Tag Archives: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai is complete. The six-storey building symbolizes the kingdom’s rich history, ancient culture and natural wonders. By the Levant News newsdesk A water feature alongside a 1,320 square metre inclined mirror screen is expected to be a major attraction. An art installation embedded with …

The debate as to whether Diego Maradona is the best player the world has ever seen will spark back into life with the news of his death at the age of 60 on Wednesday, However, those lucky Saudi fans who saw him in action in Jeddah in 1987 will surely …

Qatar’s foreign minister said on Monday Arab states that establish ties with Israel undermine efforts for Palestinian statehood, but it was in their own sovereign right to do so. Three Arab countries – the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan – set aside hostilities with Israel in recent months to …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday congratulated U.S. President-elect Joe Biden after his election win saying he looked forward to working together with the new administration and strengthening the two countries’ alliance. “Congratulations @JoeBiden and @KamalaHarris. Joe, we’ve had a long & warm personal relationship for nearly 40 years, …

The Arab and Muslim world was united in its condemnation on Saturday after a teacher in France was beheaded in a terrorist attack. Samuel Paty, 47, was murdered on his way home from school on Friday in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. His attacker, Abdullakh Anzorov, 18, a Chechen born …

Netflix has struck a five-year exclusive partnership with Saudi Arabian animation studio Myrkott to produce Saudi-focused shows and films along with a similar period first-look option on the company’s upcoming projects. The link-up will entail production of new and exclusive seasons of the “Masameer” cartoon series and related upcoming movies, …

The United Arab Emirates has made a “huge mistake” in reaching a deal toward normalizing ties with Israel, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said in a televised speech on Saturday. He warned the Gulf state against allowing Israel to have a “foothold in the region.” The UAE-Israel agreement, announced on Thursday, …

Russia’s emergency officials said the country will send five planeloads of aid to Beirut after an explosion in the Lebanese capital’s port killed at least 100 people and injured thousands Tuesday late afternoon. Aid from France, Jordan, Qatar already arrived Wednesday morning at Beirut airport. By Arthur Blok International aid …

Qassim Gov. Prince Faisal bin Mishaal on Sunday inaugurated the world’s biggest camel hospital in Buraidah. The Salam Veterinary Hospital will also have a modern research facility to diagnose diseases related to camels. The governor said the project worth SR100 million is a national achievement and it will help enhance …

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed Tuesday a UN report confirming Iranian involvement in attacks on Saudi Aramco facilities in September 2019. A foreign ministry statement said the findings of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ report “leaves no doubt for the international community about Iran’s hostile intentions towards the …

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak is due meet oil majors to discuss the implementation of global oil production curbs and the possible extension of the current level of cuts beyond June, sources familiar with the plans told Reuters. The meeting on Tuesday is a further sign that Moscow is committed …

President Vladimir Putin discussed Russia’s cooperation with Iraq over an OPEC+ deal to reduce oil supply in a telephone conversation with Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, the Kremlin said on Monday. The two men noted the importance of continuing their countries’ joint efforts in the oil markets, the Kremlin said. …

People all around the globe are currently directly, or indirectly, affected by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The Levant News publishes voices from a wide variety of people with different backgrounds. After stories from the Netherlands, Lebanon and Italy today Mohammed Hussein Aldosari writes from Saudi Arabia. The Covid-19 crisis and …

Saudi Arabia’s government is suspending the cost of living allowance and raising the value added tax (VAT) threefold, as part of measures aimed to shore up state finances, which have been battered by low oil prices and the coronavirus. “Cost of living allowance will be suspended as of June first, …

Shells landed near the Turkish and Italian embassies in central Tripoli late on Thursday, they said, in an apparent expansion of bombardment by eastern-based forces to a central district of the Libyan capital. The eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) of Khalifa Haftar has been bombarding Tripoli for months as part …

The U.S. Departments of State and Energy should commit to regular briefings to relevant committees in Congress on talks about nuclear power cooperation with Saudi Arabia, a congressional watchdog said in a report on Monday. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) report said Congress should consider amending the 1954 Atomic Energy …

People all around the globe are currently directly, or indirectly, affected by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The Levant News publishes voices from a wide variety of people with different backgrounds. After stories from the Netherlands, Lebanon and Italy today Saleh Abdulwahed writes from the Saudi capital Riyadh. While driving through …

The group of 20 rich and emerging economies on Sunday launched an international initiative to accelerate access to health tools needed to fight the new coronavirus. The finance minister of Saudi Arabia, the current G20 chair, said the group is still working to bridge an estimated $8 billion funding gap …

Behind a Saudi-Russian truce to stabilise oil markets with a record output cut, market players are seeing the two production heavyweights still trading blows in the physical market. The rivals said last week they were ready to take measures if necessary to balance the market by cutting combined output with …

Saudi Aramco has offered oil refineries in Asia and Europe the option to defer payments for crude cargo deliveries by up to 90 days as plants struggle with shrinking demand, four refining industry sources said. The credit terms, which Saudi Arabia’s national oil company has offered through unidentified Saudi banks, …

President Donald Trump said on Monday that OPEC had not pressed him to ask U.S. oil producers to reduce their output to support global prices, which have been hard-hit by the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. Trump said U.S. oil production had already fallen, anyway. “I think it’s happening …

The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen (SDRPY) launched a program late March aimed at beautification, environmental sanitation and cleaning of the Yemini city of Aden. The 3-month initiative, called ‘Beautiful Aden’, will be carried out in cooperation with the Cleaning and Improvement Fund in Aden (CIFA). By Emad …

