weeks of returning from these countries.” the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said people should follow adequate procedures that prevent mosquito bites for at least three weeks after returning from travel, regardless of the presence or absence of symptoms. These measures include the use of mosquito-repellant skin sprays or ointments, not sleeping in open areas, and the removal of mosquito breeding sites near their accommodations. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976536/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/dd9cd3670ecdfff4d40802d5fc499751b496d5981d4f26d0defde632f13d57fa.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-27T20:47:30 | null | 2016-08-27T05:51:02 | LOS ANGELES: Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn roared back to form with a superb eight-under-par 64 to claim a three-shot lead at the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open on Friday.British Open champion Ariya limped out of the Olympics last week after a knee injury derailed her bid for a medal after she had taken a first-round lead.But the talented 20-year-old rediscovered her best form in sunny conditions at Calgary’s Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club to storm to the top of the leaderboard. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976141%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//9679606162953571.jpg | en | null | Ariya roars back to claim Calgary lead | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LOS ANGELES: Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn roared back to form with a superb eight-under-par 64 to claim a three-shot lead at the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open on Friday.
British Open champion Ariya limped out of the Olympics last week after a knee injury derailed her bid for a medal after she had taken a first-round lead.
But the talented 20-year-old rediscovered her best form in sunny conditions at Calgary’s Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club to storm to the top of the leaderboard.
The Thai youngster, enjoying a breakthrough season with four victories and nine top 10 finishes, carded eight birdies and no bogeys in a flawless round which left her at 12 under for the tournament.
Ariya said her sore knee had improved gradually over the course of the week following her withdrawal in the third round in Rio.
“I feel like I’m okay. I wanted to see how I’m feeling. But after that, like on Monday, it didn’t hurt that much and today it’s getting a lot better,” she said.
South Korea’s Chella Choi Woon-Jung had started the day in sole possession of the lead, completing her weather-disrupted first round to finish with a seven-under-par 65.
But Choi was unable to build on her lead in a rollercoaster second round, notching four birdies and three bogeys to finish with a one-under-par 71, four off the lead.
South Korea’s Chun In-Gee was three behind Ariya on nine under after a see-saw five-under-par round which included an eagle, six birdies and three bogeys.
Northern Ireland’s Stephanie Meadow — who lit up the first round with a 66 — was also three back after a second round 69.
Five players finished the second round on eight under, four adrift of the lead. They included New Zealand’s world number one and defending champion Lydia Ko, who is gunning for her fourth victory in the tournament.
Ko appeared to be building a head of steam with four birdies in a row between the ninth and 12th holes to move to nine under.
But a bogey on the 14th checked her momentum as she finished the day four behind. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976141/sports | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5c7c78acffc13729cdba44e12e70ee414b7e136660ef9d586b09b490731bb2fd.json |
[] | 2016-08-31T14:48:07 | null | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | JEDDAH: Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Khalid Al-Falih said Saudi Arabia does not target a specific figure for its oil production and that its output is based on customers’ needs.“We in Saudi Arabia do not have a targeted number to reach. The Kingdom’s production meets the requirements of the customers, whether they are outside or inside the Kingdom,” Al-Falih told the Al-Arabiya television channel.“The Kingdom’s production policy will maintain a large degree of responsibility,” he said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977981%2Feconomy.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/31/08/2016//khalid_al-falih.jpg | en | null | Saudi Arabia doesn’t target specific level of oil output: Energy minister | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Khalid Al-Falih said Saudi Arabia does not target a specific figure for its oil production and that its output is based on customers’ needs.
“We in Saudi Arabia do not have a targeted number to reach. The Kingdom’s production meets the requirements of the customers, whether they are outside or inside the Kingdom,” Al-Falih told the Al-Arabiya television channel.
“The Kingdom’s production policy will maintain a large degree of responsibility,” he said.
Speaking during an official visit to China, Al-Falih said that despite low crude prices, “demand for oil does not worry me,” adding that demand for crude in China remains “very healthy.”
Saudi Arabia started to increase production in June to meet a seasonal rise in domestic demand as well as higher export requirements. Industry sources have told Reuters that Riyadh could boost production to a record in August.
Saudi Arabia produced 10.67 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude, the most in its history, in July. Al-Falih told Reuters last week that production in August had remained around that level, though he could not cite a specific number.
Saudi Arabia has a production capacity of 12.5 million bpd, giving it the ability to boost output in case of any global shortage.
Al-Falih said that production level was not expected to be reached unless there were unexpected outages.
“The market now is saturated with oversupply and we don’t see in the short term a need for the Kingdom to reach its maximum production capacity,” he told the TV channel.
The minister is part of an official Saudi visit headed by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman aimed at bolstering relations with China, a top energy customer and trade partner. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977981/economy | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/f37adeef58ab9028c4ac8cc4053990a3bbcf520d109a515175c876c3ce15b442.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-26T20:48:27 | null | 2016-08-26T17:49:24 | DARAYA: Rebels and civilians, many in tears, began evacuating the Syrian town of Daraya on Friday after a four-year army siege, in a blow for the beleaguered opposition.The evacuation came after a deal struck by President Bashar Assad’s government and opposition forces in the town, which is near Damascus and was one of the first to rise up against the regime.The fighters and their families left the devastated town aboard buses escorted by ambulances and Red Crescent vehicles, an AFP reporter said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975666%2Fmiddle-east.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//6573673068216681.jpg | en | null | Evacuation begins from Daraya, symbol of Syria revolt | null | null | www.arabnews.com | DARAYA: Rebels and civilians, many in tears, began evacuating the Syrian town of Daraya on Friday after a four-year army siege, in a blow for the beleaguered opposition.
The evacuation came after a deal struck by President Bashar Assad’s government and opposition forces in the town, which is near Damascus and was one of the first to rise up against the regime.
The fighters and their families left the devastated town aboard buses escorted by ambulances and Red Crescent vehicles, an AFP reporter said.
The first bus to emerge from Daraya carried mostly children, elderly people and women.
Government troops waved their weapons in celebration when buses carrying rebels left the town, and taunted the fighters by chanting pro-regime slogans.
