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Tag: Saudi Arabia

  • VIDEO: Saudi Arabia hosts its first WWE women’s wrestling match

    VIDEO: Saudi Arabia hosts its first WWE women’s wrestling match

    Saudi Arabia has hosted its first women’s wrestling match, as it takes steps towards relaxing strict rules on entertainment, BBC News reported.

    According to the details, the contest took place in Riyadh, featuring WWE stars Natalya and Lacey Evans. The duo fought in body suits and a t-shirt on top, in line with requirements for visitors to “dress modestly.”

    Thursday’s wrestling match was part of the WWE Crown Jewel event which took place at Riyadh’s King Fahd International Stadium, which can seat 68,000 spectators. Former boxing champion Tyson Fury also competed, defeating Braun Strowman.

    Ahead of the match, wrestler Natalya wrote on Twitter: “The world will be watching. I am so incredibly proud to represent our women’s division tomorrow night at #WWECrownJewel. It’s time to bring your best, Lacey.”

    Saudi wrestler Mansoor, who will be squaring off against Cesaro, during an interview before the event said that many female members of his family could not wait to watch the match live.

    https://twitter.com/KSAMANNY/status/1189656804386594821?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1189656804386594821&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-middle-east-50248949

    Mansoor said, “I cannot even begin to describe how much that means to me, how much that means to my little sisters, who love WWE, how much it means to my nieces, who love WWE and who fantasise and dream about being wrestlers”.

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  • Saudi Arabia denies asking PM Imran to mediate with Iran

    Saudi Arabia denies asking PM Imran to mediate with Iran

    Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir has denied reports of separate mediation efforts with Iran, one particularly led by Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan to reduce tension between the two states, Middle East Eye reported.

    “We are not having any mediation. People come to us with ideas and we give them our response and our response is what we would like the Iranians to do and that is it, and we would like to see actions rather than words,” reports quoted Adel as saying.

    He added that there was compelling evidence that the September attacks on Saudi oil installations were with Iranian-made missiles and “Tehran must stop its rampage across the world”.

    “It [Iran] should behave like a normal country following international laws if it wants to be welcomed,” Adel said.

    Earlier in September, two Saudi Aramco installations were attacked and the Kingdom blamed Iran for it.

    The Saudi foreign minister’s statement comes amid efforts being made by PM Imran to bring both Riyadh and Tehran to the talks table, reportedly on United States (US) President Donald Trump’s suggestion.

    Imran, within the past few weeks, has also visited Saudi Arabia and Iran to push the two nations to bring an end to their long withstanding conflict.

  • US carried out secret cyber strike on Iran following Saudi oil attack: report

    US carried out secret cyber strike on Iran following Saudi oil attack: report

    The United States (US) carried out a secret cyber operation against Iran in the wake of the September 14 attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities, which Washington and Riyadh blame on Tehran, Dawn has reported.

    According to the details, the operation took place in late September and took aim at Tehran’s ability to spread “propaganda”. The strike only affected physical hardware and did not provide further details.

    The attack appears more limited than other such operations against Iran this year after the downing of an American drone in June and an alleged attack by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on oil tankers in the Gulf in May.

    US, Saudi Arabia, Britain, France and Germany have publicly blamed Iran for the Sept 14 attack, which denied involvement in the strike. The Iran-aligned Houthi militant group in Yemen later claimed responsibility for the attack.

    Publicly, the Pentagon has responded by sending thousands of additional troops and equipment to bolster Saudi defences, which is the latest US deployment to the region this year.

    Tensions in the Gulf have escalated sharply since May 2018, when Trump withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Tehran that put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the easing of sanctions.

  • Pakistan should threaten Saudi Arabia of destroying Ambani’s oil refinery: Zaid Hamid

    Pakistan should threaten Saudi Arabia of destroying Ambani’s oil refinery: Zaid Hamid

    Self-proclaimed defence and security analyst Zaid Hamid has suggested the Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan-led government to “threaten Saudi Arabia of destroying Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s oil refinery” to secure the Kingdom’s support.

