I have known many prime ministers. Not one of them was pure or holy. But, almost all had one common quality — when they reached the point where their own personal interest touched upon the national interest, it was the national interest that prevailed. But, Mr. Netanyahu was a rare exception.
They say eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. And that cannot hold more true in this day and age where states and institutions are confronting natural manmade challenges. How then can society face these threats if it is unaware of them?
This year Saudi youth will be enjoying the longest-ever summer vacation i.e. 100 days. Like all the other government departments in the Kingdom, the education department also follows the Hijrah calendar. With a little modification the end of school calendar will always fall during the months of June, July and August.
Contrary to general perception, the century-old Sykes-Picot Agreement should not be held responsible for the failure of many Arab states. Those failures are caused mainly by poor governance, poor utilization of natural resources, social inequality, weak education system and unnecessarily protracted conflicts.
Countries face many challenges to achieve its development goals. Some of those challenges are tangible and could be overcome by putting in a little extra effort. But there are some challenges that take time and need collective efforts to overcome.
Browsing through a copy of the International New York Times on a flight from Dubai to Jeddah, I read Roger Cohen’s article “The Arab Withering”. He reviews Robert F. Worth’s book “A Rage for Order”.
The recently announced Saudi Vision 2030 is creating waves across the world. Every political, social and economic analyst is keenly studying the Vision 2030.
Three headlines appeared in three different newspapers last week: “Ministry to ensure fair deal for Binladin staff”; “Quit or wait, Binladin tells 17,000 Saudi staff” and “Saudi Arabia lifts project bidding ban on crisis-hit Binladin Group”.
The election of Sadiq Khan as the mayor of London should serve as a lesson to those politicians who are under the wrong impression that they could make electoral gains by fanning anti-Muslim or anti-Islam sentiments.
The Obama doctrine expressed through an interview with Jeffrey Goldberg in the April issue of The Atlantic caused consternation and alarm to many in the Arab world. Many commentators, writers and those wielding political power were rattled.
Since its establishment, the Shoura Council has gone through various reforms. Many see it as a formal advisory body but it has a far greater role in the decision-making process, particularly when it comes to new legislations.
Emad is an Egyptian engineer. Ahmed is a Syrian accountant. Both are very close friends and their families are like one big family. Both the friends have been living in Saudi Arabia for the past 35 years.
Sitting after the Friday congregation, sipping mint tea, a neighbor posed a question: “Are we a happy people?” Before I could reflect on the full effect of the question, a friend replied that “happiness is a state of mind”.
Whether you believe it or not, I just realized that in order for me to see ancient Islamic artifacts, works of Islamic art, archaeology, coins and books, I would have to visit a neighboring country or to travel as far as Europe to find some museum housing such treasures.
The grim memories of the 9/11 attacks continue to cause immense emotional pain to not only the bereaved families of the victims but also to all the peace-loving people around the world. Writing about 9/11 is always a painful experience.
Is there an Arab world? That was the question posed by an American college professor as we sat across a table in an Egyptian seaside resort.
This week US President Barack Obama is scheduled to visit Saudi Arabia. During his visit, he will meet Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and attend a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit.
Let us cut a long story short. There are two islands at the northern part of the Red Sea named Sanafir and Tiran. These two islands had always been Saudi islands.
THE “green card” plan disclosed by Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense, in an interview with Bloomberg, has been welcomed by many expatriates.
Visits of Saudi officials to Egypt or Egyptian officials to the Kingdom are a routine thing since the day King Abdul Aziz laid the foundations of modern-day Saudi Arabia.