Inside Daraya, which has been surrounded by loyalist forces since 2012 and suffered constant bombardment, tearful residents said final goodbyes, a local rebel told AFP.
“This is the hardest moment, everyone is crying, young and old,” he said on condition of anonymity.
State news agency SANA, which announced the deal on Thursday, said 700 rebels and their families would go to rebel-controlled Idlib and thousands of civilians would be taken to government reception centers.
The evacuation is expected to last until Sunday, and a military source said the army would then enter Daraya.
A rebel official told AFP the civilians would go to regions under regime control around the capital and rebels will go to Idlib “or sort out their situation with the regime.”
A military source said 300 rebels and their families would be evacuated during Friday.
Daraya council said on Facebook that civilians would be taken to the government-held town of Hrajela in Western Ghouta, outside Damascus.
“From there they will continue to the areas they wish to go to,” it said.
The council said fighters and their families would be taken to northern Syria, escorted by the Red Crescent.
The United Nations said it was not involved in negotiating the deal, although a UN team would enter Daraya to identify civilian needs.
UN envoy Staffan de Mistura said it was “tragic that repeated appeals to lift the siege of Daraya... and cease the fighting, have never been heeded.”
It was “imperative” that its residents be protected and evacuated only voluntarily, he said.
“The world is watching.”
Daraya is just 15 minutes drive from Damascus and even closer to the government’s key Mazzeh air base.
Daraya was seen as a symbolic bastion of the March 2011 uprising that began with peaceful protests against Assad’s government, before degenerating into a war that has killed more than 290,000 people.
Rebels accused the government of killing some 500 people in a military operation in Daraya in August 2012.
Friday’s evacuation provoked anger and bitterness among opposition supporters, and the rebel said residents wept as they prepared to leave.
“People are saying goodbye to one another, children are bidding their schools farewell, mothers are saying goodbye to the martyrs in the graves,” he said.
“People are gathering their memories and the few possessions they have left to preserve the memory of the four years of siege, hunger and shelling.”
The rebel said the decision to evacuate had been taken because of deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
“The town is no longer inhabitable, it has been completely destroyed,” he said.
In four years, just one food aid convoy entered Daraya, in June, shortly after a convoy carrying medicine.
The arrival of the food was followed by heavy regime bombardment that residents said stalled distribution.
According to the UN, nearly 600,000 live under siege across Syria, most surrounded by government forces, although rebels and jihadists also use the tactic.
Long sieges have prompted rebels in several locations to agree evacuation deals with the regime, prompting activists to accuse Damascus of using “starve or surrender” tactics.
On Friday, the UN said only a single full aid convoy had reached besieged areas of Syria in August, denouncing the “wholly unacceptable” level of access.
In Geneva, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed efforts to resume Syrian peace talks, with De Mistura briefly joining them.
As the meeting got under way, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to step up efforts to ensure humanitarian aid reaches civilians in the battlefront northern city of Aleppo.
Moscow and Washington back opposing sides in the Syria war which has become a complex conflict involving several regional powers as well as jihadists. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975666/middle-east | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/801f0fe819e0f97e8a85049383dc654208240865fe089d38f5d58b2bb01ca63a.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-30T02:48:11 | null | 2016-08-30T01:21:13 | ROME: The Italian coast guard said it had coordinated the rescue on Monday of about 6,500 migrants off of Libya in one of its busiest days of life-saving in recent years.Dramatic images showed migrants wearing life jackets jumping off one of their boats into the Mediterranean and swimming toward rescuers.“The command center coordinated 40 rescue operations” that included vessels from Italy, humanitarian organizations as well as the EU’s border agency Frontex, and “saved 6,500 migrants,” the coast guard wrote on Twitter. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977531%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//6306227500847271.jpg | en | null | Some 6,500 migrants rescued off Libya: coast guard | null | null | www.arabnews.com | ROME: The Italian coast guard said it had coordinated the rescue on Monday of about 6,500 migrants off of Libya in one of its busiest days of life-saving in recent years.
Dramatic images showed migrants wearing life jackets jumping off one of their boats into the Mediterranean and swimming toward rescuers.
“The command center coordinated 40 rescue operations” that included vessels from Italy, humanitarian organizations as well as the EU’s border agency Frontex, and “saved 6,500 migrants,” the coast guard wrote on Twitter.
On Sunday more than 1,100 migrants were rescued in the same area, though August has been slightly less busy than years past. The total number of arrivals in Italy this year, prior to Monday’s rescues, was at around 105,000, according to the UN refugee agency.
More than 3,000 migrants have died at sea while trying to reach either Greece or Italy since the start of this year, an increase of some 50 percent on the same period in 2015. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977531/world | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/ecd24af4be595e87fb38469248394d5f347876f506858df0efda153fc9650c07.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:48:40 | null | 2016-08-30T22:45:55 | CENTURION, South Africa: Fast bowler Dale Steyn set up a series-clinching 204-run win for South Africa on the fourth day of the second and final Test against New Zealand at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.Steyn took three wickets with his first 11 balls of the innings and finished with five for 33 as New Zealand were bowled out for 195 despite a defiant innings of 76 by Henry Nicholls.It looked as though it would be easy for the hosts when Steyn and Vernon Philander ripped through New Zealand’s top four batsmen for seven runs inside the first four overs of the innings. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977606%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//3946248659030689.jpg | en | null | Steyn sets up South African series win | null | null | www.arabnews.com | CENTURION, South Africa: Fast bowler Dale Steyn set up a series-clinching 204-run win for South Africa on the fourth day of the second and final Test against New Zealand at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.
Steyn took three wickets with his first 11 balls of the innings and finished with five for 33 as New Zealand were bowled out for 195 despite a defiant innings of 76 by Henry Nicholls.
It looked as though it would be easy for the hosts when Steyn and Vernon Philander ripped through New Zealand’s top four batsmen for seven runs inside the first four overs of the innings.
But the left-handed Nicholls, playing in his sixth Test match, displayed courage and concentration in making his second Test half-century and highest score to delay South Africa’s celebrations.
