Saudi Businessman Purchases 12 Camels Worth $32 Million

Saudi men stand next to camels as they participate in King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rimah Governorate, north-east of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia January 19, 2018. Picture taken January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Saudi men stand next to camels as they participate in King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rimah Governorate, north-east of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia January 19, 2018. Picture taken January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
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Saudi Businessman Purchases 12 Camels Worth $32 Million

Saudi men stand next to camels as they participate in King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rimah Governorate, north-east of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia January 19, 2018. Picture taken January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser
Saudi men stand next to camels as they participate in King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rimah Governorate, north-east of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia January 19, 2018. Picture taken January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser

A Saudi businessman signed a 120 million riyal ($32 million) deal in Riyadh to purchase 12 camels, marking one of the biggest camels' purchase deals in the Gulf.

The event coincided with Cristiano Ronaldo joining of Saudi Al-Nassr team.

The deal was signed in Dahana Desert, which is hosting the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival.

The businessman, Abdullah Al-Nahdi, who is an investor in the pharmacies sector, purchased 12 camels that came first in the festival from their owner, businessman Mohammed bin Jakhdab Al-Qahtani.

Organized by the Camel Club, King Abdulaziz Camel Festival kicked off in December and concludes in mid-January.

More than 40,000 camels compete for prizes worth more than $80 million.

The Camel Club is part of a whole sports system launched by the Saudi Crown Prince in 2017.



China Space Station Crew Returns to Earth after 6 Months in Space

 A Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center for a crewed mission to China's Tiangong space station, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China October 30, 2024. (Reuters)
A Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center for a crewed mission to China's Tiangong space station, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China October 30, 2024. (Reuters)
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China Space Station Crew Returns to Earth after 6 Months in Space

 A Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center for a crewed mission to China's Tiangong space station, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China October 30, 2024. (Reuters)
A Long March-2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center for a crewed mission to China's Tiangong space station, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China October 30, 2024. (Reuters)

Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth on Monday after a six-month stay on the Tiangong space station, part of China’s effort to be a global leader in space exploration.

A parachute slowed their capsule's nighttime descent to a remote landing area in China's Inner Mongolia region. The crew emerged after touching down at 1:24 a.m. A Chinese national flag stuck in the ground near the capsule flapped in the wind.

In recent years, the country's space program has brought back rocks from the moon and landed a rover on Mars. It aims to put a person on the moon by 2030, which would make China the second nation after the United States to do so.

The space station astronauts returned after welcoming a replacement three-person crew last week for the latest six-month mission. The new team of one woman and two men will conduct experiments, carry out spacewalks and install equipment to protect the station from space debris.

A space agency official said in April that Tiangong had maneuvered several times to avoid debris and had partially lost power when the solar wing's power cables were hit by debris, according to a report from the official Xinhua News Agency.

China is among the countries that have created space debris, including the reported break-up of a rocket stage in August during the launch of the first 18 satellites for a global internet service similar to Starlink, the still-growing constellation of satellites operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX.

Tiangong, which means Heavenly Palace, was completed two years ago and orbits the earth.

Only Chinese astronauts have gone to the space station so far, but a space agency spokesperson said last week that China is in discussions to select and train astronauts from other nations to join the missions, Xinhua reported.

Astronauts from several nations have traveled to the International Space Station, but China is blocked from that program mainly because of US concerns over the military's involvement in China's space program.

China laid out an ambitious plan last month to become a leader in space science research by 2050 in conjunction with its advances in space exploration.