The Ministry of Labor (MOL) recently posted an advisory on its official social network account stating that a newly recruited foreign worker can look for another sponsor without permission if his company fails to issue a work permit as a result of being in the Red or Yellow zone category. If a comp

Volunteers hold banners warning people against performing Haj without a permit. (Photo by Arab News) JEDDAH: Saudi authorities have developed a new electronic system to track down people with fake Haj permits during the upcoming pilgrimage, a source at the Interior Ministry said on Monday. “Se

Madinah: Large convoys of pilgrims have started converging in Madinah for their journey to Makkah for the Haj 2014. Among them are two Indian pilgrims, Rayeesuddin Ansari and Liyaquat Ali. They came to Madinah from Lucknow, India. “This is my first Haj,” said Ansari. “I am very happy to be in Ma

Jeddah: Indian expatriates from the state of Tamil Nadu launched a blood donation campaign for Haj pilgrims recently. Jamal Gafoor of the Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamath (TNTJ), Jeddah region, said that over 250 expatriates showed up at the King Fahd Hospital in the city recently to donate blood meant t

Dubai: Just like previous years, Dubai’s population has consistently grown by five per cent over the past year. However, what might come as a surprise to many people is that a little over three-quarters of Dubai’s population is male. Statistics collected by the Dubai Statistic Centre s

Dubai: One in three motorists in the UAE admit to being distracted while driving, a survey released on Tuesday revealed. Thirty-four per cent of 1,007 drivers surveyed in June said their concentration levels dip while driving due to various distractions on the road and inside vehicles, accordin

Jeddah: The Haj Ministry will expand low-cost services to more than 41,000 pilgrims this year by allocating some of the vacant tents for the service, a senior official announced Wednesday. “Haj Minister Bandar Hajjar has instructed authorities to allocate the tents returned by some companies to p

Riyadh/Mumbai: The Saudi Arabian authorities Wednesday denied any plan to move or destroy the Prophet's Tomb adjacent to the Masjid al-Nabawi in Madinah al-Munawwerah, and termed the news reports being circulated in the media as false, fabricated and misleading. Putting a question mark over the p

The Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday that vaccination against meningitis is mandatory for all local and international Haj pilgrims. Taking the flu shot is also recommended, in addition to quarantine requirements for foreign pilgrims depending on the country they live in, according to officia

Saudi Arabia has detained 88 people, more than half of them Saudis, on suspicion of plotting "terrorist" attacks at home and abroad, the interior ministry said on Tuesday. A ministry statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency said the ministry had been following a number of suspects in

The Haj Ministry website has started accepting applications from Saudis and expatriates who wanted to make use of the low-cost Haj scheme. More than 40,000 pilgrims are expected to benefit from the low-cost Haj scheme this year, said Abdul Hameed Al-Sinani, secretary general of the Coordination C

Manama: Saudi authorities have granted more than 200,000 visas to Indian domestic helpers and labourers in one month. “Since we resumed bringing in Indian workers at the end of Ramadan, the number of visas has reached 220,000,” Ahmad Al Fuhaid, the labour ministry undersecretary for internation

Abu Dhabi: Indian diplomatic missions in the UAE are expected to clear a backlog in applications for passport renewal within a week after facing delays during the past three months due to a shortage of passport booklets in India. “We have started getting sufficient booklets regularly and the ba

Dubai: More than 970,000 students will start today (Sunday) their academic year 2014-2015 in 1400 schools operating under the Ministry of Education across the UAE. This is in addition to students in private schools offering non-UAE curriculum. The Ministry of Education has confirmed the readine

JEDDAH: Health authorities in Makkah have begun training their personnel, including nurses and doctors, in dealing with prevention of infection of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV) during the Haj season. The infection control management and effective preventive measures

Dubai: The concept of ‘Happily Ever After’ is on shaky foundation among many Dubai couples.   Figures by the Dubai Statistic Centre show a dramatic increase of 40 per cent in the number of divorces in Dubai from 2011 to 2013.   The numbers show that 896 divorce certificates wer

Dubai: Four Asian men have been caught trying to sell 4.7 million Indian rupees in fake banknotes to a Dubai businessman. “The forgery was among the best we have seen,” Major General Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, Assistant Police Chief for criminal investigation affairs, said. “It could have easi

Manama: Saudi pilgrimage authorities may impose a 15-day cap on stays by foreigners who enter the kingdom to perform Umrah. The decision will be proportionate with the capacity to accommodate worshippers inside the Grand Mosque in Makkah, currently undergoing massive construction work that has