Saudi Arabia

A Turkish court on Tuesday added new defendants to the case against Saudi officials charged over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, state media reported, in a trial that Ankara says is needed to reveal the full truth behind the killing. Khashoggi, a critic of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin …

Palestinian officials have downplayed the effectiveness of a statement by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during his recent visit to Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The statement included a move to allow products made in the occupied territories to be labeled “Made in Israel,” a clear contradiction to …

A missile fired by Houthi militants in Yemen sparked an  explosion and fire at a fuel distribution site near Jeddah on Monday. The blast took place at 3.50 a.m. and causing a fire in a fuel tank at the petroleum products distribution station, north of the city, Saudi Arabia’s energy …

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister told Arab News on Monday that there were no Israeli officials at a meeting between Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the US Secretary of State. Prince Faisal bin Farhan has denied reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joined talks in NEOM with Mike Pompeo …

The Levant News publishes global voices from a wide variety of people with different backgrounds. After stories from the Netherlands, Lebanon, Italy and the United States today Mohammed bin Hussein Al-Dossary writes from Saudi Arabia about Islamic fundamentalism. The spread of the so-called ‘Islamic Awakening Movement’ (Al–Sahwa Al-Islamiyya) and their …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secretly flew to Saudi Arabia on Sunday to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Israel’s Kan public radio and Army Radio said on Monday. If confirmed, it would be the first publicly acknowledged trip by an Israeli …

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group on Monday said it fired a missile at a distribution station operated by the Saudi Aramco oil company in Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea city of Jeddah and struck it. There was no immediate Saudi confirmation of the claim made by the group’s military spokesman, who warned …

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Neom on Sunday to discuss bilateral relations, areas of cooperation and ways to enhance them. They also discussed regional and international developments, Saudi Press Agency reported. The meeting was attended by Saudi foreign minister …

When Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter and a leading U.S. ally, took over the G20 presidency in December 2019, hopes in the kingdom were high. A global summit would help rehabilitate the country on the international stage and turn the world’s attentions to key reforms launched by de …

Saudi Arabia called on the UN atomic watchdog agency to continue exposing Iran’s nuclear activities on Wednesday. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) should also intensify searches within the Islamic Republic to uncover sites that it may use to conduct undisclosed nuclear activities, the Kingdom’s governor to the agency, Prince …

Saudi Arabia has told Yemen’s Houthis in high-level back channel talks it would sign a UN proposal for a nationwide ceasefire if the Iran-aligned group agrees to a buffer zone along the kingdom’s borders, three sources familiar with the matter said. If a deal is struck, it would mark the …

Saudi Electricity Company, which runs the Kingdom’s power generation and distribution, has unveiled a far-reaching restructuring of its finances and regulatory set-up to “to provide its services with higher levels of efficiency and reliability.” As part of the shake-up, the government will turn its liabilities from SEC – amounting to …

Saudi Aramco 2222.SE said on Monday it has hired a group of banks ahead of a multi-tranche U.S. dollar-denominated bond issuance, as the world’s largest oil company seeks to raise cash amid lower oil prices. The announcement comes as Gulf issuers show no sign of slowing this year’s blitz on …

With the spike in the number of podcast listeners this year, there has been an increase in podcasters as well. “Mo Show” is one such podcast, with just one goal: “To set the narrative about Saudi Arabia straight.” The “Mo Show” is a way to show Saudis and the outside …

A gun attack on the Saudi Embassy in the Netherlands was on Thursday condemned by Islamic organizations and the international community. Shots were fired at the Kingdom’s diplomatic mission in The Hague, a day after a bomb attack at a World War I remembrance service in Jeddah injured at least …

Islamic State claimed responsibility on Thursday for an attack on a non-Muslim cemetery in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah which wounded several people, although it did not provide any evidence to back up its claim. In a statement issued through its official channel on Telegram, the group said …

The stars of the Ladies European Tour will make golfing history this week when the first-ever professional women’s tournaments in Saudi Arabia tee off at King Abdul Economic City on Thursday. The players seem to be impressed by the quality and standard of the courses, and have been sharing their …

Millions of men, women and children in war-torn Yemen are facing famine – again, top United Nations officials warned on Wednesday as they appealed for more money to prevent it – again. “We are on a countdown right now to a catastrophe,” U.N. food chief David Beasley told the U.N. …

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz urged the world on Thursday to take “a decisive stance” to address efforts by Iran to develop nuclear and ballistic missile programs, in an annual address to the top government advisory body. “The kingdom stresses the dangers of Iran’s regional project, its interference in …

A blast at a World War One remembrance ceremony in Jeddah wounded several people on Wednesday, France said, urging its citizens living in Saudi Arabia to exercise maximum vigilance following what it called an attack using an explosive device. The explosion was the second security incident to take place in …

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday urged Group of 20 member states to press Saudi Arabia to free activists detained unlawfully and provide accountability for past abuses ahead of the virtual G20 summit in the kingdom this month. As current chair of the G20 major economies, Riyadh has tried to …

Saudi Arabia finally congratulated Joe Biden on Sunday over his election victory, more than 24 hours after he defeated Donald Trump, who had close personal ties with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The former U.S. vice president pledged in his campaign to reassess ties with the kingdom, demanding more accountability …