He found a similarly determined partner in BJ Watling, who made 32 in a two-hour, 68-run fifth wicket partnership, while Mitchell Santner, Doug Bracewell and Tim Southee all provided varying degrees of resistance.
Nicholls was last man out after batting for 255 minutes. He faced 140 balls and hit 12 fours.
Steyn bowled Tom Latham with the first ball of the final innings, then had Latham’s fellow opener, Martin Guptill, caught at first slip, also for a first ball duck, off the final ball of the over.
The magnitude of New Zealand’s task was shown in the second over when captain and first innings top-scorer Kane Williamson was struck a painful blow on the left hand by a ball from Vernon Philander which reared up off a good length. He required lengthy treatment before resuming his innings.
The team physiotherapist went onto the field twice more to treat the player before Williamson was caught behind off Philander for five.
In between, Ross Taylor was trapped leg before wicket by an unplayable ball from Steyn, which skidded through barely above ankle height off a pitch with increasingly unpredictable bounce.
Latham tried to leave the ball from Steyn that bowled him but it lifted sharply and bounced off his raised bat onto the stumps.
Guptill, a heavy scorer in limited overs international cricket, again raised doubts about his technique in Test cricket when he edged a ball that seamed away from him.
In three innings in the truncated series, Latham and Guptill scored a combined 23 runs and the highest total at the fall of the second wicket was 13, putting pressure on Williamson and the remaining batsmen.
Watling was dropped by Stiaan van Zyl at third slip off Philander when he had five and two runs later seemed lucky to get the benefit of the doubt from television umpire Richard Illingworth when the South Africans appeared convinced that he had gloved Philander to De Kock.
South Africa added 27 runs in 13 overs, for the loss of Philander’s wicket, before declaring their second innings on 132 for seven. Temba Bavuma made 40 not out. Tim Southee bowled Philander and finished with three for 46.
SCOREBOARD
South Africa (first innings): 481-8 decl.
New Zealand (first innings): 214
South Africa (second innings):
S. Cook lbw Boult 4
Q. de Kock c Williamson b Bracewell 50
H. Amla c Guptill b Southee 1
J. Duminy lbw Southee 0
F. du Plessis c Taylor b Boult 6
T. Bavuma not out 40
S. van Zyl c Watling b Wagner 5
V. Philander b Southee 14
D. Piedt not out 0
Extras: 12
Total (7 wkts decl, 47 overs) 132
Fall of wickets: 1-31, 2-32, 3-32, 4-47, 5-82, 6-98, 7-129.
Bowling: Southee 16-6-46-3 (1w), Boult 14-3-44-2, Bracewell 7-2-19-1, Wagner 10-1-18-1 (1nb, 1w).
New Zealand (second innings):
T. Latham b Steyn 0
M. Guptill c Amla b Steyn 0
K. Williamson c De Kock b Philander 5
R. Taylor lbw b Steyn 0
H. Nicholls c Rabada b Steyn 76
B. Watling lbw Piedt 32
M. Santner b Steyn 16
D. Bracewell lbw Philander 30
T. Southee b Rabada 14
N. Wagner lbw Rabada 3
T. Boult not out 0
Extras: 19
Total: 195
Fall of wkts: 1-0, 2-3, 3-5, 4-7, 5-75, 6-118, 7-164, 8-187, 9-195.
Bowling: Steyn 16.2-4-33-5, Philander 14-4-34-2 (1w), Rabada 13-2-54-2 (1w), Van Zyl 3-1-5-0, Piedt 12-3-52-1. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977606/sports | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/5e27397018bbc5fcaf7a050cf4477d85446b1850f1d336693e8ecc1188ef513c.json |
[
"Sultan Al-Sughair"
] | 2016-08-29T02:49:06 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | DAMMAM: Recent archaeological findings in the Eastern Province show that the area was home to a civilization more than 7,000 years ago.These discoveries by Saudi and international teams, under the supervision of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH), highlight the cultural and historical heritage of the Kingdom.The findings also reflect on the Eastern Province’s important role in the commercial dealings between the peoples of ancient civilizations. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977031%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//1472380441983700600.jpg | en | null | Archaeological finds reflect Saudi Arabia’s rich heritage | null | null | www.arabnews.com | DAMMAM: Recent archaeological findings in the Eastern Province show that the area was home to a civilization more than 7,000 years ago.
These discoveries by Saudi and international teams, under the supervision of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTNH), highlight the cultural and historical heritage of the Kingdom.
The findings also reflect on the Eastern Province’s important role in the commercial dealings between the peoples of ancient civilizations.
Surveys conducted so far show that there are more than 300 archaeological sites in the region, representing different periods dating back to the Stone Age.
The discovery of many historical monuments highlights the civilization and the traditional architecture of the area.
Al-Rakah district, one of the archaeological sites in Dammam, contains an ancient village dating back to the period of early Islam. It has about 20 houses, in addition to rooms and residential units, including pieces of pottery and porcelain, glass, steatite and metal pieces that belong to the first and second centuries of the Islamic era.
The Thaj ancient city, about 80 km west of Jubail, is one of the most important archaeological sites in the Eastern Province. Most historians believe that Thaj was built in the period of the Greeks, following the conquest of Alexander in 330 B.C.
The most important discovery in the city was Thaj’s gold treasure that includes remains of a girl on a wooden bed, with three gold bands on her head. In addition, she wore three gold necklaces, one of which is 38.5 cm long, decorated with rubies, turquoise and pearls. The second one is made of 18 pearls hung by a golden thread, while the third necklace is 22.5 cm in length.
The discovery reflects the multicultural aspect of the Thaj civilization, most notably the technical side of the precious metals industry.
Human habitation on Tarout Island goes back to pre-5,000 BC era. It is considered one of the most ancient sites that were inhabited by humans on the Arabian Peninsula.
The most important collection found on Tarout was a golden statue representing Ashtaroot, a female deity. The statue was found placed on the ground in one of the palm groves. Besides, there are many other statues, copper and pottery vessels and traditional weapons that were found there and are now being displayed in Riyadh Museum.
