Day: April 13, 2024

Riyadh, Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), has announced that the second ministerial meeting of the Strategic Dialogue between the GCC countries and Central Asian states will be held on Monday, April 15, 2024, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

The meeting will be chaired by Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulrhman bin Jassim Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar, who is currently the President of the Ministerial Council, and Bakhtiyor Saidov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

On this occasion, the Secretary General affirmed that the convening of this meeting comes as a result of both sides’ desire to enhance and develop relations between them, in addition to their keenness on strengthening strategic dialogue and striving to move forward in building strong and close relations that serve the common interests of both sides, based on shared values, interests, and historical ties. This is in line with the Joint Action P
lan for the period 2023-2027, signed between the parties in September 2022, he stressed.

He further explained that during the meeting, several topics related to enhancing relations between the two sides will be discussed, in addition to addressing the latest regional and international developments and the updates witnessed by the region and the world.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

Riyadh, The King Salman bin Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Festival, organised by the Reserve Development Authority, will take place from April 14th to 18th at the Cultural Center in Al-Qurayyat Governorate.

The festival aims to showcase tourist and recreational sites within the reserve and encourage local community involvement in reserve activities, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said.

The festival offers a variety of activities that will take visitors on a fun journey through recreational, cultural, artistic, and awareness activities. These include a children’s area with games and drawing areas, an afforestation and planting area to promote afforestation culture and vegetation development, an artisan’s market that celebrates Saudi heritage and traditional crafts, a wildlife area, and a performing arts theater. The theatre will present cultural shows and segments highlighting heritage, history, poetry evenings, theatrical performances, and folk arts.

The King Salman bin Abdulaziz Royal Reserve is the largest wildlife
reserve in the Middle East, spanning over 130,000 square kilometers. It also contains archaeological areas registered with the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

Source: Bahrain News Agency

Manama, Ali bin Saleh Al Saleh, Shura Council Chairman, today sent a cable of congratulations to Rachid Talbi Alami, Speaker of Morocco’s House of Representatives, on his re-election.

Al Saleh praised Speaker Alami’s extensive parliamentary experience and dedicated efforts to enhance parliamentary work in Morocco.

The Shura Chairman expressed pride in the depth of the robust Bahraini-Moroccan relations, affirming the two kingdom’s constant keenness to bolster their cooperation and coordination.

He stressed unwavering keenness to strengthen parliamentary relations, exchange legislative expertise, as well as unify stances vis-à-vis various issues at regional and international parliamentary gatherings between Bahrain and Morocco.

Al Saleh wished Speaker Alami continued success in performing his parliamentary duties.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

Rabat, Aziz Akhannouch, Prime Minister of Morocco, held talks in Marrakech on Friday with his Hungarian counterpart, Viktor Orban, who is visiting the Kingdom.

According to the Maghreb Arabe Press (MPA), the two officials emphasised the need to further enhance economic collaboration between Morocco and Hungary.

Morocco currently stands as Hungary’s top trading partner in Africa, with trade reaching approximately 4.1 billion Dirhams (382 million euros) in 2022, representing a 25% increase compared to the previous year.

The talks also provided an opportunity to discuss several regional and international issues, to examine ways of developing the partnership at all levels, and to commend the convergence of views between the two countries on many international issues, concluded the press release, MAP added.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

Abu Dhabi, The Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre (SZGMC) hosted the fourth edition of “Jusoor” (Bridges) programme during the holy month of Ramadan as part of its mission to foster cross-cultural communication and promote the spirit of volunteerism.

As part of efforts to bridge the gap among religions and cultures, and to promote harmony, the initiative invites people of various cultures, ethnicities, and beliefs as well as representatives of public and private sectors in the UAE to experience the spirit of Ramadan at the mosque, participate in the Centre’s annual ”Our Fasting Guests programme”, and learn about the mosque’s events and activities during the holy Month.

By volunteering to distribute Iftar meals within the mosque, witnessing the firing of the Iftar cannon, and taking part in an array of cultural activities, the participants were introduced to the message and vision of the mosque. The event ended with a group Iftar, where participants gathered around a table in an atmosphere of coexistence and
fraternity, Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.

Dr. Yousef Al Obaidli, Director-General of the SZGMC, said: ”The gatherings organised and supervised by the Centre provide opportunities for cultural and human interaction that goes beyond coexistence to positive interaction, especially in the United Arab Emirates, which embraces different religions and cultures on its land, where people live together in peace, within a harmonious social fabric and under ideal conditions of justice and equality. The experience of the centre, which adopts the visions of late founding father Sheikh Zayed for consolidating the concepts of human communication within a framework of noble values, is a source of inspiration for the world in promoting peace, harmony, and respect for all.”

The centre organised nine sessions of the programme in its fourth season, with more than 394 participants representing 13 embassies in the United Arab Emirates and a number of organisations and institutions. They distributed more than 1,750 Iftar
meals at the mosque.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

Amman, The Jordanian Civil Aviation Regulatory Authority (CARC) has announced that Jordanian airspace will be temporarily closed to all incoming, departing and transiting aircraft starting at 20:00 UTC.

The decision comes to preserve the safety and security of civil aviation in Jordanian airspace in light of the escalation of surrounding risks in the region and after assessing the risks following internationally followed standards,’ Jordan News Agency (Petra) quoted CARC as saying in a statement.

CARC added that it would review the decision in light of developments.

Source: Bahrain News Agency