Saudi Arabia, which may have more to lose from Joe Biden’s U.S. election victory than other Arab states, has taken its time to comment after the defeat of Donald Trump whose Middle East policies and staunch opposition to Iran had Riyadh’s backing. As other Arab states raced to congratulate the …

Saudi Arabia announced this week that it will host the Formula 1 Grand Prix in its Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah in Nov. 2021. The announcement was made on the Jeddah waterfront and the Minister of Sport Prince Abdul Aziz bin Turki Al-Faisal said that the race would increase …

The Kingdom is to establish a new marine center to preserve underwater cultural heritage in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. The center is a natural development from Saudi Arabia’s awareness of its responsibility to protect all forms of heritage, Culture Minister Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan told a …

Saudi Arabia’s new labor reforms, announced Wednesday, will benefit foreign skilled workers in the Kingdom’s private sector while ensuring flexibility of movement say ministers. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) unveiled the Labor Reform Initiative (LRI) under the National Transformation Program (NTP), which will improve the contractual …

The traditional skills of the Kingdom’s matchmakers have survived many changes, and they are confident that amid rapid social changes among the younger generation and a technological revolution they can continue to ply their trade. As men and women enjoy opportunities to mingle and meet and attitudes across the country …

A Saudi man was arrested in the Red Sea city of Jeddah after attacking and wounding a security guard with a “sharp tool” at the French consulate on Thursday, local police said. A statement from the Mecca region’s police said the guard suffered “minor injuries” and that “legal action” was …

Prominent Saudi women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul, held in Saudi Arabia since 2018, began a new hunger strike on Monday over the conditions of her detention, her family said. Hathloul’s sister Lina told Reuters that the main demand was to be allowed regular contact with her family. In late August …

Saudi Arabia, birthplace of Islam, on Tuesday condemned cartoons offending the Prophet Mohammad and any attempts to link Islam with terrorism but did not echo calls by other Muslim states for action against images being displayed in France of the Prophet. A foreign ministry official also said in a statement …

Rights groups want participants in a G20 women’s meeting starting in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday to seek the release of detained female activists and call out the kingdom for its record on rights. As current chair of the Group of 20 major economies, Riyadh has tried to improve its image …

The fiancee of slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and a human rights group that he founded filed a lawsuit in a U.S. court on Tuesday with allegations that Saudi Arabia’s crown prince ordered him killed. The civil lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages against Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also named …

The main focus of Middle East peace efforts should be to bring Israel and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table, the Saudi foreign minister said on Thursday in a comment suggesting that Israeli-Saudi normalization is unlikely any time soon. “I believe that the focus now needs to be on …

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday urged Saudi Arabia to consider normalizing relations with Israel as he met with the Gulf country’s foreign minister, also saying that Washington supports a “robust program of arms sales” to it. Pompeo said he raised the so-called Abraham Accords, a U.S.-brokered agreement …

China and Russia were elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council on Tuesday, but support for Beijing dropped by more than 20 percent compared with a 2016 vote and Saudi Arabia failed in its bid to win a seat on the Geneva-based body. The 193-member U.N. General Assembly also …

The Saudi Project for Landmine Clearance (Masam) in Yemen dismantled 1 antipersonnel mine, 417 anti-tank mines, and 1,439 unexploded ordnance — totaling 1,857 mines — during the first week of October. A total of 191,054 mines have been extracted since the beginning of the project. More than 1.1 million mines …

Turkey’s leading business groups urged Saudi Arabia on Saturday to take action to improve trade relations as Turkish firms encounter growing problems in doing business with the Gulf Arab state. Saudi Arabia and Turkey have been at odds for some years over foreign policy and attitudes towards Islamist political groups. …

One of the world’s leading energy experts believes that oil producing countries like Saudi Arabia could enjoy a “veritable feast” of oil revenues for many decades before changing patterns of energy use reduce global demand for crude. Jason Bordoff, director of the Centre on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University …

Saudi diplomats, Sikh separatists and Indian business executives have been among those targeted by a group of hired hackers, according to research published on Wednesday by software firm BlackBerry Corp BB.BA. The report here on the group, known publicly as Bahamut, the name assigned to the mythical sea monster of …

Saudi Arabia’s former intelligence chief and ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, said the kingdom must focus on its own interests and security while supporting the Palestinian cause. In the final episode of a three-part interview with Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television aired on Wednesday, Prince …

Saudi Arabia’s former intelligence chief and ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, slammed the Palestinian leadership for criticizing the decision of some Gulf states to normalise ties with Israel. In an interview with Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television aired on Monday, the prince labelled the Palestinian …

Israel’s defence minister accused Turkey on Sunday of destabilising the region and working against peacemaking efforts, and called for international pressure to bring about a change in the NATO power’s conduct. Israel generally shies from public censure of Turkey, with which it maintains trade and diplomatic relations despite the pro-Palestinian …

Yemeni security forces, backed by the Arab coalition, killed three Al-Qaeda militants and captured two others in a raid on their hideout on Friday in Al-Ghaydah city, the capital of the western province of Mahra, local media and residents said. Large explosions rocked many districts in the city of Al-Ghaydah …

Authorities in Saudi Arabia announced on Monday that 10 alleged members of an archfoe Iran-backed terrorist cell were arrested on September 23. Some of them are believed to have received military and field training at sites belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards between Oct. 29 and Dec. 8, 2017. A spokesman …