Evaluation Mission for Riyadh Expo 2030 Kicks Off

Evaluation Mission for Riyadh Expo 2030 Kicks Off
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Evaluation Mission for Riyadh Expo 2030 Kicks Off

Evaluation Mission for Riyadh Expo 2030 Kicks Off

A delegation from the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) Enquiry Mission arrived in Riyadh on Sunday on a 5-day visit to start the evaluation process of the Kingdon's Candidacy for World Expo 2030.

The Enquiry Mission is headed by Patrick Specht, president of the BIE Administration and Budget Committee, accompanied by BIE Secretary-General Dimitrios Kerkentzes, Eva Descarrega Garcia (Andorra), Karen-Mae Hill, OBE (Antigua and Barbuda), Aldwin Dekkers (Belgium) and additional members of the BIE Secretariat.

CEO of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City Fahd Al-Rasheed affirmed that the visit represents an opportunity for the delegates to witness the support of our leadership, the commitment of the Saudi government, and the excitement of the people of Riyadh and Saudi Arabia, to host a World Expo in our capital city in 2030.

During the visit, the BIE delegation will hold talk with ministers, members of government and subject matter experts to evaluate the details of the Riyadh Expo 2030 bid.

The Mission, which is a mandatory prerequisite for a country’s candidature to be considered for election, will look into the motivations behind the Expo candidature, the attractiveness of the proposed Expo theme, the proposed site and its planned re-use after the Expo, levels of local and national support for the project, expected participation, and the financial feasibility plan.

The findings of the Enquiry Missions will also be discussed by the BIE’s executive committee in May 2023, which will decide which candidatures to retain as being feasible and viable.

In November 2023, at the 173rd General Assembly of the BIE, the host country of World Expo 2030 will be elected by BIE Member States, via a secret ballot and based on the principle of “one country, one vote.”

Saudi Arabia announced its bid to host World Expo 2030 in Riyadh in October 2021 and since then it has completed three presentations to the BIE General Assembly.



Qatari Mission Searches for Bodies of Americans Killed by ISIS in Syria

A photograph of US journalist James Foley taken on November 5, 2012, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. (AFP)
A photograph of US journalist James Foley taken on November 5, 2012, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. (AFP)
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Qatari Mission Searches for Bodies of Americans Killed by ISIS in Syria

A photograph of US journalist James Foley taken on November 5, 2012, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. (AFP)
A photograph of US journalist James Foley taken on November 5, 2012, in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. (AFP)

A Qatari mission has begun searching for the remains of US hostages killed by ISIS in Syria a decade ago, two sources briefed on the mission told Reuters, reviving a longstanding effort to recover their bodies.

ISIS, which controlled swathes of Syria and Iraq at the peak of its power from 2014-2017, beheaded numerous people in captivity, including Western hostages, and released videos of the killings.

Qatar's international search and rescue group began the search on Wednesday, accompanied by several Americans, the sources said. The group, deployed by Doha to earthquake zones in Morocco and Türkiye in recent years, had so far found the remains of three bodies, the sources said.

One of the sources - a Syrian security source - said the remains had yet to be identified. The second source said it was unclear how long the mission would last.

The US State Department had no immediate comment.

The Qatari mission gets under way as US President Donald Trump prepares to visit Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar next week and as Syria's new rulers seek relief from US sanctions.

The Syrian source said the mission's initial focus was on looking for the body of aid worker Peter Kassig, who was beheaded by ISIS in 2014 in Dabiq in northern Syria. The second source said Kassig's remains were among those they hoped to find.

US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff were among other Western hostages killed by ISIS. Their deaths were confirmed in 2014.

US aid worker Kayla Mueller was also killed in ISIS captivity. Her death was confirmed in 2015.

"We’re grateful for anyone taking on this task and risking their lives in some circumstances to try and find the bodies of Jim and the other hostages," said Diane Foley, James Foley's mother. "We thank all those involved in this effort."

Two ISIS members, both former British citizens who were part of a cell that beheaded American hostages, are serving life prison sentences in the United States.