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Tourists Flock to AlUla's Gharameel Reserve for Endangered Species

The Gharameel nature reserve is a stunning expanse of desert wilderness renowned for its unique biodiversity (SPA)
The Gharameel nature reserve is a stunning expanse of desert wilderness renowned for its unique biodiversity (SPA)
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Tourists Flock to AlUla's Gharameel Reserve for Endangered Species

The Gharameel nature reserve is a stunning expanse of desert wilderness renowned for its unique biodiversity (SPA)
The Gharameel nature reserve is a stunning expanse of desert wilderness renowned for its unique biodiversity (SPA)

Located 60 kilometers north of AlUla city, northwestern Saudi Arabia, the Gharameel reserve is a stunning expanse of desert wilderness renowned for its unique biodiversity, for the variety of rock formations, and for its sand dunes and hills, SPA said on Sunday.
This remarkable landscape has made Gharameel a popular tourist destination that attracts visitors from all over the world.
In a recent effort to enhance the reserve's natural beauty and ecological balance, the National Center for Wildlife and the Royal Commission for AlUla collaborated to release 14 Arabian oryx and 40 gazelles into the reserve.
The aim is to reintroduce locally endangered species, restore biodiversity, and promote environmental sustainability, in line with Saudi Vision 2030 goals.

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Australia Bans Uranium Mining at Indigenous Site

A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
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Australia Bans Uranium Mining at Indigenous Site

A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)
A view shows a sign at the Energy Resources Australia (ERA) Ranger Project Area in Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Northern Territory, Australia, July 11, 2024. (Reuters)

Australia moved Saturday to ban mining at one of the world's largest high-grade uranium deposits, highlighting the site's "enduring connection" to Indigenous Australians.

The Jabiluka deposit in northern Australia is surrounded by the heritage-listed Kakadu national park, a tropical expanse of gorges and waterfalls featured in the first "Crocodile Dundee" film.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the national park would be extended to include the Jabiluka site -- which has never been mined -- honoring the decades-long desires of the Mirrar people.

"They were seeking a guarantee that there would never be uranium mining on their land," Albanese told a crowd of Labor Party supporters in Sydney.

"This means there will never be mining at Jabiluka," he added.

Archaeologists discovered a buried trove of stone axes and tools near the Jabiluka site in 2017, which they dated at tens of thousands of years old.

The find was "proof of the extraordinary and enduring connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander have had with our land", Albanese said.

"The Mirrar people have loved and cared for their land for more than 60,000 years.

"That beautiful part of Australia is home to some of the oldest rock art in the world," he added.

Discovered in the early 1970s, efforts to exploit the Jabiluka deposit have for decades been tied-up in legal wrangling between Indigenous custodians and mining companies.

It is one of the world's largest unexploited high-grade uranium deposits, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Rio Tinto-controlled company Energy Resources of Australia previously held mining leases at Jabiluka.

The conservation of Indigenous sites has come under intense scrutiny in Australia after mining company Rio Tinto blew up the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge rock shelters in 2020.

Australia's conservative opposition has vowed to build nuclear power plants across the country if it wins the next election, overturning a 26-year nuclear ban.