The Ministry of Haj expects the number of visas for Umrah visitors to exceed 6 million this year, with over 400,000 likely to arrive this month alone. Bander Al-Hajjar, minister of Haj, said the ministry issued more than 6 million visas, adding that more than 5.6 million pilgrims arrived for Umra

By: Rohail Khan,   E-mail: rohailkhan00@gmail.com Ramadan 2014 is being celebrated with traditional fervour in Saudi Arabia. Sizzling summer and 15 hour-long fast, is noteworthy this Ramadan Influx of Umra visitors from abroad is rapidly on the rise. Over 500,000 visitors are expected in Ma

Dubai: Security is being tightened in airports across Europe and the Middle East with direct air flights to US destinations after intelligence reports from Washington’s agencies suggest that terrorists are plotting a new series of attacks on aviation targets. The heightened security comes as US

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has deployed 30,000 soldiers to its border with Iraq after Iraqi soldiers withdrew from the area, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television said on Thursday. The world’s top oil exporter shares an 800km border with Iraq, where Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) and other mi

Dubai: It’s about 11am on a scorching Ramadan morning and a group of eight chefs along with a few dozen helpers are racing against time to garnish 10 giant pots full of simmering mutton porridge — or kanji as they call it at a kitchen in Sonapur. The humble broth coddled with rice, lentil, fenn

Dubai: Retailers had been warned against increasing the prices of essential goods in Ramadan without written consent from the authorities, shoppers say they have already noticed an increase in prices compared with previous weeks. A quick check by Gulf News revealed prices have risen anywhere from

UPDATE: The humanitarian contributions to UAE Water Aid campaign have reached Dh76.450 million on its fourth day. The said amount is enough to buy fresh drinking water for 3.058 million people in developing countries or 61% of the 5 million people the campaign is targeting. The UAE Water Aid cam

Philanthropists will distribute more than 7.5 million packets of iftar meals among worshippers at the Grand Mosque in Makkah throughout Ramadan. “Everyday they supply 250,000 iftar meals, of which 80,000 meals are distributed in the northern courtyard and 70,000 in the southern courtyard,” said a

The Grand Mosque authorities have intensified efforts to address the increasing number of pilgrims and worshippers and to facilitate their performing of rituals inside the mosque. Most of the pilgrims coming from Asian countries are elderly and the local authorities are paying extra attention to en

Dubai: Every 21 seconds, a child dies from a water-related disease. As little as Dh25 from you can help reverse this. The UAE aims to help prevent deaths caused by unsafe drinking water through a nationwide campaign called the UAE Water Aid (UAE Suquia) launched on Saturday. His Highne

Imams in mosques throughout the Kingdom, including those in Makkah and Madinah, welcomed on Friday the holy month of Ramadan with an immense sense of piety and requested their respective congregation to strictly follow the teachings of the Holy Qur’an during the fasting period. The Supreme Court

Abu Dhabi: The first of Ramadan will be on Sunday, June 29, 2014, according to the UAE Moon Sighting Committee. Dr Hadef Jua’an Al Daheri, Minister of Justice, said after the committee’s meeting at the Judiciary Department in Abu Dhabi, that after contacting neighbouring countries and following

Abu Dhabi/Dubai: The UAE authorities had contacted the embassies of countries that export the largest number of domestic workers about the enforcement of a new unified contract for housemaids to clarify the confusion on the new rules, an official said. A new unified contract law for domestic wo

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has announced the timings for services during the holy month of Ramadan covering customer service centers, car parks, public buses, Dubai Metro, marine transit modes, driving institutes, and vehicles testing and registration centers. “The customer service c

Dubai: The long-standing practice of borrowers issuing blank cheques to lenders as guarantee of payment is one of the reasons people end up in prison, Dubai Police said on Tuesday. “We want to change people’s and companies’ mentality about cheques. Cheques should be used to fulfil monetary tran

Abu Dhabi: The Ministry of Economy has made an elaborate plan to monitor the food market in the UAE during Ramadan to control prices, a top official told Gulf News. The ministry has fixed prices of many food products and a mechanism is in place to ensure that retailers are strictly following th

Abu Dhabi: India’s diplomatic missions in the UAE expect to receive more passport booklets soon. Indian missions in the UAE used to issue between 1,100 and 1200 passports a day, but shortage of booklets in India has caused delays in passport issuance and renewal. Between 260,000 and 290,000 pas

The working hours for employees at various Ministries and other Federal Institutions will be from 9am to 2pm during Ramadan, according to a circular issued by Humaid Mohammed Obaid Al Qattami, Minister of Education, in his capacity as Chairman of the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources