• Oman Air disables misnamed 'Persian' Gulf inflight maps

    MUSCAT: Oman Air has switched off an inflight map system that labeled the waterway between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, the subject of a bitter naming dispute, as the “Persian Gulf”. The decision followed a storm of criticism on social media after a passenger posted a video showing the map in Arabic referring to the Persian, rather than Arabian Gulf. “Our crew have been notified to disable the disturbing maps,” the sultanate’s national carrier said in a statement on Twitter. Two Boeing Dreamliners hired from Kenya Airways used a different map system to its own, it said, adding that it had asked Panasonic, which runs the system, to change the maps “without delay”. One Twitter user called the

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  • King Fahd: Either we live together or die together

    The Middle East was so simple and forthright until recently. It was easy to analyze changes and understand its basic elements. Enmities were explicit and alliances unquestionable. Even compliments between different parties were clear, as everyone knew they were just a matter of courtesy. Back then it was black and white, but now it is a grey area where people, led by US President Barack Obama, talk the talk but do not walk the walk. The case of Syria What are agreements for if relevant parties do not abide by them? Jamal Khashoggi Libya Iraq Last Update: Monday, 26 September 2016 KSA 10:03 - GMT 07:03 Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not reflect Al Arabiya

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  • Marriage phobia

    Dr. Ahlam Alaqi Marriage has become a frightening thing. I have heard many mothers say it. But why do they view marriage like that? I once asked a mother why she said this and she told me a sad story. She married her daughter to a young Saudi man who was studiying abroad. Her daughter traveled abroad to live with her husband, who turned out to be selfish, irresponsible and above all a miser. Her poor daughter suffered immensely, especially after giving birth to their first child. The mother decided to go abroad to help her daughter and was shocked when she arrived at their home to find the fridge empty expect for some water bottles. She discovered that her daughter was living on milk and cereals.

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  • Blake Lively doesn't want you praising her post-baby body

    Blake Lively says new mums shouldn't feel pressure to lose weight straight after having a baby. She's been on Australian breakfast show Sunrise, where she was complimented on how great she looked in a bikini in her new film The Shallows. The presenter commented on how the film was shot just months after Blake had her first baby. But the 28-year-old called it unfair that slimming down after birth is "so celebrated". "It's like, this is what someone looks like after having a baby," she said. "I think a woman's body after having a baby is pretty amazing. You gave birth to a human being. I would really like to see that celebrated." The ex-Gossip Girl star's now expecting her second child with husband

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  • Kuwait ranks worst in GCC for expats: HSBC

    KUWAIT: Only three weeks after the InterNations Foundation ranked Kuwait as the worst country for expats to live in, Kuwait was once more ranked the last in GCC and 35th worldwide in terms of the best country for expat life according to the Expat Explorer survey issued by HSBC bank. According to the 2016 survey, Kuwait fell back one notch from 34 to 35 amongst 45 world countries – starting with Singapore as number one and Brazil as number 45 in terms of the best destinations for expats. In addition, the study showed that Bahrain was the prime destination for expats in GCC states and came 9th worldwide followed by UAE which ranked second in GCC and 12th worldwide. The report also showed that Oman

    Kuwait Times q

  • Two Muslim Women Kicked Off JetBlue Flight for ‘Staring’ at Flight Attendant

    In what would have been a shocking but is now an all-too-familiar Islamophobic incident, two Muslim women were led off a passenger plane as a flight attendant did not like the way the women ‘stared’ at her, according to DailyMail. On Saturday, two Muslim women in hijabs onboard JetBlue Flight 487 between Boston and Los Angeles were escorted out of the airliner by police as one of the flight attendants was concerned about the way the two women were looking at her. A video showing the two women being escorted out for questioning was posted on YouTube on Monday by Mark Frauenfelder, taken by his friend Sharon Kessler. In regards to the incident, Kessler told DailyMail that "it was a terrible moment

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  • Philippines’ Duterte to forge closer ties with China, Russia

    Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte says he has decided to “cross the Rubicon” in his ties with the United States and will open trade alliances and offer long-term land leases to “the other side of the ideological barrier,” China and Russia. Duterte said he will travel to China soon to talk to President Xi Jinping, and then to Japan and Russia.