    The world is divided as Pakistan and India face-off over Kashmir ever since New Delhi abrogated Article 370 of its constitution, robbing the disputed territory of its autonomy.

    Hamid’s advice to the government comes after Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that the Kingdom might not be standing up in Pakistan’s support since it has hefty investments planned in India.

    Earlier this month, Ambani had announced that his Reliance Industries’ plan to sell 20% stake in its refining and petrochemicals business for $15 billion to Saudi Aramco. The oil refinery has an enterprise value of $75 billion.

    Speaking to a private media outlet, Hamid criticised FM Qureshi for “making Pakistan’s position weaker in the diplomatic war against India” and suggested the government to threaten the Kingdom of destroying the refinery to garner its support.

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    He further said that Pakistan should threaten Israel of a nuclear attack to put India on a short leash.

    “India took Israel and the United States (US) into confidence before moving to annex held Kashmir,” he claimed and added that therefore Pakistan should target Israel instead of talking to India.

  • ‘PM Imran leaves Shah Mahmood Qureshi behind on Saudi Arabia trip’

    ‘PM Imran leaves Shah Mahmood Qureshi behind on Saudi Arabia trip’

    Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, who reached Saudi Arabia to attend the 14th Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit in Makkah last week, reportedly left his foreign minister (FM), Shah Mahmood Qureshi, behind.

    According to journalist Azaz Syed, FM Qureshi was left behind after “he was barred from boarding PM Imran’s special flight due to lack of space”.

    “The FM had to make alternate arrangements,” the journalist claimed in a tweet which has not yet received an official reaction.

    While sources have also confirmed the episode to The Current, they clarified that the FM wasn’t offloaded, but told beforehand to arrange his own trip since there wasn’t enough space in the premier’s aircraft.

    Earlier, a meeting of the OIC countries’ foreign ministers preceded the heads of states session to finalise the draft for ‘Makkah Memo’ that was presented and approved at the conference.

    FM Qureshi represented Pakistan at the meeting after managing to reach the Kingdom on time.

    The summit convenes every three years to make decisions about how to confront and contain conflicts and crises in Muslim-majority countries. This year, the conference focused on challenges faced by the Muslim community as it enters a new era with the aim to reach a unified stance.

    ‘WIDENING RIFT IN PTI’:

    The journalist’s claim regarding the FM being left behind comes two days after Federal Minister for Science & Technology Fawad Chaudhry hinted at a “cold war going on within the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)”.

    In an interview to a private media outlet, Fawad had mentioned interference of non-elected people in the affairs of the government. “At times, some important decisions are taken and we don’t even know. I still believe that we have some political weaknesses in decision-making,” he had said.

    FM Qureshi had earlier made headlines after an exchange of heated arguments with PM Imran’s close aide and former PTI secretary general, disqualified Jahangir Khan Tareen.

  • VIDEO: Saudi Arabia intercepts missiles headed for Makkah

    VIDEO: Saudi Arabia intercepts missiles headed for Makkah

    Saudi Arabia has intercepted two missiles headed for Makkah, the kingdom announced on Tuesday night.

    According to an official statement, the ballistic missiles, reportedly intercepted over Taif, were fired by Yemeni Houthi rebels and were headed for the holy city as well as Jeddah, a port city on the Red Sea.

    In a tweet, Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Washington confirmed the reports.

    PAKISTAN CONDEMNS:

    Meanwhile, Islamabad has condemned the reported firing of ballistic missiles.

    The Foreign Office, in a statement, issued its condemnation and also commended Saudi forces for their “vigilant” defence.

    “Pakistan condemns the firing of ballistic missiles by Houthis towards Makkah province and commends the vigilant Saudi defence forces for intercepting the missiles,” read the statement.

    “Pakistan reaffirms its solidarity with Saudi Arabia and reiterates its support against any threat to the security of the kingdom.”

    Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition of Muslim states that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognised government that was ousted from power by Houthi rebels in late 2014.

    The Houthis, on the other hand, denied that their missiles were targeting Makkah, roughly 70 km (40 miles) from Jeddah and 50 km (30 miles) from Taif. The group called the claim “a tactic by Saudi Arabia to rally support for its war”.