Saudi Arabia, 10 Arab Countries to Cooperate on Space Program

Pan-Arab body for space program announced. (AFP)
Pan-Arab body for space program announced. (AFP)
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Saudi Arabia, 10 Arab Countries to Cooperate on Space Program

Pan-Arab body for space program announced. (AFP)
Pan-Arab body for space program announced. (AFP)

Eleven Arab states including Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Morocco on Tuesday signed on to the first regional team to cooperate on a space program, the UAE said.

"Today at the Global Space Congress in Abu Dhabi, we attended the signing of a charter to establish the first Arab body for space cooperation, bringing together 11 Arab states," said Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum in comments carried by the government media office.

The pan-Arab team's first project is "a satellite that Arab scientists will work on from here in the UAE", he said, according to AFP.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed, the UAE's vice president and prime minister, vowed in 2017 to send four Emirati astronauts to the International Space Station by 2022.

The UAE announced last month that its first astronaut will blast off on a mission to the station on September 25.

The oil-rich Gulf state has two astronauts in training as it looks to get an ambitious space program aimed at exploring Mars off the ground.

The astronaut program would make the UAE one of only a handful of states in the Middle East to have sent a person into space, as it looks to make good on a pledge to become a global leader in space exploration.

The first Arab in outer space was Saudi Arabia's Sultan bin Salman Al-Saud, who flew on a US shuttle mission in 1985.

Two years later, Syrian air force pilot Muhammed Faris spent a week aboard the Soviet Union's Mir space station.



Saudi Post Issues Stamp on World Children's Day

The postage stamps issued by the Saudi Post (SPL) keep pace with the most prominent national events and international occasions. SPA
The postage stamps issued by the Saudi Post (SPL) keep pace with the most prominent national events and international occasions. SPA
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Saudi Post Issues Stamp on World Children's Day

The postage stamps issued by the Saudi Post (SPL) keep pace with the most prominent national events and international occasions. SPA
The postage stamps issued by the Saudi Post (SPL) keep pace with the most prominent national events and international occasions. SPA

On the occasion of World Children's Day, the Saudi Post (SPL), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, has issued a stamp worth SAR 3.

The stamp aims to highlight children's rights and promote their well-being worldwide. Additionally, it seeks to raise awareness of the importance of protecting children and ensuring they have access to education, healthcare, and a decent life, as well as fostering international cooperation to achieve these noble goals.

The Ministry of Education confirmed its commitment to providing inspiring, engaging, and safe learning environments for children, and to expanding community awareness of issues concerning children, thus deepening its partnership with all government, private, and non-profit sectors in supporting human values and the advancement of children in all aspects of their lives.

The postage stamps issued by the Saudi Post (SPL) keep pace with the most prominent national events and international occasions. Each stamp reflects an important event or immortalizes a prominent scene in the history of the Kingdom, making them a distinctive choice for stamp collectors around the world and a documentary tool for historians interested in recording historical milestones.