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  • Obama vetoes bill allowing 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia - Region - World

    President Barack Obama on Friday vetoed a bill allowing 9/11 families to sue Saudi Arabia, risking a fierce public backlash and rare congressional rebuke. While expressing "deep sympathy" for the families of the victims, Obama said the law would be "detrimental to US national interests." The White House tried and failed to have the legislation -- which was unanimously passed by Congress -- scrapped or substantially revised. Terry Strada, whose husband Tom was killed in World Trade Center Tower One, told AFP the 9/11 "families are outraged and very disappointed" by Obama's decision. She vowed that the group would now lobby "just as hard as we possibly can" to have Congress overturn the decision.

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  • Love Island will return for a third series

    Good news for fans of Love Island - ITV has announced it will be back next year. Bosses have ordered a third season of one of the summer's most talked about shows. Its second run is thought to have doubled last year's viewing figures, with an average of 1.3 million people watching each episode. "We can't wait to do it all again next year," said ITV Studios creative director Richard Cowles. Although the series officially finished last night with Nathan Massey and Cara De La Hoyde crowned champions, it will return for a special episode on Sunday 17 July. Love Island: Heading Home will follow the islanders as they're reunited at the wrap party. Which will no doubt mean clashes as exes come face-to-face

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  • FAST: China's great space telescope begins operations

    The world's largest radio telescope has began operating in southwestern China, a project which Beijing says will help humanity search for alien life. The mega telescope began working around noon, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday, adding that it will explore space and search for signs of intelligent life. Built within a valley surrounded by naturally-formed karst hills in China's remote and mountainous southwestern Guizhou province, the FAST radio telescope's huge dish is equal in size to 30 football pitches and was built from 4,000 individual metal panels. The feasibility study for the telescope was carried out over 14 years and construction took more than five years to complete.

    Al Jazeera q

  • Concerted effort to combat Iran lies urged

    ABHA: A recent US study said Iran annually spends nearly $950 million to improve its image and distort the image of the GCC countries in the US media. Meanwhile, a study recently published by Ali Al-Qarni, titled “The image of Saudi Arabia in the world: A survey study on samples of academics and media professionals in the Kingdom,” said the image of Islam has been negatively affected as a result of Western campaigns, notably Zionist campaigns in the US, which were never addressed except by the Saudi diplomatic institutions. Commenting on this, the head of the College of Information and Communications of Post-Graduate Studies and Scientific Research at Imam Mohammed Islamic University, Mohammed Al-Subaihi, said: “We cannot deny that the Iranian media is organizing media campaigns whose expenses are fully paid in an exaggerated manner.

    Arab News q

  • Meet the world's richest young billionaires as Hugh Grosvenor inherits £9bn

    He had three daughters but only one son, 25-year-old Hugh Grosvenor, who is heir to the dukedom. Hugh has now inherited "half of London" after his father's estate covers most of Belgravia and Mayfair - the most expensive area on the Monopoly board. He hasn't had to work for his father's money. But he does have a job as an account manager for Bio-bean - a green technology company. According to the 2016 Forbes Rich List there are nine other under-30s worth more than $1bn - so we thought we'd find out who some of them are. At 20 and 21, Alexandra and Katharina Andresen are the youngest Johan, a Norwegian industrialist and investor, transferred his fortune to his two daughters in 2007. Norway is

    BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat q

  • Oil prices rebound after Algeria says all options open at OPEC meeting

    Crude prices rebounded on Monday after Algeria's energy minister said the day before that all options were possible for an oil output cut or freeze at this week's informal meeting of OPEC producers. That came after prices tumbled 4 percent on Friday amid signs Saudi Arabia and Iran were making little progress in achieving preliminary agreement to freeze production. Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will meet on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum in Algeria from Sept. 26-28, where they will discuss a possible output-limiting deal. "We will not come out of the meeting empty-handed," Algerian energy minister Noureddine Bouterfa said in Algiers on Sunday.

