Arabs urged to boost Egypt’s security

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

The Saudi Council of Ministers on Monday urged Egyptian people as well as Arab and Islamic countries to work together toward reinforcing peace and stability in Egypt. The Cabinet, chaired by Prince Muqrin, second deputy premier, made this statement while commending a message given by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah last week, affirming Riyadh’s support for Egypt. “The message’s content stemmed from the values upheld by the king, who has always stood for the right cause without any vested interests,” the Cabinet said. It also praised the king’s keenness and support for Egyptian people to confront terrorism, misguidance and sedition. The Cabinet meeting expressed its condolences to King Abdullah, Crown Prince Salman, and Prince Muqrin on the death of Prince Musaed bin Abdul Aziz, who died last week.

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Desire for peace behind king’s stance on Egypt

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah’s firm support for Egypt at its hour of crisis reflects his desire to reinforce peace and stability in the Arab and Islamic world, said Saudi Ambassador to Egypt Ahmed Kattan on Sunday. Speaking to the heads of Egyptian associations abroad at the Saudi Embassy in Cairo, Kattan said there is nothing surprising about King Abdullah’s stance on Egypt. “Whatever the king does for the Arab and Islamic Ummah shows his love and affection for them,” the ambassador said, adding that the king’s noble stances were inspired by the teachings of Islam. The Egyptian groups abroad had previously sent messages of greetings and gratitude to the king in appreciation of his historic support for Cairo against terrorist designs.

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Bahrain opposition to hold pro-democracy protest

Source: The Peninsula Qatar (Read full story)

Bahrain’s main opposition will hold a day of pro-democracy protests today despite a crackdown last week in which police used teargas and birdshot to disperse anti-government demonstrations. A statement issued by Bahrain’s largest opposition group, the Islamist al Wefaq Society, said that protests would continue to be held until the Bahraini people’s demands were met. “The demonstrations are to insist on a right that is clear and legitimate for the Bahraini people to move towards democratic transformation,” the statement said on Thursday. A tiny island state that hosts the US Fifth Fleet as a bulwark for US-aligned Gulf monarchies against Iran, Bahrain has suffered bouts of unrest since February 2011 when a Shi’ite-led uprising demanded the Al Khalifa dynasty give up power.

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Yemen government apologizes for wars waged by ex-president

Source: The Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

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The statement said the apology was required under a deal brokered by Gulf states that paved the way for Saleh to step down in 2011 after months of unrest and hand the reins of power to his deputy, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Fahmy Al-Saqaf, a leader in the southern secessionist Herak movement, said the apology, though long overdue, was an important step. “But what is more important is what comes after the apology, and what we fear is that the (reconciliation) dialogue ends without implementing southern demands,” Saqaf said. Herak representatives recently suspended their participation in the reconciliation talks, demanding that the government make good on promises to restore seized property and return sacked state employees to their jobs.

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Gulf bloc slams Hizbollah move to double fighters in Syria

Source: The National (Read full story)

Arabian Gulf countries yesterday criticised Hizbollah for interfering in Syrian affairs after the chief of the Lebanese militant group vowed to double the number of fighters he sends in support of Bashar Al Assad’s regime. The statement comes amid growing fears that the Syrian conflict could threaten the stability of Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan. “Nasrallah continues to boast about the participation of his militia in slaughtering children, women and innocent Syrians, and destroying their towns and property,” said Abdullatif Al Zayani, secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), in a statement.

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We will cover cuts in Egypt aid: Saud

Source: The Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

The Kingdom said on Monday that Arab and Islamic countries will step in to help Egypt if Western nations cut aid packages to Cairo. “To those who have announced they are cutting their aid to Egypt, or threatening to do that, (we say that) Arab and Muslim nations are rich with resources, and will not hesitate to help Egypt,” Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency. Prince Saud was speaking upon his return from France where he met President Francois Hollande to discuss the current situation in Egypt. Prince Saud said that the countries which slammed Egypt’s crackdown believed propaganda and assumed hostile positions toward the interests and the stability of Arab and Islamic nations.

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18 foreign oil firms qualified to bid for 20 blocks in Yemen

Source: The Peninsula Qatar (Read full story)

Yemen has allowed 18 international oil firms to bid for 20 onshore and offshore blocks in the sixth auction issued by the Oil Ministry, the state news agency Saba said yesterday. Saba quoted Ahmed Dares, Yemen’s oil minister, as saying that 45 foreign firms had presented applications to bid for the blocks, of which nine are onshore and 11 offshore. Of the 45, only 18 had qualified to bid. The auction aims to increase Yemen’s oil and gas output through foreign investment, Dares was quoted as saying.  The 18 firms include Hunt Oil and Gas, Norway’s DNO, Circle Oil, Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (Kufpec), Pakistan Oilfields and Dana Gas.  The list also includes France’s Total, the Austrian oil and gas group OMV, UAE-based Crescent Petroleum, and Pakistan Petroleum.

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KSA arrests 2 suspects plotting terror attacks

Source: The Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

Saudi Arabian security authorities have arrested two suspects planning suicide attacks in the Kingdom.They were arrested for exchanging information about imminent suicide attacks in the region. The two, one from Chad and the other a Yemeni, are being interrogated after their arrest in relation to conversations they had on social media forums with militants abroad, a Security Spokesperson of the Ministry of Interior said Thursday. One of the suspects, the Chadian national, was deported from the country but had returned to Saudi Arabia with a passport from another country. He along with the Yemeni national were serving deviant thought.

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