The island played a significant role in trade in the entire Gulf region. It was a central point for trade between Mesopotamia and along the coastal areas in the east of the Arabian Peninsula. Its strong relationships with many of the urbanized areas along the region were well known.
President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage Prince Sultan bin Salman said the archaeological finds confirm the prime position people of the peninsula enjoyed among the nations of the world in religious, political, economic and cultural spheres in ancient times. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977031/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/d14d0429fd1f0d4ad4865c399e43b9b04876e5c89cbc192a2449d207bce108c9.json |
[
"Dina Fouad"
] | 2016-08-29T02:49:16 | null | 2016-08-29T03:00:00 | RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has advised its citizens traveling to Turkey to comply with regulations and sign contracts with the help of certified lawyers in the host country.The advice, which came from the Saudi Embassy in Turkey, stressed the importance of using the Turkish language in documenting contracts and bank documents when transferring money for purchasing or signing contracts. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977036%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//1427640020026974600.jpg | en | null | Consult local lawyer while signing deals in Turkey | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has advised its citizens traveling to Turkey to comply with regulations and sign contracts with the help of certified lawyers in the host country.
The advice, which came from the Saudi Embassy in Turkey, stressed the importance of using the Turkish language in documenting contracts and bank documents when transferring money for purchasing or signing contracts.
In this context, the embassy called on citizens to visit the commercial mission in Istanbul to acquaint themselves with the commercial, industrial and investment regulations of the host country, or for any legal assistance in this regard though its embassy or the consulate general in Istanbul.
Earlier, the Saudi Foreign Ministry advised citizens to keep copies of their passport, ID and entry visa in their mobile phones or in their e-mails.
The ministry also issued instructions for Saudis traveling abroad to make themselves aware of regulations of the host countries, whether related to tourism, education or investments. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977036/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/1e463088af4d989189715fe36fbe03dc8c5382025401546c61c514331a673a67.json |
[
"Sultan Al-Sughair"
] | 2016-08-28T08:47:15 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | MAKKAH: Pilgrims have started arriving in large numbers to perform Haj and the Two Holy Mosques Museum is among the various places in Makkah that are in focus.The museum, which is a window to historical, social and cultural features of a nation and religion, attracts visitors and pilgrims throughout the year, but it turns into a beehive of activity during Haj. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976546%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//1472327630757396000.jpg | en | null | Makkah museum a big draw | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MAKKAH: Pilgrims have started arriving in large numbers to perform Haj and the Two Holy Mosques Museum is among the various places in Makkah that are in focus.
The museum, which is a window to historical, social and cultural features of a nation and religion, attracts visitors and pilgrims throughout the year, but it turns into a beehive of activity during Haj.
Ahmad bin Muhammad Al-Dakhil, the museum’s director, said: “The museum attracts visitors from all countries of the Islamic world, including ministers, officials and representatives of all government agencies. The number of visitors since its inception is 5,147,589.”
The museum is open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Established under the supervision of the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, the museum was opened to visitors on Feb. 1, 2000 by Prince Abdul Majeed bin Abdul Aziz.
It contains old and recent portraits and models of the two holy mosques, while the hall of the Grand Mosque displays models of precious antiques and inscriptions related to Al-Masjid Al-Haram. This is in addition to the Kaaba hall that contains models of kiswa (Kaaba covering), its old door and the handmade fabric machine for the manufacture of the kiswa, among others.
The museum contains the rare photographs of the two holy mosques, samples of the manuscripts preserved in the libraries of the two holy mosques and a copy of the Holy Qur’an calligraphed by Othman bin Affan, and old models and sample of the Prophet’s Mosque and rare artifacts in addition to some old and new photographs.
The Zamzam well hall in the museum showcases the rim of the Zamzam well made in the early 14th century A.H. There are also some ancient inscriptions and old and new photographs of the Zamzam well. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976546/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/99ebd943aa3449d4cec94810092caf493d827a4352229cafe1e8e4ab22568990.json |
[] | 2016-08-27T02:47:32 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | SURABAYA: Indonesian authorities have seized more than 650 critically endangered pangolins found hidden in freezers and arrested a man for allegedly breaking wildlife protection laws, police said Friday.Police discovered the pangolins, known as “scaly anteaters,” when they raided a house in Jombang district on the main island of Java after local residents became suspicious about the large number of freezers in the property. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975961%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472115250062391200-1.jpg | en | null | Hundreds of frozen pangolins seized from Indonesian’s house | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SURABAYA: Indonesian authorities have seized more than 650 critically endangered pangolins found hidden in freezers and arrested a man for allegedly breaking wildlife protection laws, police said Friday.
Police discovered the pangolins, known as “scaly anteaters,” when they raided a house in Jombang district on the main island of Java after local residents became suspicious about the large number of freezers in the property.
A total of 657 pangolins, which are consumed as a luxury dish in China and used in traditional medicine, were found wrapped in plastic and stored in five large freezers, East Java province police spokesman Raden Prabowo Argo Yuwono told AFP.
The house owner, a 55-year-old man, was arrested.
He could face five years in prison and a fine of 100 million rupiah ($7,500) for breaking wildlife protection laws. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975961/world | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/d6b58ffb8787e33ac9496c2f63a2fcfe7b8a6dd0de20acb264589e4ef834b05e.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T14:48:48 | null | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | BEIJING: China and Saudi Arabia signed 15 agreements and memorandums of understanding on Tuesday following a high-level meeting led by Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.
A report by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) listed the accords signed as follows:
• Memorandum of understanding (MOU) on energy development;
• MOU on oil storage;
• MOU on cooperation on mining;
• MOU on housing development;
• MOU on cooperation between the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and the Saudi Fund for Dev | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977551%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//saudi-china.jpg | en | null | Saudi Arabia and China sign 15 accords | null | null | www.arabnews.com | Saudi and Chinese delegations led by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (second left) and Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli (right) meet in Beijing on Tuesday. (SPA)
BEIJING: China and Saudi Arabia signed 15 agreements and memorandums of understanding on Tuesday following a high-level meeting led by Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli.
A report by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) listed the accords signed as follows:
• Memorandum of understanding (MOU) on energy development;
• MOU on oil storage;
• MOU on cooperation on mining;
• MOU on housing development;
• MOU on cooperation between the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and the Saudi Fund for Development;
• MOU on cooperation on water resources;
• MOU on the construction of a new city;
• MOU on cooperation on product quality control, supervision, testing and quarantine;
• MOU on a loan fund to help finance the reconstruction of the areas affected by earthquakes;
• MOU on cooperation between the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology;
• Agreement for a development loan to help finance the construction of buildings of the Faculty of Professional Engineering and Financial Project;
• Silk Road executive development program;
• Executive program of the Convention on Cultural Cooperation;
• Cooperation program between China’s Department of Standardization and the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality; and
• Memorandum of cooperation on translation and publication of literary and classical works.
During the meeting, the two sides reviewed strategic ties and efforts to strengthen the existing partnership between China and Saudi Arabia.
RELATED STORIES: | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977551/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/106686155b291a3418f9fc057aea39c3450de57e80f8d7ec4fde998eb04c9c1f.json |
[
"Rodolfo C. Estimo Jr."
] | 2016-08-26T12:50:12 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | RIYADH: Mohammed Al-Issa, Saudi cultural attaché in the United States, has warned scholarship students against keeping banned clippings and pictures in their mobile devices.In a statement, he said that Saudi scholarship students are urged to follow the rules and regulations and obey the customs and traditions of the host country.“They should not keep pictures that are considered obscene, religious events that could be disruptive, or any event that could subject them to questioning by the authorities,” Al-Issa said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975591%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//mobilebad.jpg | en | null | Don’t keep banned stuff on mobile, students told | null | null | www.arabnews.com | RIYADH: Mohammed Al-Issa, Saudi cultural attaché in the United States, has warned scholarship students against keeping banned clippings and pictures in their mobile devices.
In a statement, he said that Saudi scholarship students are urged to follow the rules and regulations and obey the customs and traditions of the host country.
“They should not keep pictures that are considered obscene, religious events that could be disruptive, or any event that could subject them to questioning by the authorities,” Al-Issa said.
He added that “they should stick to the main purpose why they’re in the US which is to study, earn a degree and go back to the Kingdom to their parents.”
He said that instead of “indulging in what’s banned in the host country, Saudi scholarship students could take up meaningful activities that could broaden their horizons as well as perspective on life.”
“They could spend more hours in the library and get lost in the world of books so that they could fare well in their academic subjects or know more about the world,” he said.
He added that they should take advantage of the benefits being accorded them by the Kingdom. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975591/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/a05a84dbcd299e8e7cfaf2500ea999132bf4e76c7fa68254884fe5b7ab138257.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-27T02:47:22 | null | 2016-08-27T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to China and Japan is a reconfirmation of the active role of the Kingdom at the international level and support to peace and political stability, said Yahiya Rubah, strategic affairs expert and political analyst.The G20 summit in China this year is being held in difficult and complicated political and economic situation in the world, he said. “The Saudi delegation attending the summit will be led by Prince Mohammed, who is known for his interests and economic ambitions.” | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975981%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1462476555566845700.jpg | en | null | Royal visit to China, Japan confirms leading role of Saudi Arabia | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to China and Japan is a reconfirmation of the active role of the Kingdom at the international level and support to peace and political stability, said Yahiya Rubah, strategic affairs expert and political analyst.
The G20 summit in China this year is being held in difficult and complicated political and economic situation in the world, he said. “The Saudi delegation attending the summit will be led by Prince Mohammed, who is known for his interests and economic ambitions.”
He said that Prince Mohammed, during his Asia visit, would present the concerns of the Arab region and its problems. On the top of these concerns is the Palestinian problem, which requires urgent attention.
“Terrorism has spread its tentacles across many parts of the world and remains a major concern for the Kingdom, which is making all efforts to wipe it out. Hence, the royal visit to the two major countries of Asia is very important,” Rubah added.
The trade exchange between the Kingdom and China totaled over SR1.79 trillion in the last ten years, according to a local analysis. The Kingdom’s exports to China stood at SR1,207 billion, while imports reached SR587.1 million. The trade exchange between the two countries last year was to the tune of SR184.5 billion; with Saudi exports standing at SR92.1 billion and imports at SR92.4 billion.
In 2015, China unseated the US as the largest market for Saudi exports, data from the analysis showed. Saudi exports to China in 2015 amounted to SR92.1 billion and the US SR80.5 billion. For the first time in almost 16 years, KSA in 2015 recorded trade deficit with China reaching SR329 million, compared to SR73.6 billion in 2014. Saudi exports to China in 2015 were 12 percent of the Kingdom’s total exports, compared to 13 percent in 2014; while imports from China 14 percent of KSA’s total imports, compared to 13 percent in 2014.
According to 2014 data, top Saudi imports from China included mobile phones and other electronic goods.
Crude oil and its products are considered the Kingdom’s main exports to China, which imports 1.1 million barrels of crude oil daily from Saudi Arabia. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975981/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/210002d036fdbfffd3b23e5865c6945c3b98e1b70e3e232fd8296d7eacc95acc.json |
[
"The Associated Press"
] | 2016-08-30T20:49:32 | null | 2016-08-30T21:18:20 | MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: Children who escaped Boko Haram’s insurgency now are dying of starvation in refugee camps in northeastern Nigeria’s largest city as the government investigates the theft of food aid by officials.Refugees have staged near-daily protests over the past week. In one, women blocked the main highway linking Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, to Kano city for five hours, shouting that their children are starving and they have no drinking water as temperatures soar above 40 degrees (104 Fahrenheit). | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977586%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//5296690007428821.jpg | en | null | As refugee children die, Nigeria probes theft of food aid | null | null | www.arabnews.com | MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: Children who escaped Boko Haram’s insurgency now are dying of starvation in refugee camps in northeastern Nigeria’s largest city as the government investigates the theft of food aid by officials.
Refugees have staged near-daily protests over the past week. In one, women blocked the main highway linking Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, to Kano city for five hours, shouting that their children are starving and they have no drinking water as temperatures soar above 40 degrees (104 Fahrenheit).
