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MUFTI
HITS
OUT AT
SMEAR
CAMPAIGN
AGAINST
CHARITIES
"Sheikh
Abdul
Aziz
Al-Sheikh,
the
grand
mufti,
[Nov.
12]
blasted
the
smear
campaign
being
launched
by
certain
sections
of the
Western
media
to
discredit
Saudi
charitable
societies.
'Our
charities
are
supporting
the
poor
and
working
for
the
good
of
humanity,'
he
said..."
SCORES
IN
RUNNING
FOR
PIECE
OF THE
RAIL
PIE
"American,
European,
Japanese
and
South
African
firms
are
among
32
international
bidders
for
the
financial
consultancy
of the
Kingdom's
1,600-km
railway
project,
a
Saudi
Railways
Organization
(SRO)
source
said
here
yesterday...
...
The
main
project
envisages
adding
a
950-km
rail
link
between
Riyadh
and
Jeddah.
This
will
complete
the
rail
link
between
the
country's
east
and
west
coasts
through
the
existing
450-km
rail
link
between
Riyadh
and
Dammam.
Initial
estimates
put
the
cost
of
this
project
alone
at
more
than
$2
billion..."
[Expired
Link]
US
ENVOY
GREETS
STUDENTS
"US
Ambassador
Robert
Jordan
hosted
a
reception
recently
to
welcome
King
Faisal
School
students
who
are
participating
in a
special
exchange
program
with
Brown
University
in the
US.
The
students
visited
Brown
University
during
the
summer
2002
on
joint
program
between
the
two
institutions.
Ambassador
Jordan
pointed
out to
Dr.
Mohammed
Al-Khateeb,
president
of
King
Faisal
School
and to
the
staff
who
accompanied
the
students
to the
US
that
such
programs
are
essential
for
Saudis
and
Americans
to
learn
about
each
other
and
overcome
some
of the
misunderstandings
that
exist
on
both
sides..."
[Expired
Link]
POWELL
LASHES
OUT AT
ANTI-MUSLIM
RHETORIC
"US
Secretary
of
State
Colin
Powell
lashed
out
[Nov.
14]
against
recent
anti-Muslim
rhetoric
from
some
prominent
conservative
US
Christians,
saying
such
"hatred"
damaged
US
interests.
Powell's
comments
came a
day
after
President
George
W.
Bush
repudiated
the
same
remarks
in a
rare
rebuke
of the
religious
right
- one
of his
main
political
power
bases..."
[Expired
Link]
NEW
MEASURES
IN THE
OFFING
TO
TACKLE
DEBTS:
SULTAN
"Saudi
Arabia
will
soon
announce
new
measures
including
taxation
to
tackle
its
staggering
public
debt
problem,
according
to
Prince
Sultan,
second
deputy
premier
and
minister
of
defense
and
aviation.
In an
open
dialogue
with
Shoura
Council
members
recently,
the
prince
said
the
new
measures
aimed
at
increasing
revenues
and
reducing
expenditures
will
be
presented
to the
Shoura
Council
for
endorsement..."
[Expired
Link]
WOMEN
BARRED
FROM
PROPHET'S
CHAMBER
"Women
have
temporarily
been
banned
to
enter,
approach
or
pray
at the
Prophet's
chamber
and
the
rawdah
(the
area
near
the
Prophet's
chamber)
at the
Prophet's
Mosque
in
Madinah,
Al-Madinah
newspaper
reported
[Nov.
14].
The
General
Presidency
of
Prophet's
Mosque
Affairs
was
forced
to
take
the
unprecedented
move
by the
inconveniences
caused
by the
huge
crowd,
according
to an
official
source
at the
presidency..."
[Expired
Link]
PRIVATIZATION
MOVE
DUBBED
'HISTORIC,
ENCOURAGING'
"Economists
and
businessmen
have
welcomed
Monday's
historic
decision
by the
Cabinet
to
privatize
20
vital
economic
sectors,
saying
it
will
strengthen
the
economy
and
attract
national
funds
invested
abroad…
…
The
strategy,
approved
by the
Supreme
Economic
Council
(SEC)
in
June,
outlines
the
procedures
of
privatization,
sectors
on
offer
to the
domestic
private
sector
and
foreign
investors
and a
timetable
for
transferring
certain
services
to
private
businesses…"
[Expired
Link]
MIDDLE
EAST
EMBRACES
PRIVATIZATION
"Several
Middle
Eastern
states
have
this
week
moved
closer
to
embracing
privatization
schemes
in
order
to
shore
up
their
finances.
Saudi
Arabia's
finance
minister,
Ibrahim
al-Assaf,
announced
plans
to
privatize
20
sectors
including
telecoms,
railways,
health
services
and
hotels..."
[Expired
Link]
STAGNATION
'AT
ROOT'
OF
ARAB
PROBLEMS
"Stagnation
is a
major
problem
in the
Arab
world,
says a
leading
banker
and
former
diplomat.
'The
problem
in the
Arab
world
is not
instability
but
stagnation,'
said
HSBC
special
adviser
and
former
British
ambassador
to
Saudi
Arabia
Sir
David
Gore-Booth.
The
Middle
East
matters,
not
just
because
it is
an
area
of
tension,
but
because
it
boasts
real
achievements,
he
said..."
[Expired
Link]
SAUDI
ARABIA
IS
MAJOR
CONTRIBUTOR
TO
REBUILDING
AFGHANISTAN
"The
Kingdom
of
Saudi
Arabia
[Nov.
12]
announced
that
construction
has
begun
on a
major
road
project
in
Afghanistan.
The
Kabul-Kandahar-Herat
highway,
largely
destroyed
by
war,
is
being
rebuilt
through
a
Saudi-U.S.-Japanese
partnership.
The
road
project
will
repair
a
major
transportation
artery
and
will
help
bring
back
transportation
and
trade
to the
war-torn
country.
The
project
is
part
of a
multi-billion
dollar
effort
to the
rebuilding
of
Afghanistan..."
Source:
PRNewswire
[Expired
Link]
SAUDIS
SECURE
$380M
CONTRACTS
FROM
IRAQ
"Saudi
businessmen
who
made a
landmark
visit
to
Baghdad
earlier
this
month
secured
contracts
worth
$380
million
with
the
Iraqi
government,
a top
Saudi
businessman
told
Al-Jazirah
newspaper..."
[Expired
Link]
UNIFIED
PATENTS
PROCEDURE
"An
official
spokesman
of the
GCC
Patents
Office
has
clarified
with
reference
to
[Nov.
12]
report
in
Arab
News
that a
patent
issued
in one
GCC
member
country
gets
automatically
registered
in
other
states
unlike
in EU,
where
a
separate
application
for
patent
has to
be
filed
in
each
member
country
of the
European
Union.
This
is one
of the
highlights
of the
unified
patents
procedure,
he
added..."
[Expired
Link]
DECISION
ON
TAXI
SECTOR
IS
FINAL:
NAIF
"Interior
Minister
Prince
Naif
has
said
that
the
decision
on
Saudizing
the
taxi
sector
is
final.
He
clarified
the
government's
stand
to
reporters
while
attending
a
function
to
honor
outstanding
students
of
Riyadh
region
on
[Nov.
14].
"All
should
know
that
the
decision
to
Saudize
the
taxi
sector
is
final
and
definite
but we
should
give
sufficient
time
to
implement
it
successfully,"
Prince
Naif
said.
He is
currently
studying
the
methodology
and
timing
for
implementing
the
program
in
collaboration
with
the
ministries
of
communication
and
labor
and
social
affairs..."
[Expired
Link]
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