Nine more Indians were on Sunday confirmed dead in Friday’s Grand Mosque crane collapse in Mecca, taking the Indian toll to 11. The incident, which occurred ahead of the annual Haj pilgrimage, has claimed 115 lives so far. "Working with relatives of missing persons, and Private Tour Operators our

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman visited the Grand Mosque on Saturday and inspected the damage caused by the crane crash. He later visited the injured at Al-Noor Specialist Hospital. Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal gave the authorities concerned two days to repair the areas damaged

Two Indians were among the Haj pilgrims killed in the mishap at the Grand Mosque of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Nineteen other Indian pilgrims were also injured in the mishap that was caused by a construction crane, which crashed into the crowded Grand Mosque on Friday. Moniza Ahmad from West Benga

RIYADH: A fleet of 157 ambulances will be deployed during the Haj season at holy sites, a senior official from the Ministry of Health said Wednesday. “The fleet of ambulances includes 100 mini-ambulances and 57 large vehicles which will be used to ferry sick Hajis from medical clinics to hospitals

MADINAH: The Ministry of Health has reiterated that the ban on slaughtering camels during Haj would remain in place, with no exceptions, because of the danger posed by Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus. Faisal Al-Zahrani, spokesman of the ministry, said the ban covers the entire K

Iran's president has said his country is ready to hold talks with the United States and Saudi Arabia on ways to resolve the Syrian civil war. Shia powerhouse Iran is a leading patron of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and accuses Sunni rival Saudi Arabia and the US of siding with anti-Assad rebe

JEDDAH: The recently introduced fast-track recruitment system is a reward for private firms that fulfill the Saudization quota, an official of the Ministry of Labor said here recently. The system allows firms to utilize the new system where the visa issuance and hiring of workers can be done online

DAMMAM: The King Salman Youth Center (KSYC) has launched a new initiative called the Khattet Plan, which seeks to rehabilitate young people by training them to develop and organize their personal life skills in various areas. The initiative, which will be carried out during the next three months,

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia will cut spending and issue more bonds as it faces a record budget shortfall due to falling oil prices, the finance minister said on Sunday. Following oil prices’ drop to below $50 a barrel, the Kingdom has so far relied on its huge fiscal reserves to bridge the gap but Finance

WASHINGTON: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and US President Barack Obama have directed Saudi-American officials to develop mechanisms for the establishment of a new strategic partnership between the two countries for the 21st century, said Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir. Based on

WASHINGTON: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, who is on a historic visit to the US, met American President Barack Obama at the White House in Washington on Friday, with talks focusing on reining in Iran and tackling trouble spots in the Middle East. Obama made the rare move of greeting

RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman is holding historic talks here with American President Barack Obama that would ensure significant headway in bringing peace to the troubled Middle East, the Royal Court said in a statement on Thursday. King Salman and Obama would discuss a ran

JEDDAH: Over two million animals would be available for slaughter this Haj season, according to the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI). Suleiman Al-Jabri, chairman of the JCCI’s livestock traders committee, said that more than 1 million sheep, goats and cows would be provided to markets

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia and Japan are this year marking their 60th anniversary, with growing cultural and business relations. Consul General Matahiro Yamaguchi met recently with Arab News Editor in Chief Mohammed Fahad Al-Harthi at the newspaper’s offices and said that interaction between the two na

JEDDAH: The Cabinet on Monday approved new regulations related to temporary and seasonal work visas. At a meeting, chaired by Vice Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Moahmmed bin Naif, the Cabinet took the decision after reviewing a report submitted to the Council of Ministers by the Labor

Women in Saudi Arabia have for the first time been able to register as candidates for the country's municipal elections in December. In 2011, the same year as the most recent polls, the late King Abdullah granted women in the kingdom the right to vote and run as candidates, saying: "We refuse to

RIYADH: A total of 43 warehouses were shut down in Jeddah for failing to take safety and health measures. Officials of the general department of Civil Defense in Jeddah carried out inspection at 165 industrial complexes in the industrial zone recently. The field campaign led by the director in cha

ALKHOBAR/JEDDAH: A fire at the Saudi Aramco residential complex in Alkhobar early Sunday killed at least eleven people and injured more than 200, civil defense officials said. Some of the injured were in “critical condition” and confined at nearby hospitals, the Civil Defense Department said. It