Saudi Arabia

27 Sep 2022; MEMO: Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and the cyber institute led by one of his closest aides, Saud Al-Qahtani, signed a deal in early 2018 with the former head of the US National Security Agency, Keith Alexander, to help the Kingdom's de facto ruler train the next generation of Saudi hackers to take on its enemies, the Intercept reported yesterday.

27 Sep 2022; MEMO: Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Hajj and Umrah launched a new online platform yesterday to help facilitate the arrival of pilgrims and to assist them with religious rituals when visiting the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah.

According to Arab News, Nusuk enables visitors from all over the world to organise their pilgrimage, including the eVisa applications and booking flights and accommodation.

27 Sep 2022; MEMO: Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz named his son and heir, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as the Kingdom's Prime Minister and his second son, Prince Khalid as Defence Minister, a Royal Decree said on Tuesday, Reuters reports.

The reshuffle kept another son, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, as Energy Minister, the Royal Decree, carried by state news agency, SPA, said.

RIYADH, Sept 27 (NNN-SPA) – Chinese phone maker, Vivo, unveiled yesterday, two 5G smartphones in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh.

At its first offline launch of new products in the kingdom, Vivo presented the latest additions to its 5G smartphones V series: V25 and V25 Pro, which feature superior photography.

The V25 and V25 Pro also come with a new Vlog Movie feature, that improves the filming experience with video templates and tutorials to guide users on how to shoot in different scenarios.

Saudi Arabia's women's national football team made history yesterday after playing their first ever international fixture on home soil.

The team known as the Green Falcons, led by German coach Monika Staab drew 3-3 with visitors Bhutan at the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium in Abha with a late equaliser in the 90th minute by Noura Al-Ibrahim. The Saudi team will face the same opponents again on Wednesday.

23 Sep 2022; MEMO: The Saudi Monarch, King Salman, has issued a Royal Order appointing Hala Al-Tuwaijri as the Chief of the Human Rights Commission, the first woman to hold this position, according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

RIYADH, Sept 23 (NNN-SPA) – Saudi Arabia, yesterday, launched the kingdom’s first manned space trip programme, that aims to send two Saudi astronauts, a man and a women, next year.

The programme involves training Saudi qualified candidates, to undertake long-term and short-term space flights, and conduct scientific experiments and research, in areas of health, sustainability and space technology, at the same time, according to the Saudi Space Commission.

22 Sep 2022; MEMO: Saudi Arabia's mission to the International Space Station next year aboard a SpaceX capsule will include a woman who would become the world's first female Arab astronaut, according to Axiom Space, the US company arranging the mission for the Kingdom, Reuters reports.

Neither Axiom nor the Saudi government provided the name for the female astronaut, who will be accompanied by another Saudi and two Americans as part of Axiom's second private mission to the space station, slated for early 2023.

22 Sep 2022; MEMO: Speaker of the Saudi Shura Council, Abdullah Bin Muhammad Al-Sheikh, has called on Iran to cooperate and stop meddling in the domestic affairs of others and stop "exploiting" the Houthis in Yemen

RIYADH, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Russia on Wednesday released 10 foreign prisoners of war captured in Ukraine following mediation by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi foreign ministry said.

The freed prisoners were American, British, Croatian, Moroccan and Swedish nationals, the ministry said in a statement, adding that a plane carrying the prisoners landed in the kingdom.

"The relevant Saudi authorities received and transferred them from Russia to the kingdom and are facilitating procedures for their respective countries," the statement said.