Saudi Arabia Continues its Support for UNRWA, Sea Bridge to Follow

A Saudi relief plane arrives in Gaza carrying aid, including food and shelter supplies (SPA)
A Saudi relief plane arrives in Gaza carrying aid, including food and shelter supplies (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia Continues its Support for UNRWA, Sea Bridge to Follow

A Saudi relief plane arrives in Gaza carrying aid, including food and shelter supplies (SPA)
A Saudi relief plane arrives in Gaza carrying aid, including food and shelter supplies (SPA)

The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) is providing $15 million to support the first phase of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) Emergency Appeal for Gaza.

The KSrelief contribution will cover assistance in the food security, shelter, non-food items, emergency, health, and WASH sectors.

The Center asserted that UNRWA is the only international humanitarian organization capable of providing support on the ground inside the Gaza Strip.

The plan will be implemented immediately through the existing partnership between KSrelief and UNRWA and will address the critical humanitarian conditions and challenges inside Gaza, including the severely restricted access to the area.

According to the statement, the targeted programs will be implemented to ensure that emergency aid and services are provided to affected groups as quickly as possible.

It asserted that Saudi Arabia stands with the Palestinian people and is committed to providing comprehensive humanitarian relief and support to Gaza through the work of KSrelief.

On October 15, Riyadh presented a check for the annual contribution of $2 million from Saudi Arabia to the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini.

The amount constituted Saudi Arabia's scheduled annual contribution to the Agency to enable it to continue providing relief services and food, medicine, and humanitarian needs to the Palestinian people.

For his part, Lazzarini praised the Kingdom for its ongoing support, highlighting that it consistently stands in solidarity with the Palestinian people and supports the Agency in achieving its humanitarian goals.

The Commissioner-General renewed his call for the UN member states and the international community to support the Agency's efforts in assisting the Palestinian people facing critical conditions.

Last week, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced the launch of a humanitarian appeal to raise $1.2 billion to help 2.7 million Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia dispatched the seventh relief plane from King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh to el-Arish International Airport, Egypt, preparing to transport aid to the affected people inside the Gaza Strip.

Donations to the Saudi National Campaign for Gaza through the Sahem platform, directed by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, exceeded SR494 million from over 773,310 donors.

For his part, KSrelief spokesman Samer al-Jutaili revealed that Saudi Arabia will launch a sea bridge to send aid to Gaza.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Jutaili explained that the parties are exerting efforts to mobilize resources through a sea bridge expected to carry thousands of tons of aid within a short period.

The sea bridge will help increase the humanitarian aid, said Jutaili, adding that Saudi Arabia has supported Palestine in the past ten years with up to $5.2 billion.

Palestine was the third country receiving aid from KSrelief with 112 projects at a cost exceeding $369 million.

The spokesman pointed out that Saudi Arabia also provided UNRWA with urgent aid of about $1 billion when it was about to close due to a lack of funding during the past three years.



Makkah Deputy Governor Carries Out Field Inspection of Grand Mosque Readiness for Ramadan 

Deputy Governor of the Makkah Region Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz is seen during his inspection tour at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah. (SPA)
Deputy Governor of the Makkah Region Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz is seen during his inspection tour at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah. (SPA)
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Makkah Deputy Governor Carries Out Field Inspection of Grand Mosque Readiness for Ramadan 

Deputy Governor of the Makkah Region Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz is seen during his inspection tour at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah. (SPA)
Deputy Governor of the Makkah Region Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz is seen during his inspection tour at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah. (SPA)

Deputy Governor of the Makkah Region Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz inspected the readiness of the Grand Mosque and its facilities, conducting a field tour to review operational and service preparations for receiving worshippers and Umrah performers during the holy month of Ramadan, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday.

Prince Saud was briefed on the operational plans implemented by the relevant authorities, including crowd management mechanisms, service enhancements, and facility preparations aimed at ensuring smooth movement and enhancing comfort and safety levels for visitors to the Grand Mosque, particularly during peak times.

He reviewed developmental initiatives and smart services supporting the operational system, notably electric mobility carts for transporting the elderly, persons with disabilities, and those in need of assistance within the Grand Mosque.

The tour also included an overview of the efforts of guidance teams deployed across the corridors and courtyards of the Grand Mosque, providing multilingual assistance and direction.

Prince Saud reviewed the interactive map and digital mobility platform, which allows visitors to plan their routes in advance and identify service locations, entrances and exits, and less crowded pathways.

He was briefed on crowd management systems, including the visitor density sensor platform that measures human density in real time, and the Tawaf and Sa’i crowd status display service, which allows worshippers to select appropriate times to perform rituals with ease. Models of the modern multilingual guidance system were also reviewed.

Prince Saud also visited the Smart Engineering Command and Control Center, which serves as an advanced central platform linking operational systems and monitoring performance in real time, boosting operational efficiency and raising readiness levels during Ramadan.


Saudi Leadership Provides Two Donations Worth SAR150 Mln Through Jood Eskan Platform

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
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Saudi Leadership Provides Two Donations Worth SAR150 Mln Through Jood Eskan Platform

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA)

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, have provided two generous donations amounting to SAR150 million through the Jood Eskan platform.

The move aligns with the leadership's commitment to supporting all national efforts and initiatives to provide suitable housing for deserving families.

Minister of Municipalities and Housing and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Developmental Housing Foundation (Sakan) Majed Al-Hogail expressed his deep gratitude to the leadership for its unwavering support to all national efforts and initiatives aimed at providing suitable housing for eligible families across the Kingdom.

He noted the effective impact of previous generous donations in achieving the goals of housing development, and motivating individuals and institutions to donate through the Jood Eskan platform that is based on community giving that helps provide decent housing and boosts stability and quality of life for deserving families.


Saudi Crown Prince Receives Message on Bilateral Ties from President of Kazakhstan

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA file)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA file)
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Saudi Crown Prince Receives Message on Bilateral Ties from President of Kazakhstan

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA file)
Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister. (SPA file)

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received on Tuesday a written message from President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on bilateral relations between their two countries.

The message was received by Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah during a meeting with his Kazakh counterpart Yermek Kosherbayev in Riyadh.