Between 10 and 25 percent of children in a 110-bed feeding center are dying, said Doctors without Borders spokeswoman Shaista Aziz. She called that a high percentage even in an emergency. Most of the dying are from refugee camps, she said.
Dozens of babies and children with matchstick limbs and protruding rib cages fill the tents of the feeding center visited by The Associated Press.
Families cannot leave the camps, “so they are completely reliant on food distributions,” said Dr. Natalie Roberts, deputy emergency desk manager for the medical aid group.
Doctors without Borders’ therapeutic feeding program in Maiduguri, where the most malnourished children are treated, “has quadrupled in size in the last weeks, but each time it expands it becomes rapidly full,” Roberts said. In one local camp, Muna Garage, 20 children under the age of 5 died in a single week last month, she said.
At Farm Center Camp, on Maiduguri’s outskirts, residents said they had received no food in more than one month. They and refugees at other camps said that when they do get meals, it consists only of rice and beans. They get one shovelful a day — literally delivered from a shovel — whether a household has six people or 12, they said.
Maiduguri is estimated to host 1.2 million to 2 million refugees but only a fraction stay in the camps because, as The Daily Trust newspaper reported Tuesday, “Most of the camps have become centers of hunger, malnutrition and communicable diseases.”
Nigeria’s Senate last week announced it was launching an investigation into allegations that food aid is being diverted, and the Economics and Financial Crimes Commission weeks ago said it was doing the same.
The governor of Borno state, Kashim Shettima, last week accused rival politicians of instigating the protests. Shettima has been publicly booed by refugees and residents, with some shouting “Rice thief!” when his convoy passes, several residents told the AP.
Shettima last week abruptly disbanded his government’s committee to feed refugees, which is supposed to provide cooked meals. Shettima’s office said refugees will now get food directly to cook themselves. That poses challenges, as the refugees will need charcoal for fires, cooking oil and clean water.
Angry refugees took to the streets to protest because of several deaths from starvation, said a spokesman for the refugees, Umar Abdulsalam.
“The camp officials have been restricting some of us who are strong from going out. We have been living as prisoners, and the food meant for our care is being sold in the open market,” he told a news conference, accusing government officials, camp officials and the military guarding the camps.
The camps are supposed to be run by the Borno state Emergency Management Agency.
Last week, local reporters and refugees watched as soldiers and local self-defense vigilantes shoved blankets and other aid meant for refugees at Dalori Camp into a tricycle taxi and took off.
Irish rock star Bono and Nigeria’s richest man, multibillionaire Aliko Dangote, visited Dalori on Sunday. A businessman who was there the day before said he watched a truckload of food aid arrive, wait and then leave with all the food. When he questioned a camp official, he was told the food could not be distributed until Bono and Dangote arrived. The businessman spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of losing his government contracts.
The crisis in Maiduguri, where markets are filled with fresh vegetables and fruit, is in addition to what the UN has called a “catastrophic humanitarian crisis” in northeastern areas of Nigeria recently liberated from Boko Haram, where 2.5 million malnourished people have no access to food and drinking water. Those areas are still dangerous to reach. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977586/world | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/6683991757224b61f9a6be0fdee0596c87721424742348d6424846d5a1d84f7c.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-28T08:47:25 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: At a time when the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) refuses to provide medical insurance for private sector retirees, Shoura Council members and specialists confirmed to Aleqtesadiah that it is time for GOSI to adopt a health care system for them because it has become a necessary requirement.One of the proposals by specialists is to deduct a small percentage of salary to establish a cooperative solidarity fund divided equally between GOSI and subscribers. In addition, insurance companies will be contracted to serve them after retirement. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976551%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/28/08/2016//gosi.jpg | en | null | Health insurance for private sector retirees demanded | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: At a time when the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) refuses to provide medical insurance for private sector retirees, Shoura Council members and specialists confirmed to Aleqtesadiah that it is time for GOSI to adopt a health care system for them because it has become a necessary requirement.
One of the proposals by specialists is to deduct a small percentage of salary to establish a cooperative solidarity fund divided equally between GOSI and subscribers. In addition, insurance companies will be contracted to serve them after retirement.
However, GOSI considers the responsibility beyond its jurisdiction and refuses to provide health care coverage for those subjected to its system after retirement.
GOSI denied, through its official speaker, Abdullah Al-Abd Al-Jabbar, any relationship with the medical insurance for private sector employees after retirement. It indicates that its responsibility is limited to the framework set by the social insurance system and its branches.
“There are other entities entrusted — by the government — with the responsibility of medical insurance and all related responsibilities,” Al-Abd Al-Jabbar said, noting that its system is only confined to retired subscribers and social insurance recipients.
For his part, Mohammed Al Khonaizi, a member of the Administration and Human Resources Committee in the Shoura Council, said: “There are steps in the Supreme Medical Committee for medical insurance provided for state employees in all sectors.”
He said medical insurance for retired employees will not constitute a burden for major private companies, but will be costly for small and medium enterprises. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976551/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/1fb2b0a3aa0165cda41daa140d9e06375b24a39d54318b026a338cda5b609dc7.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-30T02:48:21 | null | 2016-08-30T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: Academic Dr. Arwa Arab criticized the spread of individuals promoting unlicensed natural treatments, herbs, and medications on social media, and the growing popularity of such unsafe prescriptions among Saudi women. She said peer pressure, a tendency for women to fall for false marketing claims, and the increasing desire among Gulf women to look good helps spread such beauty concoctions. False and flashy advertisements make such productions attractive, especially among women looking for fixes to remain slim and look young, and they lack of sufficient monitoring, she said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977506%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//27360168009494057.jpg | en | null | Experts warn against unsafe treatments | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: Academic Dr. Arwa Arab criticized the spread of individuals promoting unlicensed natural treatments, herbs, and medications on social media, and the growing popularity of such unsafe prescriptions among Saudi women.
She said peer pressure, a tendency for women to fall for false marketing claims, and the increasing desire among Gulf women to look good helps spread such beauty concoctions. False and flashy advertisements make such productions attractive, especially among women looking for fixes to remain slim and look young, and they lack of sufficient monitoring, she said.
