RIYADH: The Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has set goals to meet strategic challenges stemming out of the National Transformation Program 2020.
The municipal transformation program is based on four main parameters to improve the civic services, achieve transparency and integrity and comply with regulations. Minister Abdul Lateef Al-Asheikh said the program aims to achieve a balanced and sustainable urban development and improve the quality of life in all cities and regions of the Kingdom in a way that meets the expectations of both leadership and society. (AN)
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NTP 2020: Ministry sets goals
NTP 2020: Ministry sets goals
Couples tie the knot during a festival on an Amsterdam ring road
- “It just seemed like super fun idea,” Lisowska said
- “It’s a nice party we didn’t have to organize,” said Iozzelli
AMSTERDAM: Securing a coveted slot to exchange wedding rings on Amsterdam’s usually traffic-choked ring road seemed like a good omen for Zuzanna Lisowska and Yuri Iozzelli’s future life together.
“It just seemed like super fun idea,” Lisowska said. “And, you know, statistics were on our side. There were 400 couples who wanted to do it, so we feel really lucky to have been chosen.”
Friends and total strangers cheered and clapped as they told each other “I do!” as part of a day-long festival on parts of the A10 highway that circles the Dutch capital closed to traffic for the day.
“It’s a nice party we didn’t have to organize,” said Iozzelli.
Their only regret was not being able to bring their pet rabbit. “It was too hot,” Lisowska said after exchanging rings with Iozzelli.
The city that is known for partying said that some 600,000 people tried to get access to the ring road festival last month when more than 200,000 free tickets were made available.
Curious city folk, from parents pushing strollers to students and grandparents, stopped to watch the weddings and enjoyed the one-off opportunity to see the road without the usual cacophony of cars.
Among them was communications student Kyra Smit.
“It’s really fun because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” she said. “It’s so fun that you can say to people, wow, I’m married on the rings, so I really like this.”
The day was packed with events from music performances to readings, meetups and a fun run, shortened because of the heat. Organizers even placed a temporary forest of more than 8,000 trees on the blacktop.
The municipality laid on extra water taps and places where revellers could slap on sun block as temperatures soared to 30 degrees Celsius (86F) and upwards on the road surface.
The city’s official birthday is Oct. 27, reflecting the first time a variant of its name was used in an official document, and is staging celebratory events in the year leading up to that date. The festival on the ring road is the biggest so far and gave Amsterdam residents a new view of their ring road.
“It’s quite strange because normally you drive here and now you’re walking, so that’s a totally different situation,” said Marjolein de Bruijne, who works close to the A10.
ES Tunis claim 1-0 win, eliminating LAFC from Club World Cup
- The victory takes ES Tunis (1-1-0, 3 points) level with Chelsea in Group D
- The winner of ES Tunis’ meeting with Chelsea on Tuesday in Philadelphia will move on to the knockout phase
LOS ANGELES: Youcef Belaïli scored in the 70th minute, goalkeeper Ben Said saved a penalty deep in second-half stoppage time and Esperance Sportive de Tunis defeated Los Angeles FC 1-0 to keep their FIFA Club World Cup hopes alive in a dramatic contest Friday in Nashville, Tennessee
The victory takes ES Tunis (1-1-0, 3 points) level with Chelsea in Group D, after the English side lost 3-1 to Brazil’s Flamengo earlier on Friday.
Referee Espen Eskas awarded a very late spot kick following a video review, ruling Khalil Guenichi had felled Marlon in the area.
But Denis Bouanga drove his ensuing penalty kick into the dive of Ben Said, the final salvo in a result that eliminated LAFC (0-2-0, 0 points) from tournament contention.
The winner of ES Tunis’ meeting with Chelsea on Tuesday in Philadelphia will move on to the knockout phase, with Chelsea advancing on a draw based on superior goal differential.
The Tunisians also had an earlier penalty decision go against them 20 minutes before Belailis opener, when the Algerian attacker believed he had earned a spot kick after driving past Bouanga on the dribble.
But Eskas was summoned to the monitor, and after consulting replays, ruled Bouanga wasn’t guilty of a foul, and booked Belaili for simulation.
That failed to halt the match momentum for Tunis, however, who were superior for most of the encounter and didn’t allow LAFC to record a shot on target until second-half stoppage time.
