Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Saudi Arabia

Aramco pays nearly $100bn in dividends as profits fall

Saudi Arabia’s oil company Aramco paid out dividends of nearly $100bn, despite the state-owned company’s annual profits tumbling from the record earnings raked in the year before.

Saudi Arabia executes 7 men in a day, highest number in years

Seven men were executed by Riyadh on Tuesday, the highest number put to death in one day since 81 were killed in March 2022 in Saudi Arabia.

Zelensky, MBS discuss Russia-Ukraine crisis during Ukrainian leader’s surprise visit to Saudi Arabia

President Volodymyr Zelensky has held talks in Saudi Arabia with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) in an attempt to push for an end to the Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the return of prisoners of war from Russia.

Saudi FM believes Iran does not want a broader war

In an interview with FRANCE 24 on tensions in West Asia, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said his country was "concerned" about a regional war. Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud added he doesn't believe that Tehran wants a broader conflict.

Saudi Arabia set to open first-ever alcohol store

Saudi Arabia is set to open the country's first liquor store in the capital Riyadh, catering exclusively to diplomats, breaking with decades of strict alcohol prohibition in the kingdom.

Analyst: U.S. strikes on Yemen come with go-ahead from Saudi Arabia

An Iranian foreign policy expert says the United States’ recent attacks on Yemen were carried out with the green light from certain regional countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.

Saudi crown prince canceled UK trip before welcoming Russian leader: Report

Saudi Arabia scrapped plans for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to visit London earlier this month, days before he hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Riyadh, the Financial Times has reported, citing UK government officials.

Syria appoints new envoy to Saudi Arabia after a decade

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has appointed Ayman Soussan, who has been serving as deputy foreign minister, as the country’s new ambassador to Riyadh, following the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries after more than a decade.

Saudi Arabia considering oil U-turn to secure defense pact with US: Report

Riyadh is willing to increase oil production early next year in exchange for a defense pact with Washington, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing Saudi and US sources.

US-Saudi defence pact tied to normalization with Israel, Palestinian demands put aside: Report

Saudi Arabia is determined to secure a military pact requiring Washington to defend the kingdom in return for opening ties with Israel and will not hold up a deal even if Tel Aviv does not offer major concessions to Palestinians in their bid for statehood, three regional sources familiar with the talks say.

Over half of American oppose defence pact with Saudi Arabia: Poll

More than half of American voters oppose a defence pact with Saudi Arabia that would commit Washington to send forces to defend the kingdom in the event it is attacked, a survey shows.

Saudi delegation visits West Bank for first time in three decades

Saudi Arabia, which has engaged in US-brokered talks with Israel to potentially normalise relations, Tuesday sent a delegation to the occupied West Bank for the first time in 30 years.

Saudi Arabia says planning tougher IAEA oversight of its nuclear activities

Saudi Arabia announced on Monday it has decided to end light-touch checks of its nuclear activities by the United Nations atomic watchdog and switch to full-blown safeguards, a change the nuclear agency has been demanding for years.

Saudi Arabia won’t be tempted to seek nuclear bombs since Iran does not have them: Russia

No one wants more nuclear powers to emerge in the world and Moscow believes that since Tehran will not have nuclear weapons, Saudi Arabia won’t be tempted to obtain them, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Saudi Arabia sentences schoolgirl to 18 years in prison over tweets

Saudi Arabia has sentenced a secondary schoolgirl to 18 years in jail and travel ban for posting tweets in support of political prisoners, a rights group has announced. It comes after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman blamed 'bad laws' for death sentence against a Saudi man over social media posts.

Yemen’s Huthis voice optimism about peace negotiations with Saudis, Riyadh hails talks

Yemen's Ansarullah, aka Huthis, has expressed optimism about the quality of earlier talks in Saudi Arabia on the potential of putting an end to a war that Riyadh and its allies have been waging against the Arab country since 2015. The Kingdom has also welcomed the “positive results” of talks with the Yemeni delegation.

US, Saudi Arabia discuss security pact: Report

The US and Saudi Arabian officials are reportedly discussing the terms of a security pact resembling those with Washington’s East Asian allies, in what is viewed as an incentive for the kingdom to normalize relations with Israel.

Saudi Arabia says two-state solution in Palestine must return to forefront

Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al-Saud has said that there will be no solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict without an independent Palestinian state.

Yemen’s Houthis arrive in Saudi Arabia for peace talks

A delegation of Yemen's Houthi has arrived in Saudi Arabia for negotiations aimed at potentially ending the war in the Arab world's poorest nation.

Number of executions by Saudi Arabia in 2023 topped 100: Report

The number of executions conducted by Saudi Arabia this year has surpassed 100, according to the rights group Amnesty International, which raised concerns that the death penalty is being used in the kingdom in violation of international law.

X accused of assisting Saudi Arabia in cracking down on critics: Report

A revised civil US lawsuit has accused X, formerly known as Twitter, of assisting Saudi Arabia in perpetrating human rights abuses against its users.

China’s Huawei opens cloud data center in Saudi Arabia to grow MENA footprint

Huawei Technologies has opened a cloud data centre in the Saudi capital Riyadh in a bid to grow its online service offerings in the Middle East and North Africa, the Chinese tech giant has announced.

US, Germany trained Saudi border forces accused of killing migrants: Report

Saudi border forces accused of killing hundreds of people trying to cross the border from neighbouring Yemen, received training from the United States and Germany, according to the Guardian.

Saudi Arabia mulling nuclear power bids from China, Russia, France to sway US

Saudi Arabia is considering bids to build a nuclear power station from countries including China, France and Russia as Riyadh seeks to sway Washington over a sensitive security pact, according to a report run by the Financial Times.

UN experts raise climate change concerns with Aramco oil company

UN rights experts have sent a letter of concern to Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco, saying its expansion of fossil fuel production and ongoing exploration threaten human rights, a document shows.

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