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  • Japan scrambles jets as China flies near disputed islands

    Tokyo (CNN)Japan scrambled fighter jets Sunday after China flew a fleet of aircraft near contested islands in the East China Sea. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that the jets were sent up after eight Chinese military planes crossed between Okinawa and the Miyako islands near Taiwan. He said that two of the aircraft were thought to be fighter jets. He added that the planes didn't "trespass" into Japan's territorial airspace, although he said it was the first time that Chinese military aircraft had been seen in the Miyako Strait. "We will continue to keep close eyes on the Chinese military activities which have been expanding and become more frequent," he said. Shen Jinke,

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  • How a sleeping Kyrgyz boy prompted poverty conversation

    This image of a Kyrgyz boy sleeping on a piece of cardboard has triggered a furore on social media, and a wider debate about poverty in the Central Asian country. The boy is three years old and lives in the Osh region, in the south of Kyrgyzstan. It was posted to Facebook along with the comment: "It would be good if this innocent child slept in a kindergarten or at home, instead of at the market". And others were quick to offer similar opinions - blaming the mother of the boy for leaving him to sleep on the street. But many turned their attention to the government as well, criticising the authorities for the pitiful scene. "State jackals. You can't see how the people live," wrote one. Many took

    BBC News q

  • A busy day at causeway

    Dammam — Some 70,000 vehicles from the Saudi and Bahraini sides crossed the King Fahd Causeway on Friday, according to Director of Saudi Passports (Jawazat) Brig. Gen. Marei Al-Qahtani. Citizens and expatriates in Saudi Arabia had an extended holiday for the National Day, which was celebrated on Friday. The causeway authorities opened all 21 lanes for the smooth flow of the heavy traffic. The lanes were monitored by 128 surveillance cameras linked to the operations room which was set up recently. The operations room is equipped withe the latest technology and has well-trained security staff to facilitate the flow of traffic to and from Bahrain, Al-Qahtani said. The 25 km-long causeway links the

    Saudi Gazette q

  • Female Saudi chefs excel in profession

    Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH — Female Saudi chefs are vigorously competing in the culinary industry, dedicating their abilities and expertise to offer distinctive dishes that express their passion for cooking. But success has come at a price, with some obstacles and difficulties. Chef Somayya Al-Idrissi said she encountered difficulties in the field cooking in the Kingdom. “This area is relatively new in Saudi Arabia and there are misconceptions about the profession of chefs, which scares young women from pursuing this experience. But my determination and my enthusiasm to hone my talent led me to the pursuit of excellence even though it is difficult,” she said. Al-Idrissi’s passion for cooking

    Saudi Gazette q

  • Saudi Arabia vs Dubai: The 2020 Race For The World’s Tallest Tower

    It seems like Dubai is bored of smashing Guinness World Records, as flagship developer Emaar Properties announces plans to construct the world’s tallest tower, surpassing the Burj Khalifa that currently holds the current world record, but will Saudi Arabia steal the title? The race is on as property developer Emaar has announced plans to build a new tower, with an estimated cost of $1 billion, that will stand a ‘notch’ taller than 830-metre Burj Khalifa. The proposed project expects completion by 2020, which coincidentally will be the same year that Dubai will host the World Expo Trading Fair. The announcement explained that Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava Valls is expected to devote

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  • Manchester hit-and-run: Footage shows woman struck by car

    CCTV footage has been released of the moment a driver fled the scene of a hit-and run after a 67-year-old woman was struck by a car. The woman was crossing Chapel Street in Levenshulme, Manchester, when a silver Honda Civic, which was waiting at the junction, reversed and hit her on 13 August. The driver got out, saw the woman on the ground and returned to the car before leaving, Greater Manchester Police said. The woman was taken to hospital where she was treated for a broken ankle and a fractured arm. Officers said they were looking for a man of large build, in his 20s or 30s with short black hair.

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  • 23 Absurdly Fab Photos from Karim El Chiaty & Victoria's Secret Model Ana Beatriz Barros' Wedding

    You might have noticed people making the move to Sahel, Gouna, and other such dreamy beachy lands during the Eid weekend, but what about the mysterious case of Mykonos? Why were our social media feeds suddenly flooded with images of the Greek tropical island? A coincidence? We think not. Everyone in the country (or world) has been buzzing – about what can only be described as the biggest, most glam wedding of the year where Brazilian Victoria’s Secret supermodel Ana Beatriz Barros tied the knot with Egyptian-Greek billionaire Karim El Chiati. You could say a few celebrities made an appearance. Nothing special. A slew of luxurious villas held over 400 guests who flew from all over the world for

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