According to businesswoman Dr. Rania Khokeer, there should be more compliance with instructions of the Ministry of Health when it comes to such treatments.
“The product must be licensed by the ministry,” she said, calling for stricter laws and penalties against those who sell dangerous prescriptions. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977506/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/3bf02b4e170a32e6713989a176266b260ee9e46ecdebf8e07cb0a5f0f27f912d.json |
[] | 2016-08-30T20:49:52 | null | 2016-08-30T19:14:05 | COLOMBO: A Sri Lanka court remanded a man and a teenager in custody on Tuesday on suspicion of hacking into the president’s website to demand that authorities abandon a proposal to switch university entrance exams to the new year holiday month of April.Police arrested a 17-year old school boy as the primary suspect on Monday and a 26-year old man on Tuesday, on suspicion of helping the first suspect, officials said.Both were produced before a court on Tuesday which remanded them in custody, a lawyer said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977566%2Fworld.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/30/08/2016//lanka.jpg | en | null | 2 men hack Sri Lankan president's site over exam date | null | null | www.arabnews.com | COLOMBO: A Sri Lanka court remanded a man and a teenager in custody on Tuesday on suspicion of hacking into the president’s website to demand that authorities abandon a proposal to switch university entrance exams to the new year holiday month of April.
Police arrested a 17-year old school boy as the primary suspect on Monday and a 26-year old man on Tuesday, on suspicion of helping the first suspect, officials said.
Both were produced before a court on Tuesday which remanded them in custody, a lawyer said.
“Police filed charges under the Computer Crimes Act and the court remanded the two until Friday,” Manju Sri Chandrasean, the lawyer who appeared for the second suspect, told Reuters.
The 17-year old had been sent to a youth detention center, he said.
President Maithripala Sirisena’s website, www.president.gov.lk, was first hacked on Thursday and then again on Friday.
The hacker, proclaiming to speak for “The Sri Lanka Youth,” posted a message demanding a presidential election immediately if Sirisena did not prevent the changing of the examination date to April, the month most Sri Lankans celebrate a traditional new year holiday.
University entrance exams are in August but the government is considering shifting them to April. No final decision has been made.
(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal) | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977566/world | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/76f4a50e6f213658eca248bc32a496df7e51c27fe2a0a0c6ed88443226a96efe.json |
[
"Suzan Fraser"
] | 2016-08-26T20:47:25 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | ANKARA, Turkey: A Kurdish suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden truck into a checkpoint near a police station Friday in southeast Turkey, killing at least 11 police officers and wounding 78 other people, the prime minister said.The attack struck the checkpoint 50 meters (yards) from a main police station near the town of Cizre, in the mainly-Kurdish Sirnak province that borders Syria. Television footage showed black smoke rising from the mangled truck and the three-story police station gutted from the powerful explosion. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975671%2Fmiddle-east.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//06597988906689356.jpg | en | null | Kurdish militants claim deadly car bomb attack in Turkey | null | null | www.arabnews.com | ANKARA, Turkey: A Kurdish suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden truck into a checkpoint near a police station Friday in southeast Turkey, killing at least 11 police officers and wounding 78 other people, the prime minister said.
The attack struck the checkpoint 50 meters (yards) from a main police station near the town of Cizre, in the mainly-Kurdish Sirnak province that borders Syria. Television footage showed black smoke rising from the mangled truck and the three-story police station gutted from the powerful explosion.
Rebels linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK claimed the attack — the latest in a string of bombings by the group targeting police or military vehicles and facilities.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim vowed to “destroy the terrorists.”
“No terrorist organization can take the Turkish Republic hostage,” he told reporters in Istanbul. “We will give these scoundrels every response they deserve.”
“This attack, which comes at a time when Turkey is engaged in an intense struggle against terrorist organizations both within and outside its borders, only serves to increase our determination as a country and a nation,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Turkey has sent tanks across the Syrian border following weeks of deadly attacks by the PKK and the Daesh group. The operation aims to help Syrian rebels retake Jarablus, a key IS-held border town, and to contain the expansion of Syrian Kurdish militia who are linked to the PKK.
Heightened PKK attacks inside Turkey could prompt Turkey to take bolder moves against the Syrian Kurds. On Thursday, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported that Turkish artillery fired at Syrian Kurdish fighters who were advancing north toward Jarablus despite Turkish warnings for them to retreat.
In a statement on the website of the PKK’s military wing, the militant group said the Cizre attack was in retaliation to jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan’s “isolation” on his prison island off Istanbul. The rebel leader has been denied visits since April 2015, as a peace process between the PKK and the government began to falter.
Violence between the PKK and the security forces resumed last year, after the collapse the two-year peace process in July. Hundreds of security force members, militants and even civilians have been killed since.
At the same time, Turkey has been afflicted by deadly attacks blamed on Daesh militants, including a suicide bombing at a Kurdish wedding in southeast Turkey last week that killed 54 people and an attack on Istanbul’s main airport in June that killed 44 people.
According to the Sirnak governor’s office, three of those wounded in Friday’s attack were civilians.
Cizre was placed under 24-hour curfew for several weeks earlier this year as the security forces launched operations to root out Kurdish militants.
Since hostilities with the PKK resumed last summer, more than 600 Turkish security personnel and thousands of PKK militants have been killed, according to the Anadolu Agency. Human rights groups say hundreds of civilians have also been killed.
The PKK is considered a terror organization by Turkey and its allies. Some 40,000 people have been killed since the conflict started in 1984.
The attacks on police come as the country is still reeling from a violent coup attempt on July 15 that killed at least 270 people. The government has blamed the failed coup on the supporters of US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen and has embarked on a sweeping crackdown on his followers.
