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Saudi Arabia Launches First Direct Flight from Dammam to Iraq’s Najaf

The first direct flight from Dammam, Saudi Arabia, to Najaf, Iraq (Flynas account on X)
The first direct flight from Dammam, Saudi Arabia, to Najaf, Iraq (Flynas account on X)
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Saudi Arabia Launches First Direct Flight from Dammam to Iraq’s Najaf

The first direct flight from Dammam, Saudi Arabia, to Najaf, Iraq (Flynas account on X)
The first direct flight from Dammam, Saudi Arabia, to Najaf, Iraq (Flynas account on X)

The Saudi Civil Aviation Authority announced on Saturday the launch of the first direct flights from King Fahd International Airport in Dammam (east of the Kingdom) to the city of Najaf in Iraq via national carrier Flynas.

Flynas is the first Saudi airline to connect the two cities, with an average of three weekly flights, according to the company’s account on X.

In April, the Authority announced the start of direct flights to Najaf, as of June, in line with the Kingdom’s strategy for the aviation sector, which aims to reach more than 330 million passengers annually and more than 250 destinations in the world by 2030.

The launching ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to Iraq, Abdulaziz Al-Shammari, Iraq’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Safia Al-Suhail, the Governor of Najaf, Youssef Kannawi, and a number of officials in the governorate.

The leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, said that he was “optimistic to see Najaf receiving visitors from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” and stressed that it was “a step to break the ice between the two countries.”

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Gulf

Saudi FM Discusses with Turkish, Pakistani Counterparts Developments in the Region

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah. SPA
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah. SPA
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Saudi FM Discusses with Turkish, Pakistani Counterparts Developments in the Region

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah. SPA
Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah. SPA

Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah held a phone call on Friday with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan.

During the call, they discussed the latest developments in the region.

Prince Faisal also held a phone call with Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Ishaq Dar.

They discussed regional developments and joint efforts to achieve security and stability.

Gulf

Saudi Arabia Welcomes al-Alimi’s Request for Comprehensive Conference in Riyadh to Discuss Southern Cause

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with al-Alimi in 2023. SPA file photo
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with al-Alimi in 2023. SPA file photo
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Saudi Arabia Welcomes al-Alimi’s Request for Comprehensive Conference in Riyadh to Discuss Southern Cause

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with al-Alimi in 2023. SPA file photo
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with al-Alimi in 2023. SPA file photo

Saudi Arabia has welcomed the request of the President of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Dr. Rashad al-Alimi, to convene a comprehensive conference in Riyadh to bring together all southern factions to discuss just solutions to the southern cause.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry urged all southern factions in Yemen to actively participate in the conference “to develop a comprehensive vision for just solutions” that fulfills the legitimate aspirations of the southern people.

In his request on Friday, Al-Alimi said he hopes the forum would bring together ⁠all southern factions "without distinction.”

Eastern Yemen’s Hadhramaut province entered a critical phase on Friday as government-backed National Shield forces began deploying against an insurgency by the Southern Transitional Council (STC), seeking to regain control of military camps and restore the state’s grip over security and military institutions under the leadership of Governor Salem al-Khanbashi.

Gulf

Governor of Hadhramaut Launches Military Operation to Take Control of STC Positions

A supporter of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands in the back of a pickup truck in the Khor Maksar district of the second city of Aden on August 29, 2019. (AFP file)
A supporter of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands in the back of a pickup truck in the Khor Maksar district of the second city of Aden on August 29, 2019. (AFP file)
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Governor of Hadhramaut Launches Military Operation to Take Control of STC Positions

A supporter of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands in the back of a pickup truck in the Khor Maksar district of the second city of Aden on August 29, 2019. (AFP file)
A supporter of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands in the back of a pickup truck in the Khor Maksar district of the second city of Aden on August 29, 2019. (AFP file)

The Yemeni News Agency said on Friday that the Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, issued a decision assigning the Governor of Hadhramaut, Salem Al-Khanbashi, to assume the general command of the National Shield forces in the governorate.

The official agency stated that the decision grants Al-Khanbashi “full military, security, and administrative powers to achieve the restoration of security and order in the governorate”.

It added that the decision stipulates that the assignment will end “once the reasons that led to it cease, or upon the issuance of a decision by the Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, canceling this assignment”.

In a recorded speech following his appointment, Al-Khanbashi confirmed that the Southern Transitional Council deliberately rejected all responsible solutions aimed at de-escalation. He pointed out that STC forces had prepared plans intended to create widespread chaos in Hadhramaut.

He also announced that the National Shield forces had launched a military operation called “Receiving the Camps,” aimed at taking over military sites in a peaceful and organized manner. He added that “the military operation is not a declaration of war, but a responsible preventive measure”.

He further stressed that “the operation does not target any political or social component, nor civilians” in Hadhramaut.

This came after the National Field forces had expressed their readiness on Thursday to take over military sites and checkpoints from the Southern Transitional Council forces in Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah.