Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio met in Rome on Friday Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir, who is currently on an official visit to Italy.
During the meeting, they discussed bilateral relations between the two countries, ways of enhancing them, the latest regional and international developments and a number of issues of common concern.
The meeting was attended by Prince Faisal bin Sattam bin Abdul Aziz, the Saudi ambassador to Italy.
ABHA: A public awareness campaign by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture kicked off Organic Food 2024 in Saudi Arabia, reported Saudi Press Agency.
Ahmed Al-Mojathel, director of the ministry’s Asir branch, said: “Our goal is to highlight the importance of organic products and foods as a safer, healthier dietary system.
“We are working to enhance consumer awareness about the benefits of organic foods while encouraging innovation and excellence in organic product quality.”
The initiative forms part of a broader strategy to promote organic food consumption throughout Saudi society.
Al-Mojathel said the campaign also aimed to achieve economic and social objectives supporting the development of the organic food sector across the Kingdom.
RIYADH: A drug smuggling operation at Al-Jouf International Airport in Saudi Arabia, in which several government and other public-sector officials allegedly were involved, has been shut down following an extensive investigation.
An official source at the Ministry of Interior said on Thursday that nine people were detained, including a ministry employee, four people associated with the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, and one from the Saudi Electricity Company.
Their alleged roles in the smuggling network included helping to get the drugs into the Kingdom, ensuring shipments bypassed inspections, transporting them, and concealing them in homes and at other locations.
They also engaged in the promotion and distribution of the narcotics in the country, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The amount and type of drugs involved was not immediately apparent.
The Ministry of Interior said it remains committed to confronting all threats to national security and will take stringent action against anyone who jeopardizes the safety and stability of the country.
JEDDAH: The general secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation held a meeting of the open-ended Group of Governmental Experts in Jeddah on Thursday.
It discussed the draft humanitarian funds statute, in accordance with the Council of Foreign Ministers.
OIC Secretary-General Hussein Ibrahim Taha said that the meeting was held amid difficult and harsh humanitarian circumstances that required concerted efforts and collective action to adopt actions to help contain humanitarian crises and hardships.
In his speech, Taha added that it was important to make every effort to finalize the statute of these funds, undertake the necessary reforms to their working mechanism and support them with the financial resources to enable them to fulfil their role.
The statement delivered by assistant secretary-general for humanitarian, cultural and social affairs, ambassador Tariq Ali Bakhit, on behalf of OIC’s secretary-general, highlighted the significant challenges faced by member states in the humanitarian field.
KABUL: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has launched a shelter project for people returning from Pakistan to Afghanistan and victims of the 2024 floods.
It will distribute 4,882 shelter items, such as tents, blankets, plastic mattresses and other supplies across the provinces of Kabul, Ghazni, Bamyan, Badakhshan, Kunduz, Baghlan, Parwan, Kapisa, Panjshir, Herat, Nimroz, Nangarhar and Laghman. The project will help 29,292 people.
The scheme is part of the Kingdom’s humanitarian and relief efforts, through its humanitarian arm, KSrelief, to alleviate the suffering of the Afghan people.
WASHINGTON: The Saudi aid agency KSrelief was honored with the Global Humanitarian Achievement Award by the National Council on US-Arab Relations, in recognition of relief efforts that have made a substantial impact in crisis regions around the world.
Delano Roosevelt, the council’s second president and CEO, presented the award to the supervisor general of KSrelief, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, in Washington, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Dr. Al-Rabeeah said the award is an international acknowledgement of Saudi Arabia’s leading role in relief efforts.
He underlined the Kingdom’s commitment to assisting people in need, supporting those affected by crises, and assisting refugees wherever possible.
He also affirmed that Saudi Arabia has consistently been a leader in charitable and humanitarian initiatives and is at the forefront of donor countries on regional and international fronts.