On Thursday, Kurdish rebels opened fire at security forces protecting a convoy carrying Turkey’s main opposition party leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the northeast, killing a soldier and wounding two others, officials said. The rebel statement Friday said the target of the attack was Turkey’s security forces, not Kilicdaroglu. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975671/middle-east | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/231748a3417c0194b8d5e66b70a1c9b0a8dc95c516b000de6e9de63507bbbe1d.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-28T02:48:35 | null | 2016-08-28T03:00:00 | LA HULPE: Hundreds of people turned out Saturday to pay their respects at the funeral of Belgian jazz legend “Toots” Thielemans, who died last week after a glittering career spanning seven decades.Jean-Baptiste Frederic Isidore Thielemans, known affectionately as “Toots” and widely acknowledged as the king of jazz harmonica, died in Brussels on Monday aged 94.Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel was among the mourners at the church in La Hulpe, near Brussels, where Thielemans lived. A giant screen was set up to relay the service to the crowds outside. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F976361%2Foffbeat.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/27/08/2016//1472303682154567900.jpg | en | null | Hundreds bid farewell to Belgian jazz legend | null | null | www.arabnews.com | LA HULPE: Hundreds of people turned out Saturday to pay their respects at the funeral of Belgian jazz legend “Toots” Thielemans, who died last week after a glittering career spanning seven decades.
Jean-Baptiste Frederic Isidore Thielemans, known affectionately as “Toots” and widely acknowledged as the king of jazz harmonica, died in Brussels on Monday aged 94.
Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel was among the mourners at the church in La Hulpe, near Brussels, where Thielemans lived. A giant screen was set up to relay the service to the crowds outside.
American pianist Kenny Werner read a short message from President Barack Obama addressed to Thielemans’s widow. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/976361/offbeat | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/04a3546d784a2cae295128fab50d1a9d62df27c26c6e48513652f0cb3643e1d5.json |
[
"Agence France Presse"
] | 2016-08-29T20:49:00 | null | 2016-08-29T09:22:15 | SYDNEY: Australian Olympic athletes cast off their Rio woes as they embarked on a nationwide "Welcome home" tour on Monday, starting with a samba-themed appearance at the Sydney Opera House.Australia returned with their smallest haul of Olympic medals since Barcelona 1992, a result which has sparked recriminations among sports officials.But Governor-General Peter Cosgrove praised team members, wearing their green and gold tracksuits, at a special reception before they headed to the Opera House. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F977191%2Fsports.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/29/08/2016//06655405933530933.jpg | en | null | Aussies cast off Rio woes with national lap of honor | null | null | www.arabnews.com | SYDNEY: Australian Olympic athletes cast off their Rio woes as they embarked on a nationwide "Welcome home" tour on Monday, starting with a samba-themed appearance at the Sydney Opera House.
Australia returned with their smallest haul of Olympic medals since Barcelona 1992, a result which has sparked recriminations among sports officials.
But Governor-General Peter Cosgrove praised team members, wearing their green and gold tracksuits, at a special reception before they headed to the Opera House.
"We've celebrated your successes jumping around the lounge room at home, exchanging high fives at the office with people we'd otherwise barely speak to," he said.
He added: "Be in no doubt that all the medals awarded to you as champions in your sports are symbolic for all Australians."
A troupe of Brazilian dancers and drummers joined New South Wales state Premier Mike Baird and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore in helping celebrate the athletes' efforts at Rio.
At the end of the Games, Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates criticised the policy of picking businessmen to head Olympic sports, and also hit out at funding arrangements for Australian sports bodies.
Australia finished 10th on the Rio medals table -- down from eighth in 2012 -- with eight golds and 29 medals overall, the lowest total since they won 27 at Barcelona 1992. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/977191/sports | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/89186f556625810d4d891798839d8c1365da909fae986a9de7208f154ed4f7c7.json |
[
"Arab News"
] | 2016-08-26T12:49:38 | null | 2016-08-26T03:00:00 | JEDDAH: At the age of one and a half years, Lojain Al-Rifaei suffered a cancerous tumor in her left eye which forced doctors to remove it by surgery and replace it with an artificial plastic eye.In 2014, when she reached three years of age, the disease returned and this time the right eye suffered the same cancerous tumor, forcing the child to enter a race with time to treat this malicious tumor and win the battle against it. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.arabnews.com%2Fnode%2F975601%2Fsaudi-arabia.json | http://www.arabnews.com/sites/default/files/26/08/2016//1472135301004066200.jpg | en | null | After losing one eye to tumor, child fights to save the other | null | null | www.arabnews.com | JEDDAH: At the age of one and a half years, Lojain Al-Rifaei suffered a cancerous tumor in her left eye which forced doctors to remove it by surgery and replace it with an artificial plastic eye.
In 2014, when she reached three years of age, the disease returned and this time the right eye suffered the same cancerous tumor, forcing the child to enter a race with time to treat this malicious tumor and win the battle against it.
The story of Lojain began when doctors informed her parents that her left eye required immediate medical treatment at King Khalid Hospital in Riyadh. After several diagnoses and analyses of the pathological condition, the child’s doctors decided to remove the eye and replace it with a cosmetic one.
Since that date the girl suffered greatly and had to receive chemotherapy at King Khalid Hospital in Riyadh, but her health worsened after a big tumor appeared in her right eye.
The girl’s uncle, Abdulaziz Al-Refaei, said that when her health deteriorated, they appealed to the hospital to schedule an earlier date for the child’s surgery but the family was told that the doctor concerned was on vacation and the surgery has to wait until his return.
“We were forced to resort to social media to highlight the suffering of Lojain and appeal to whomever could respond and help getting the child admitted to the hospital for surgery,” said the uncle.
This appeal was fruitful, he added, and princes, businessmen, doctors and many people called him to inquire about the situation of the child and how they could help.
“Also, a call came from Crown Prince Mohammad bin Naif’s office inquiring how they could help and I told all I wanted was an earlier date for the surgery. After only 15 minutes I receive a phone call from the hospital to inform me that I should go to them to admit my daughter to the hospital. She was admitted to the hospital on Aug. 20 and now is under treatment,” explained the uncle.
In an update of Lojain’s health condition, the uncle said the doctors decided to move the child to King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh for treatment.
Social media showed a video of the child crying from the pain of the tumor in her right eye. | http://www.arabnews.com/node/975601/saudi-arabia | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.arabnews.com/e13c2891589a50c0defbd88996ba5e97419e960f31a18134f6477bbac027a518.json |
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