President Vladimir Putin will meet the heads of Russia’s top oil companies for talks on Friday, the Kremlin said, describing the atmosphere on the global market as “unfavourable”. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call that the meeting would be held in the same format as one …

Oil prices firmed on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to talks aimed at stabilising energy markets, with benchmarks climbing off 18-year lows hit as the coronavirus outbreak cut fuel demand worldwide. Brent crude LCOc1 was up by 61 cents, or 2.7%, at $23.37 …

A new OPEC+ deal to balance oil markets might be possible if other countries join in, Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said, adding that countries should also cooperate to cushion the economic fallout from coronavirus. A pact between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other …

Countries around the world on Saturday continued to close borders, impose strict entry and quarantine requirements and restrict large gatherings in efforts to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. Apple Inc (AAPL.O) said it will close all its retail stores worldwide, outside Greater China, until March 27. Apple reopened …

By Seyed Hossein Mousavian   Once the situation is de-escalated, there could be a chance for a breakthrough in relations, especially after upcoming presidential elections Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, containment has been the default Iran policy of every US administration. Presidents, both Democrat and Republican, have pursued an ill-advised …

By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem   Saudi Arabia will adopt a new solar technology to desalinate seawater at Neom, a mega-city that it is developing along the country’s northern Red Sea coast. Last month NEOM announced that it will rely on a pioneering solar technology to produce clean, low-cost, environmentally friendly …

Saudi Aramco has received orders worth 144.1 billion riyals ($38.4 billion) for the institutional tranche of its planned initial public offering (IPO), its financial advisers said in a joint statement on Monday. The institutional bookbuilding began on Nov. 17 and investors have until Dec. 4 to place orders. Aramco plans …

Saudi Arabia’s vice minister of defense visited Oman on Monday and met with ruler Sultan Qaboos, Omani state news agency ONA reported, following a deal to end a power struggle in the south of Yemen. The Saudi defense ministry said Prince Khalid bin Salman, a son of the king, would …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will present a plan for creating security in the Gulf in cooperation with other countries in the region when he attends the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week. Saudi Arabia and the United States accuse Iran of attacking Saudi oil facilities on Sept. …

By Seyed Hossein Mousavian The underlying assumptions on the part of Trump administration to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) were the following: 1) by implementing the “maximum pressure” policy, Iran’s oil exports would reach zero; its financial transactions would be fundamentally hindered and Iran’s economy would collapse; …

The UAE will host an Economic, Investment and Trade Forum in Beijing on Monday. Celebrating the 35th anniversary of the close relations between the two countries, the event will promote cooperation for future generations, inspired by the bilateral strategic partnership. The forum during the three-day China visit of His Highness …

Delegation of Ajlan & Bros Holding Group (Saudi Arabia) led by Сhairman Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Ajlan arrives in Tashkent. According to the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Saudi Arabia, which organized the visit, Ajlan & Bros is one of the leading companies in production of classic Arab men’s clothing, …

H.H. Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, today received Turki Bin Abdullah Al Dakheel, the Saudi Ambassador to UAE, and discussed means for fostering cooperation ties between the two countries. The meeting focused on prospects for economic collaboration between the two …

The Saudi-led military coalition vowed to respond firmly to a missile attack by Yemeni Houthi forces on a civilian airport in southern Saudi Arabia on Wednesday which wounded 26 people. The Western-backed, Sunni Muslim alliance that has been battling the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen said the early morning attack …

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement launched multiple drone attacks targeting Jizan airport in Saudi Arabia near the border with Yemen, a tweet on Sunday by the group’s TV Al-Masirah said. The attacks targeted Saudi drone bunkers and stations in the airport, it added. There was no Saudi confirmation of the attacks. …

Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS said on Monday it would invest $2 billion to build three plants that would form part of petrochemical complex being developed in Saudi Arabia by state-owned Saudi Aramco and France’s Total. INEOS’ plants would be part of a $5 billion complex called Project Amiral that aimed …

The Palestinian cause represents a core issue for the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Saudi King Salman said in his speech during to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Mecca on Saturday, adding the kingdom “refuse any measures that touch the historical and legal position of East Jerusalem”. (This …

Democrats on the U.S. House intelligence panel will investigate U.S. President Donald Trump’s response to the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi as part of a “deep dive” next year into U.S.-Saudi Arabia ties, the committee’s incoming head said in a report published on Friday. The committee will investigate the U.S. …

Donald Trump’s comments about Jamal Khashoggi’s killing show the U.S. president will turn a blind eye to the issue no matter what investigators uncover, Turkey’s foreign minister said on Friday. On Tuesday, Trump vowed to remain a “steadfast partner” of Saudi Arabia despite saying that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin …

Saudi Aramco will sign five crude oil supply agreements with Chinese customers, it said in a statement on Wednesday, taking the volume of its 2019 China crude oil supply agreements to 1.67 million barrels per day. Source: Reuters

Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih said on Monday the kingdom had launched a uranium exploration program and initial indications were positive, Al-Arabiya Business reported on Twitter. Falih added that a project to construct two nuclear plants, was proceeding at an excellent pace according to plan, according to Al-Arabiya. No further …

Germany has issued entry bans for 18 Saudi citizens suspected of involvement in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Riyadh’s Istanbul consulate, effectively banning them from the European Union’s passport-free Schengen zone. Monday’s move represents a sharpening of the position of Germany, which last month imposed a ban on …