They were eventually rewarded when Amine Ben Hamida made a marauding run from the left flank near the midfield stripe into the penalty area.
He was halted by an LAFC defender’s challenge. But Belaili was first to the loose ball, and he drove his finish low and hard through LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
It appeared LAFC’s fading tournament hopes would be given a lifeline after Eskas’ second pivotal penalty decision, with the Gabon international Bouanga stepping forward.
But Said dove to his left, and with Bouanga’s placement very poor, the Tunisian ‘keeper kicked the ball wide of danger with his trailing leg.
Turkiye says Israel leading Middle East to ‘total disaster’
- “Israel is now leading the region to the brink of total disaster,” Fidan said
- He called for an end to the “unlimited aggression” against Iran
ISATANBUL: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday accused Israel of leading the Middle East toward “total disaster” by attacking Iran on June 13.
“Israel is now leading the region to the brink of total disaster by attacking Iran, our neighbor,” he told a summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul.
“There is no Palestinian, Lebanese, Syrian, Yemeni or Iranian problem but there is clearly an Israeli problem,” Fidan said.
He called for an end to the “unlimited aggression” against Iran.
“We must prevent the situation from deteriorating into a spiral of violence that would further jeopardize regional and global security,” he added.
Speaking after Fidan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Western leaders of providing “unconditional support” to Israel.
He said Turkiye would not allow borders in the Middle East to be redrawn “in blood.”
“It is vital for us to show more solidarity to end Israel’s banditry — not only in Palestine but also in Syria, in Lebanon and in Iran,” he told the OIC’s 57 member countries.
The OIC, founded in 1969, says its mission is to “safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony.”
Suicide bomber kills at least 10 in a restaurant in northeast Nigeria
- The suicide bomber was able to slip through unnoticed because of a heavy downpour
- No group has claimed responsibility for the
ABUJA: A suicide bomber in Nigeria’s northeast state of Borno killed at least 10 people and injured several others in an explosion in a restaurant, police said Saturday.
The blast occurred in the Konduga area late Friday, police spokesperson Nahum Daso told The Associated Press.
The suicide bomber was able to slip through unnoticed because of a heavy downpour, said Ismail Ahmed, a resident of Konduga. The town is about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.
Local media reported that those injured in the attacks have been taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. They also reported that the bomber was female.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Nigeria’s northeast has been hit by attacks carried out by Islamic militants from the Boko Haram group and its splinter, the Daesh West Africa Province.
Boko Haram, Nigeria’s homegrown militants, took up arms in 2009 to fight Western education and impose their radical version of Islamic law. The conflict also has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbors.
Some 35,000 civilians have been killed and more than 2 million displaced in the northeastern region, according to the UN
Despite promises by President Bola Tinubu’s administration to address Nigeria’s security challenges, the violence has persisted.
PM Sharif seeks action after two police officers shot dead in northwest Pakistan
- The officers had stopped to get water when they were ambushed by gunmen on a motorbike
- The prime minister praises the efforts of police officials fighting militancy on the front lines
PESHAWAR: Two police officers were shot and killed when unidentified assailants opened fire on their mobile patrol van in Swabi, a district in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directing authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.
The attack took place around 10:00 p.m. Friday night near a roadside kiosk within the jurisdiction of the Gadoon police station, according to Abdul Majid, a senior police officer in Swabi.
The officers had briefly stopped to get water when they were ambushed by gunmen on a motorbike.
“Terrorists riding a motorbike opened fire on the police party,” Majid told Arab News over the phone. “Two officers were martyred on the spot.”
Militant attacks in KP, particularly by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have increased in recent years, with security forces, government officials and civilians often targeted.
The Pakistani military and law enforcement agencies have launched intelligence-based operations to curb the violence, but attacks have persisted.
Following the shooting, a large police contingent was deployed to the area to secure the scene, collect forensic evidence and launch a search operation.
No arrests have been made so far, and the investigation is ongoing. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the Swabi attack and expressed deep sorrow over the deaths of the police officers.
“We pay tribute to the martyrs and pray for patience for their families,” he said in a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
Sharif directed authorities to investigate the incident and ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
“The war against terrorism will continue until this scourge is eradicated from the country,” he said, praising the efforts of police officers fighting on the front lines.
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