By SIRAJ WAHAB | ARAB NEWS ASTANA, Kazakhstan: The three-day annual Council of Foreign Ministers meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation ended with a sense of optimism and new direction among the delegations. The deliberations in the Kazakh capital were frank and honest and sometimes critical. Minister after minister […]
By Mohammad Ghazal AMMAN – For Malaysian students and parents alike, the high quality of education in Jordan coupled with the country’s stability are the main reasons to come to the Kingdom for university. The diverse culture, the various tourist attractions and the warmth of Jordanians also encourage Malaysians to […]
Bloody clashes between protesters and anti-riot police that raged overnight in Cairo’s Tahrir Square erupted in new scuffles yesterday amid mounting frustration with Egypt’s military rulers over the pace of reform. The health ministry said there were 1,036 injured in the clashes. Those included 120 who were hospitalised and most […]
By REUTERS DAMASCUS: The reception area is quiet at the Beit Zaman boutique hotel in the Christian Quarter of Old Damascus and the staff is visibly bored. Bellhops loiter in the lavishly decorated corridors of the $200-a-night hotel and a receptionist stares idly at his computer screen. Four months ago, […]
By P.K. ABDUL GHAFOUR | ARAB NEWS JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s finance minister on Wednesday urged Muslim countries to adopt suitable economic reform programs and adapt to the changing global economic atmosphere to confront the challenges facing them. “We should also strengthen our joint efforts to overcome development obstacles,” Finance Minister […]
His Majesty King Abdullah’s meeting with dignitaries representing Circassians in Jordan, to discuss the current reforms and the future course of the country, shows the importance granted to minority groups living here. Circassians contributed a great deal to the development of the country and they, like members of other minorities, […]
BEIRUT: Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah’s acknowledgment that three members of Hezbollah had been caught spying, two of them for the CIA, is the first time that the party has admitted in public that a Western intelligence organization has infiltrated its ranks. The internal security of Hezbollah is known to be formidable. […]
By SIRAJ WAHAB | ARAB NEWS ASTANA, Kazakhstan: The secretary-general of the renamed Organization of Islamic Cooperation has called for a decade of action on political reforms and peaceful resolutions for Palestine, Libya and Syria. “The Muslim world is confronted with some serious developments with direct impact on its stability, […]
By Mohammad Ghazal BALAAMA – His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday said with the determination and will of all Jordanians, the country will be able to overcome all challenges and build a better future for Jordanians. The King said protecting the dignity of Jordanians, preserving their interests, enhancing their living […]
By MD HUMAIDAN | ARAB NEWS JEDDAH: An official of the Charitable Society for Holy Qur’an Memorization has blamed the Ministry of Education for not producing sufficient number of qualified Saudi teachers for the Qur’an memorization institutions. “The three-year grace period granted to Qur’an memorization societies to Saudize their institutions […]
Despite government target of 10% Arab employees in Israel’s public sector by 2012, figures presented to Knesset by Council for Higher Education show only 2.7% of teaching staff, 1.7% of administrative staff at colleges and universities are Israeli Arabs. Arabs make up a mere 2.7 percent of the academic teaching […]
By Asma Afsaruddin Religious pluralism is one of the few truly modern expressions. The term refers to the acceptance of a multitude of religions existing in harmony despite internal doctrinal differences and variations in external rituals and practices. Although the term itself hails only from the 20th century, one might […]
BEIRUT: Two Hezbollah members have confessed to working for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and a third had links to an as-yet-undetermined foreign intelligence service, the group’s leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah said Friday, admitting for the first time the penetration of one of the most secretive organizations in the region. […]
This essay dates from November, 2005, but is still very valid. Stirrings in the Desert Heavy Hand of the Secret Police Impeding Reform in Arab World By NEIL MacFARQUHAR AMMAN, Jordan, Nov. 13 – At a cultural festival last year, Sameer al-Qudah recited a poem of his depicting Arab rulers […]
By MD HUMAIDAN | ARAB NEWS JEDDAH: The Haj Ministry has said that between Jan. 19, the start of the Umrah season, and last week the number of pilgrims was 34 percent higher than the same period last year. About 2.84 million pilgrims have come for the lesser pilgrimage so […]
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli prime minister’s 19-year-old son — a military spokesman — posted derisive comments about Arabs and Muslims on his Facebook page, drawing a slap on the wrist from his superiors and focusing new attention on the controversial first family. Earlier this year, Yair Netanyahu posted that […]
By SYED FAISAL ALI | ARAB NEWS JEDDAH: Pilgrims coming through the Haj Committee of India are likely to get mobile SIM and debit cards. The Indian Consulate is trying to obtain as many SIM cards as possible with important numbers uploaded on them for pilgrims this year, Consul General […]
ROME (AFP) – Upheaval across the Arab world is causing capital flight of up to $500 million a week, Finance Minister Mohammad Abu Hammour said on Thursday at an Arab banking conference in Rome. “There is capital flight. Five hundred million dollars a week are leaving the Arab world. Tourism […]
Avi Benlolo: President Kennedy, in his first meeting with Soviet premier Khrushchev during a period of high tension between the superpowers, remarked wryly that the countries faced a cold winter ahead. Between the 10th anniversary of 9/11, the UN-sponsored Durban III hate conference and the Palestinian Authority’s planned unilateral declaration […]
There is no likelihood that the U.S. will do the logical thing and vote for Palestinian statehood in the UN this fall,” lamented Andrew Sullivan recently. I’m not optimistic enough to share the noted pundit’s pessimism. I think there’s a good chance that the U.S. will do the logical rather […]