MUST-READS

• Two Holy Mosques
  Saudi authority denies plans to destroy Prophet’s tomb

  The General Presidency of the Two Holy mosques has denied reports of plans to destroy the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed in Madinah, Al-Jazirah newspaper reported Thursday. On Monday, Britain’s The Independent newspaper reported that the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed in the holy city could be “destroyed” and the prophet’s remains removed to an anonymous grave.

• Diplomacy
  Opinion: Saudi Arabia is essential for regional stability

  In a world replete with conflicting interests, no country can claim to be powerful or impose its prestige unless it possesses the necessary tools. Nor can any country force major states that oppose it to respect its stances and policies. The prestige of the state cannot be imposed overnight or by means of financial power. Rather, it is the accumulation of mature and rational political stances and clear-sighted positions. A state’s prestige is based on its ability to interpret and predict risks.

• Shipping
  Mega freighter docks at Rabigh port

  King Abdullah Port in Rabigh, north of Jeddah, received the largest cargo ship ever to dock in the country's seaports. The giant ship, MSC London, arrived from Greece and is 300 meters long, 54 meters wide, and 16 meters deep in the water. It is capable of carrying more than 16,500 containers weighing a combined 189,000 tons.

• Afghanistan
  Afghan forces hunt militant leader once welcomed under peace process

  Afghan security forces are hunting a senior Islamist militant allowed to settle in the country in 2011 under a government peace plan but who is now leading hundreds of insurgents seeking to overrun the northern province of Kunduz, officials said. The search for Qari Bilal, who according to the Long War Journal is from the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) group linked to al Qaeda and Afghanistan's ousted Taliban, comes months before most foreign troops are due to leave the country.

  • New York Times - Editorial: In Afghanistan, Time for Compromise
• Turkey
  Turkey Struggles to Halt Islamic State ‘Jihadist Highway’ – WSJ

  Turkey is struggling to close a "jihadist highway" that lets foreign militants slip across its border into Syria, amid pressure from Western governments and mounting security fears at home. Turkish forces have stepped up arrests, patrols and interrogations in recent months, but the rapid advance of Islamic State extremists in Iraq has made Ankara's initiative even more urgent, say Turkish officials, Western diplomats and residents.

  • Cicero - For Refugees in Turkey, A Tipping Point Looms
• NCB IPO
  Saudi Arabia’s Largest Bank Said to Plan IPO Next Quarter

  The IPO, which could raise about 16 billion riyals ($4.3 billion) according to Riyad Capital, would make it the world’s largest such sale this year, surpassing Japan Display Inc. (6740)’s $3.1 billion offering in March. Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is expected to raise as much as $20 billion from its IPO later this month, a deal that has the potential to be the largest offering in U.S. history.

• Damascus
  Syrian forces escalate assault on rebel-held Damascus district

  Syrian forces carried out their fiercest assault on the rebel stronghold of Jobar in Damascus since the start of the three-year war, conducting at least 27 air strikes on Tuesday and killing a child, according to activists and rights groups. The government is trying to retake Jobar after the capture of several rebel-held areas around the center of the capital this summer, including the town of Mleiha just outside Damascus on August 14.

• Security
  Shots Fired at Saudi Pipeline Hint at Larger Concerns

  A small fire erupted on a gas pipeline in eastern Saudi Arabia on Tuesday after assailants shot at a security patrol, security and oil industry sources said, in an incident that may heighten concern about the vulnerability of Saudi energy infrastructure.

• Attack on Egypt security convoy kills 11 in Sinai: security sources

  An attack on a convoy killed 11 members of the Egyptian security forces in the Sinai Peninsula on Tuesday, security and medical sources said.

• Ebola
  Saudi suspends labour visas for nations worst-hit by Ebola

  Saudi Arabia has stopped granting visas to workers from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the countries worst-hit by the deadly Ebola virus, the labour ministry announced Monday.

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