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Saudi Arabia Prepares Plan to Control Ports, Food Facilities during Hajj Season

SFDA
SFDA
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Saudi Arabia Prepares Plan to Control Ports, Food Facilities during Hajj Season

SFDA
SFDA

Riyadh- The Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) has intensified its monitoring and awareness programs in Makkah and Madinah regions, coinciding with the arrival of the pilgrims, in order to ensure the safety of the pilgrims' food and the safety and efficiency of the devices and medicinal products they use.

Executive Chairman of the SFDA Hisham al-Juzaei said in a statement Wednesday that the authority has developed an integrated plan for this year’s Hajj season, including intensifying the control role in ports and increasing inspection campaigns for food establishments and catering restaurants serving pilgrims.

Juzaei added that the authority has dedicated a large part of its activities during the Hajj season to raise the awareness of the pilgrims in Madinah and Makkah in the best means to prevent food poisoning and diseases transmitted by food, provide advice for keeping the medicine and ensuring its effectiveness and the use of medical devices and products.

The SFDA plan includes the inspection of food, medicine and medical equipment through a number of air ports (the city of pilgrims at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah), Jeddah Islamic port and the land borders (Batha border, Haditha border, the Ammar border, Judaidah port at Arar, and Wadiah border).

It also include health control of the food facilities in cooperation with the Secretariat of the Holy Capital and the Secretariat of Madinah Region, participation in the work of the Quartet to investigate incidents of food poisoning in Madinah area, preparation of field studies related to food safety and assessment of the status of food establishments.

SFDA launched an integrated plan to raise awareness about the safety of food, medicines and medical devices during this year’s Hajj season. It includes awareness campaigns through social media, distribution of awareness leaflets to pilgrims at airports and awareness lectures for employees in food establishments, contributing in reducing the cases of food poisoning.

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World

Türkiye's Erdogan Accuses Israel of Undermining Peace Initiatives

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
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Türkiye's Erdogan Accuses Israel of Undermining Peace Initiatives

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference following a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 06 April 2026. (EPA)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday accused Israel of undermining all efforts to halt the war in the Middle East, but said Ankara would continue to pursue any opportunity to advance a ceasefire.

"The Israeli government has continued to undermine all initiatives aimed at ending the war," Erdogan said following a weekly cabinet meeting in the Turkish capital.

"If there is even the slightest chance to silence the weapons and open space for negotiations, we are making sincere efforts to seize it," he added.

"Our hope is that this unlawful, senseless, illegitimate, and extremely costly war for all humanity will come to an end as soon as possible."

Erdogan also said Türkiye has stepped up diplomatic contacts to achieve a ceasefire.

"As the war drags on, we have warned that the fire could spread to other countries. As we leave behind the 38th day of the conflict, we unfortunately continue to carry the same concerns for our region," he said.

"In the face of increasing risks, I, as president, on one hand, and our ministers on the other, are accelerating our diplomatic contacts," he added.

Türkiye has attempted to mediate an end to the hostilities, notably through negotiations conducted with Pakistan and Egypt.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Monday met with the US ambassador to Türkiye, Tom Barrack, who called the meeting "productive".

"Türkiye's partnership continues to be vital as we work toward @POTUS's (Trump's) vision for a more secure region," the ambassador said on X.

Fidan also spoke on the phone with his Iranian counterpart to discuss "the course of war and other developments", a Turkish diplomatic source said.

World

Trump Says Tuesday Deadline to Make a Deal with Iran Is Final

US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
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Trump Says Tuesday Deadline to Make a Deal with Iran Is Final

US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 06 April 2026. (EPA)
US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 06 April 2026. (EPA)

US President Donald Trump said on Monday the Tuesday deadline he has set for Iran to make a deal is final, calling Iran's peace proposal significant but not good enough.

Trump has warned US forces will unleash broad attacks on Iranian infrastructure if his Tuesday night deadline is not met. Iran has rejected Trump's deadline.

"They ‌made a ‌proposal, and it's a ‌significant ⁠proposal. It's a significant step. ⁠It's not good enough," Trump told reporters during an Easter egg event for children on the White House South Lawn.

"It could end very quickly, the war, if they do what they have to do. They ⁠have to do certain things. ‌They know that, they've ‌been negotiating I think in good faith," he ‌said.

Trump's senior aides have been negotiating ‌with Iran indirectly through Pakistan, attempting to get a deal in which Iran will forswear nuclear weapons and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the oil ‌transit waterway. Iran said it wanted a permanent end to the war, ⁠not ⁠just a temporary ceasefire.

Trump said it appeared the latest team representing the Iranian government is "not as radicalized" as others who have been killed in airstrikes. "We think they're actually smarter," he said.

Trump said if it were up to him, the United States would take control of Iran's oil, but he said the American people would probably not understand such a move.

Arab World

Israeli Airstrike Kills at Least 10 Near Gaza School as Ceasefire Strains

Palestinians react following an Israeli strike outside a school sheltering displaced people, according to medics, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, April 6, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians react following an Israeli strike outside a school sheltering displaced people, according to medics, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, April 6, 2026. (Reuters)
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Israeli Airstrike Kills at Least 10 Near Gaza School as Ceasefire Strains

Palestinians react following an Israeli strike outside a school sheltering displaced people, according to medics, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, April 6, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians react following an Israeli strike outside a school sheltering displaced people, according to medics, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, April 6, 2026. (Reuters)

An Israeli airstrike killed at least 10 people and wounded several others outside a school housing displaced Palestinians on Monday, health officials said, in the latest violence overshadowing the fragile US-backed Gaza ceasefire deal.

Before the strikes, some Palestinians had clashed with members of an Israeli-backed militia, who they said attacked the school in an attempt to abduct some people, medics and residents said.

In the midst of the clashes, east of the Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, Israeli drones fired two missiles into the area, killing at least 10 people and wounding several others, they added.

It was not immediately ‌clear how many ‌civilians had been killed in the strikes, which hit ‌in ⁠a closely packed neighborhood ⁠of mostly displaced Palestinians.

Ahmed al-Maghazi, an eyewitness, said their area was attacked by members of the Israeli-backed militia who operate in the territory adjacent to where the Israeli forces are in control, before they opened fire.

"The residents tried to defend their homes, but the occupation forces targeted them directly," he told Reuters.

Earlier on Monday, an Israeli airstrike killed one Palestinian and wounded ⁠a child as they traveled on a motorbike in ‌Gaza City, medics said.

Medics said that ‌Israeli forces killed another Palestinian when they opened fire on a vehicle in central ‌Gaza, taking Monday's death toll to at least 12.

The Israeli military ‌had no immediate comment on any of the three incidents on Monday.

The Palestinian group Hamas, which has run Gaza since 2007, and Israel have traded blame over violations of the ceasefire that kicked off in October.

The Gaza health ministry says ‌Israeli fire has killed at least 700 people since the ceasefire began. Israel says four soldiers have been killed ⁠by militants ⁠in Gaza over the same period.

The violence comes as Hamas has continued to resist relinquishing its weapons, a major obstacle in talks to implement the next steps in US President Donald Trump’s proposed peace plan for Gaza.

On Sunday, Hamas' armed wing said that discussing the group's disarmament before Israel fully implements the first phase of Trump's Gaza plan was an attempt to continue what it called a genocide against the Palestinian people.

Hamas' October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's ensuing two-year campaign killed more than 72,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Gazan health authorities.

The offensive spread famine, reduced most of the strip to rubble, and displaced the majority of its population.