Arab world

    An official source has said there are media outlets trying to publish false and incorrect reports about the distinguished relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Russian Federation, with the aim of damaging relations between the two friendly countries. Stressing the necessity of obtaining information on relations between the two countries from the official media, the source pointed out that the two countries are permanently committed to positive and open dialogue.  

    Saudi land forces backed by coalition aircraft were able to foil an attempted attack by Houthi militias on Sunday morning to breach the borders near Jazan and Najran, according to Al-Arabiya.net An Al-Arabiya correspondent reported that Houthi militias started two simultaneous attacks in both border regions by firing Katyusha rockets at Saudi security posts in the village of Al-Qarn in Jazan and Al-Shorfa in Najran. Saudi forces were quickly to stop the attempt by targeting the Houthi militias stationed near the front lines of the border through artillery attacks that targeted them at a distance of 25 km, while the rest of the militias who tried to breach the border where targeted with direct fire. A coalition aircraft supported the military operation by destroying a numbe...

    Saudi security forces on Friday foiled a suicide attack on the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, cornering the would-be attacker in an apartment, where he blew himself up, the Interior Ministry said. In a statement read on state television, the ministry said that three cells had planned the attack on worshippers and security forces at the mosque as the Muslim holy month of Ramadan nears its climax. The trapped would-be suicide bomber exchanged fire with the security forces, then set off explosives when he was surrounded in a house in the central Mecca neighbourhood of Ajyad al-Masafi near the mosque that had been used as the base for the attack, the ministry said. The building collapsed, injuring six foreigners and five members of the security forces. Grand Mo...

    Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was promoted to crown prince on Wednesday, replacing his cousin in a sudden announcement that confirms King Salman’s 31-year-old son as next ruler of the kingdom. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef has been relieved of his post and replaced by Mohammed bin Salman who becomes deputy prime minister and retains his defense and other portfolios, a royal decree issued by the Saudi state agency said SPA. Although Mohammed bin Salman's promotion was expected among close circles it came as a surprise at a time the kingdom is facing escalating tensions with Qatar and Iran and is locked in an air war in Yemen. Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, for years the kingdom's counter-terrorism chief who put down an al Qaeda campaign of bombi...

    For Umm Mohammed and other residents of areas of war battered west Mosul recaptured from Islamic State group jihadists, this year’s Muslim holy month of Ramadan carries a bitter taste. Our homes and cars have been destroyed, our family separated, said the former bank manager in Iraq’s second largest city. Why should we have to wait here in this long queue to get aid? We used to have a dream life and we’ve fallen all the way down to the bottom, said the 38-year-old mother of two, declining to give her full name for fear of reprisals against family members left behind in districts still under jihadist control. IS seized the northern city of Mosul in June 2014 and imposed a brutal form of Islamist rule and a regime of terror on its inhabitants. Life has been made even harder ...

    Pakistan will mediate between Saudi Arabia and Qatar in the ongoing Gulf Crisis that has engulfed the entire Muslim world. Prime Minister of Pakistan and the Chief of Army Staff have decided to play their role in this regard. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javaid Bajwa on Monday left on a one-day visit to Saudi Arabia to help resolve the Gulf crisis. The premier is accompanied by Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz and other senior officials. Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister House, in a statement, said PM Nawaz “will visit the kingdom in context of the emergent situation among GCC countries”. During his visit, the prime minister will hold talks with the Saudi leadersh...

    Iran has sent five planes of food to Qatar, Iran’s national carrier told AFP on Sunday, days after Gulf countries cut off air and other transport links to the emirate. So far five planes carrying perishable food items such as fruit and vegetables have been sent to Qatar, each carrying around 90 tonnes of cargo, while another plane will be sent today, Iran Air spokesman Shahrokh Noushabadi said. We will continue deliveries as long as there is demand from Qatar, Noushabadi added, without mentioning if these deliveries were exports or aid. Three ships loaded with 350 tonnes of food were also set to leave an Iranian port for Qatar, the Tasnim news agency quoted a local official as saying. The port of Dayyer is Iran’s closest port to Qatar. In the biggest diplomatic crisis in t...

    Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates announced on Monday they were severing diplomatic ties with Qatar, as they accused the Gulf state of supporting terrorism. Saudi news agency SPA said Riyadh cut diplomatic ties and closed borders with its neighbour to protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism. A Saudi official cited by SPA said the country decided to sever diplomatic and consular ties with Qatar, and to close all land, sea and aviation ports. The decisive measure was due to the gross violations committed by authorities in Qatar over the past years, the Saudi statement said, as the UAE made an announcement cutting ties. Egypt’s foreign ministry also accused Doha of supporting terrorism in a statement as it announced th...

    Rockets shot from frigate and submarine in Mediterranean intended to take out militant's stronghold around ancient city of Palmyra Russian warships in the Mediterranean Sea have fired four cruise missiles at Isis positions in Syria, the Russian defence ministry said on Wednesday. The ministry said in a statement that the Admiral Essen frigate and the Krasnodar submarine launched the missiles at Isis targets in the area of the ancient city of Palmyra. There was no information on when the missiles were launched. Russia, a staunch Damascus ally, has been providing air cover to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's offensive on the Isis since 2015. Syrian troops backed by Russian airstrikes captured Palmyra in March last year and Moscow even flew in one of its best classical musi...

    The sister of Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi believes her brother carried out the attack because he wanted revenge for US air strikes on Syria. Jomana Abedi said in an interview her brother was kind and loving and that she was surprised by what he did on Monday. At least 22 people were killed and dozens seriously injured when 22-year-old Abedi detonated a device as fans left an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena. Ms Abedi said she thought he was driven by America's military attacks in the Middle East. “I think he saw children - Muslim children - dying everywhere, and wanted revenge," she told the Wall Street Journal . "He saw the explosives America drops on children in Syria, and he wanted revenge. Whether he got that is between him and God.” In the m...