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  • Saudi Arabia welcomes ceasefire agreement in Gaza

    Saudi authorities welcomed the announcement of a Gaza ceasefire agreement on Wednesday and expressed the Kingdom’s appreciation for the efforts of mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the US. The Kingdom stressed the need for adherence to the deal, an end to Israel’s aggression against Gaza, and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory and all other occupied Palestinian and Arab lands. It also highlighted the importance of building on the agreement by addressing the underlying reasons for the conflict and enabling the Palestinian people to secure their rights, the foremost of which is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

  • Blinken’s audacious final message for the Middle East

    “What we’ve done over the past four years,” Blinken said, “building on the Abraham Accords, was to try to get to their ultimate realization, which is normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel. . . . And as we sit here, it’s ready to go. That could move forward tomorrow. But it requires two things. It requires an end of the conflict in Gaza, and it requires a credible pathway to a Palestinian state.” Yet in a discussion with me on stage following his speech, Blinken said: “One of the things I believe strongly, Fred, from my own experience over the last thirty years and looking at the sweep of history, is that there’s no such thing as a hereditary enemy; that we are not fated to conflict or animosity; and even what seemed to be the most virulent and violent hatreds can go away, can change.”

  • Saudi Arabia, Japan Discuss 2026 Asian Games, Para Games in Nagoya

    Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) chief executive and secretary-general Abdulaziz bin Ahmed Baeshen met with Japan’s Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Matsumoto Hisashi in Riyadh on Monday. The meeting, held at SOPC headquarters, discussed developments in Japan's preparations for hosting the 20th Asian Games and the 5th Asian Para Games in Nagoya city in 2026. The officials also conferred about ways to facilitate the participation of the Saudi sports delegation in the games. Saudi-Japanese sports collaboration has intensified following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between SOPC and the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) on the sidelines of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics last August.

  • Aramco signs 145 agreements and MoUs worth $9bn at iktva Forum & Exhibition 2025

    Aramco, one of the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, today signed 145 agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) valued at around $9 billion at the In-Kingdom Total Value Add (iktva) Forum & Exhibition 2025. The agreements and MoUs are expected to advance the localization of goods and services in Saudi Arabia, boosting local content in the supply chain and fostering collaboration.

  • Saudi minister: Over 18.5 million pilgrims performed Hajj and Umrah in 2024

    Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Tawfiq al-Rabiah, said Monday that more than 18.5 million pilgrims from outside the Kingdom performed Hajj and Umrah in 2024. He highlighted recent advancements, particularly in enhancing visits to al-Rawdah al-Sharifah at the Prophet’s Mosque. By upgrading the workforce, streamlining the online booking process, and implementing a professional crowd management system, the number of visitors increased from 4 million in 2022 to over 13 million in 2024. The minister also unveiled an upgraded version of the “Nusuk” app, now offering 100 additional services designed to provide an integrated pilgrimage experience.

  • Glimpses of Saudi history: Past times in the northern region have left footprints on the landscape

    Among them is the Hail province, located in the north of Najd and famous for its monuments, especially in Jubbah and Shuwaymis. Hussain Al-Khalifah, a Saudi archeologist with more than 30 years of experience, spoke to Arab News about some of the area’s hidden gems. “There are mountains called Al-Raat and Al-Manjor. These two sites contain the oldest rock art ever immortalized on rocks … wonderful images of animals and lions (carved),” he said. “These two mountains are registered by UNESCO as a rock art site. It is somehow a form of continuous rock art, starting from Shuwaymis moving to Jubbah and ending at Al-Tawil mountain in Jouf.”

  • Saudi Foreign Minister Meets with EU High Representative

    Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah met today in Riyadh with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas on the sidelines of the Expanded Ministerial Meeting on Syria. The two officials discussed the shared cooperation between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the European Union and reviewed regional and international developments of mutual interest.

  • US reliance on Saudi oil is nearing its endgame

    The US bought roughly 277,000 barrels a day of Saudi crude last year, down nearly 85% from a record high of 1.73 million barrels a day in 2003. To find lower imports, one must travel back to 1985, when flows briefly plunged as the kingdom cut output to try to push oil prices higher. To find several years of similarly low imports, one must go back all the way to the late 1960s. The collapse in Saudi-US oil flows will deepen further in 2025 as one of the five refineries that has been regularly importing the barrels closes, according to custom documents. Lyondellbasell NV is shuttering its Houston plant this quarter, leaving only four consistent clients for the kingdom’s oil in America. The remaining plants are the Motiva refinery near Houston, owned by the Saudis themselves via their state-owned oil company; a refinery run by Chevron Corp. near Los Angeles, and two plants owned by PBF Energy Inc. in New Jersey and Delaware. Motiva alone accounts for 40% of the Saudi crude the US imported last year. The reduced number of buyers compares with two decades ago, when 25 (and, at times, even more) refineries regularly processed Saudi crude.

  • PIF announces completion of investment in Saudi Reinsurance Company

    PIF announced today that it has acquired a 23.08% stake in Saudi Reinsurance Company (Saudi Re) by way of a capital increase and subscription to new shares, with the suspension of preemptive rights in accordance with Capital Market Authority regulations. Saudi Re is a leading MENA reinsurance company and holds an A-minus rating from S&P Global and an A3 rating from Moody's. In the first nine months of 2024, Saudi Re's total written premiums reached SAR 1.94 billion ($520 million). It achieved a compound annual growth rate of 17% over the five years up to the end of the 2023 financial year.

  • Saudi Arabia Said to Near at Least $1 Billion Investment in Dazn

    The sports investment arm of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is in advanced talks to invest at least $1 billion in billionaire Len Blavatnik’s streaming service Dazn Group, which holds the broadcasting rights of some of Europe’s top-tier football leagues, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal between SURJ Sports Investment, a unit of the $925 billion Public Investment Fund, and Dazn could be announced as soon as this month, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Final terms are yet to be finalized and could still change, the people said. Dazn is a prominent player in the broadcast of live sports, holding multi-year rights for football and Formula One racing in several European markets. It has won the main broadcasting rights deal for Ligue 1, France’s top professional football league and also this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup.