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  • Chaos in Rio Shows a World Untethered Even Before Trump Returns

    What was billed as a moment for “the West and the Rest” to show unity only served to show how quickly the guardrails are coming off the international rules-based order. North Koreans are fighting in Europe for the first time. Israel is resisting US efforts to halt fighting with Hezbollah and Hamas. China is regularly conducting military exercises surrounding Taiwan. Nuclear threats are becoming commonplace. The sense of global disorder played out in Rio, most vividly when US President Joe Biden and two other Group of Seven leaders — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Italian premier Giorgia Meloni — missed the traditional “family photo” on the first day of the summit. The US said the picture was taken early, while organizers said Biden was late.

  • NEOM projects still on track despite CEO departure, Italian construction firm Webuild says

    Italy’s construction group Webuild reportedly said its activities connected to Saudi Arabia’s NEOM are continuing in line with the plan, after the infrastructure mega project’s long-time chief executive left the role last week. “Webuild has no evidence of changes in the activity plan initially set for the projects it is implementing, nor has it recorded any delay in payments,” the company told Reuters on Tuesday. Webuild, which has been active in Saudi Arabia for 60 years, is building a system of three dams that will feed an artificial lake in the Trojena area and a high-speed railway called the Connector.

  • Number of Saudi workers in private sector hits 2.34mn, up 35% in five years: Minister says

    In absolute terms, the number of Saudi workers in the private sector reached 2.34 million currently from 1.7 million in 2019, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Ahmed Al-Rajhi said. Chairing a panel discussion at the Riyadh Economic Forum on Tuesday, the minister, however, said there has been a decline in the overall unemployment rate to 3.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2024, compared to 5.6 per cent in the same period in 2019. “The unemployment rate among Saudis dropped to 7.1 per cent in Q2 2024, compared to 12.3 per cent during the same period in 2019,” Al-Rajhi said.

  • Netanyahu, in Gaza, says Hamas will no longer rule enclave

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a visit to Gaza on Tuesday that Hamas would not rule the Palestinian enclave after the war had ended and that Israel had destroyed the Islamist group's military capabilities. Netanyahu also said Israel had not given up trying to locate the 101 remaining hostages believed to be still in the enclave and he offered a $5 million reward for the return of each one.

  • Riyadh Season: Jennifer Lopez’s performance, set design spark controversy

    One of the fashion shows featured a runway with a cube-shaped display resembling the Kaaba in Mecca. Models circled around it, much like the ritual of Muslim pilgrims circling the Kaaba during the Hajj pilgrimage. Many viewed the juxtaposition of the models against something resembling the holiest site in Islam as disrespectful to the religion. Many online said the stage prop was not meant to emulate the Kaaba, but that it was a display screen used by several entertainment companies. The Anti-Rumors Authority, an NGO in Saudi Arabia, also confirmed it was not a model of the Kaaba, but the similarity and imagery still angered many people.

  • Pact inked to establish Saudi-Brazilian Coordination Council

    Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan met his Brazilian counterpart Mauro Vieira on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday. During the meeting, they reviewed bilateral relations between the two countries and ways to further develop them. The ministers discussed regional and international developments and the efforts made in this regard. During the meeting, the ministers signed a memorandum of understanding to establish the Saudi-Brazilian Coordination Council. This is in continuation of the agreement reached between the leaders of the two countries during the visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to Saudi Arabia on November 30, 2023.

  • Pure Data Centres and Dune Vaults team up for hyperscale data centers in Saudi Arabia

    Faisal AlRahbiny, founder and MD of Dune Vaults, said: “We are dedicated to establishing over 1GW of sustainable data center capacity in Saudi Arabia, aligning with market demand estimates and supporting the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 digital transformation goals. Through our strategic partnership with Pure DC, we are bringing advanced data center solutions to meet the needs of global hyperscalers whose presence in the Kingdom will accelerate digitization and economic growth." Pure DC currently has more than 500MW of IT capacity live or under development across the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The company purchased land in Madrid, Spain, earlier this year for its first foray into the Spanish market.

  • Saudi Firm Jadwa Raises $266M at First Close of Blind-pool PE Fund

    Jadwa Investment announced the first close of GCC Private Equity Fund 1, the Riyadh, KDS-based firm’s first regional blind-pool private equity fund, with a total of SAR 1B ($266M) in commitments. Fund I aims to invest in diversified opportunities in private equity across the Gulf Cooperation Council states. The fund has completed three investment projects in the retail and food-and-beverage industry and expects to be fully invested over a three-year deployment period.

  • Perspective: Middle East looks to Saudi Arabia to rein in Donald Trump

    After Trump named a number of ardently pro-Israeli nominees and Iran hawks for key positions, Arab officials worry his incoming administration might approve any moves by Israel to annex the occupied West Bank, occupy Gaza or escalate tensions with Tehran. But they hope Riyadh can temper the incoming administration’s policies in the region by leveraging Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s relationship with Trump, the president-elect’s appetite for financial deals and his expected desire to strike a “grand bargain” that would lead Saudi Arabia and Israel to normalise relations. “The key player in the region is Saudi Arabia because of their known relations with him, so it will be the linchpin of any regional actions the US might decide to do,” said an Arab diplomat.

  • Saudi Arabia Gives First Look at Planned 2034 World Cup Soccer Stadium

    Saudi Arabia unveiled plans on Tuesday for the King Salman International Stadium, a 92,000-seat venue designed to host the opening and final matches of the 2034 FIFA World Cup. Located in northern Riyadh, the stadium will be the largest in the country and is scheduled for completion in 2029. The design, inspired by Saudi Arabia's natural landscape, is intended to symbolize growth and development. Each venue is envisioned as a "seed" germinating within the region's environment. Global architecture firm Populous is leading the project. "The design philosophy reflects a commitment to cutting-edge infrastructure while paying tribute to the intrinsic connection between sustainable development, human activity, and the natural world," said Shireen Hamdan, general manager of Populous KSA.