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Variety of Saudi Initiatives Aim to Break Coronavirus Isolation

Streets are deserted in Jeddah amid curfew in Saudi Arabia over the coronavirus. (SPA)
Streets are deserted in Jeddah amid curfew in Saudi Arabia over the coronavirus. (SPA)
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Variety of Saudi Initiatives Aim to Break Coronavirus Isolation

Streets are deserted in Jeddah amid curfew in Saudi Arabia over the coronavirus. (SPA)
Streets are deserted in Jeddah amid curfew in Saudi Arabia over the coronavirus. (SPA)

The majority of Saudi families are abiding by the lockdown, despite precautions being eased in light of new developments in the COVID-19 pandemic. With a near-total suspension of all activities, the lockdown has provided most people with ample free time, and this has pushed many to think of productive, useful and entertaining ways to keep themselves busy, such as learning, sports and other activities.

The increased free time due to the lockdown has led to a rise in on-demand broadcast programs and video game purchases. Also, universities, vocational schools and several Saudi educational and government bodies have set up remote workshops and tutorials to make use of the lockdown. Since the Saudis started the lockdown more than one month ago, several remote workshops were launched by universities and vocational schools and even some institutions and companies specialized in certain sectors. These were not limited to Saudis as a substantial portion of them was open to the public all over the world.

The workshops and tutorials were diverse in what they taught, including technical, administrative, journalistic, legal, economic and business workshops in addition to self-development and language courses, among others. The workshops tackled cybersecurity, cybercrimes, legal proceedings, preparing media campaigns, management and executive planning.

The Saudi Ministry of Culture launched several competitions under the lockdown, such as Literature of Isolation that was launched by the Literature, Publishing and Translation Commission to encourage creativity. The initiative aimed to allow writing enthusiasts to share creative works, such stories, novels, diaries and poems, that they had written on during the lockdown.

Last week, the Saudi Human Rights Commission launched, in collaboration with the United Nations Human Rights Commission, an online workshop to develop young leaders in the domain of human rights. The ten-day program was prepared by a team of young leaders who are qualified to introduce the culture of human rights and implement sophisticated volunteering initiatives to serve humanity in several countries, in addition to developing skills in modern communication.

These workshops went on to provide sessions in different domains and did not stop after precautionary measures to prevent gatherings were put in place. Instead, they converted them into online workshops with remote attendees delivered by different government bodies and research institutes.

The Saudi initiatives were not limited to educational programs and literature competitions, but also included sports activities. The Saudi Sports Union launched the Your Home is Your Gym initiative, described by Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed, the President of the Union, as the Saudis’ weapon against the coronavirus, as it aims to build a healthier and more active society.

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Varieties

T. Rex Dinosaur Could Become Most Expensive Fossil Ever

A Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur (Sotheby's) 
A Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur (Sotheby's) 
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T. Rex Dinosaur Could Become Most Expensive Fossil Ever

A Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur (Sotheby's) 
A Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur (Sotheby's) 

In 1997, Sotheby's hosted a natural history auction selling wonders of our prehistoric world - but for the first time a dinosaur was on the books.

It was a niche event mostly attended by the world's museums looking for specimens to add to their collections.

The dinosaur in question was a Tyrannosaurus Rex called Sue - she was eventually sold for $8 million (£6 million) to the Field Museum in Chicago.

Nearly 30 years later, on Tuesday, another T. rex will make an appearance at the annual auction - one of the most complete specimens of this kind ever found, according to BBC.

And this time it is not just scientists who are dinosaur-hunting but also the super-rich.

The new specimen, known as Gus, has already been valued at $30 million but it could fetch more, possibly even becoming the most expensive dinosaur ever sold.

It adds to a growing debate in the natural history world – should specimens of such scientific importance be reserved for museums and their scientists?

Or - as auctioneers would argue - should fossil hunters be rewarded for their discovery of dinosaurs lost to science and saving them from a second extinction?

Cassandra Hatton, global head of natural history at Sotheby's, knows very well the lengths some fossil scientists - paleontologists - are willing to go to in the search for these creatures.

“People die on excavations,” she said.

And for many of these hunters, the ultimate prize is the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

This dinosaur that lived millions of years ago hardly needs describing, having been immortalized in culture by appearances in films like King Kong and Jurassic Park, and as the namesake of an English rock band.

“The people that look for these fossils will spend months out in the field with tents and their food in their backpacks and they're camping out in the middle of nowhere with the rattlesnakes and the bugs and the mountain lions,” she explained.

Varieties

Heat Wave Smashes Records Across Central US

A man sits in the shade of a tree to protect from the sun during a heatwave at the Bois de Vincennes park in Paris on July 11, 2026. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
A man sits in the shade of a tree to protect from the sun during a heatwave at the Bois de Vincennes park in Paris on July 11, 2026. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
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Heat Wave Smashes Records Across Central US

A man sits in the shade of a tree to protect from the sun during a heatwave at the Bois de Vincennes park in Paris on July 11, 2026. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
A man sits in the shade of a tree to protect from the sun during a heatwave at the Bois de Vincennes park in Paris on July 11, 2026. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)

A record-breaking heat wave baked the central United States on Sunday, smashing temperature records from the northern plains to the Rocky Mountains region.

In Salt Lake City, the state capital of Utah, and Billings, the largest city in Montana, temperatures reached a peak of 109F (43C), according to preliminary data from the US National Weather Service.

Both temperatures are all-time highs for each city since records started being kept over 150 years ago, surpassing the previous records of 107F and 108F (42C), respectively.

The blistering heat has also hindered efforts to fight massive wildfires raging in Colorado and Utah, and the high temperatures are expected to persist through Tuesday, AFP reported.

Just over a week ago, the eastern United States was gripped by another heat wave that pushed temperatures to around 104F in New York and Philadelphia.

Around the world, heat waves are becoming more common and intense due to climate change, primarily caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas and emission of greenhouse gases.

Western Europe experienced its hottest June on record. The heat wave left more than 1,300 people dead across the region, according to the World Health Organization.

Varieties

Huge Fire Rages in Fontainebleau Forest Near Paris

Flames rise in the Fontainebleau Forest after a forestfire broke out late afternoon on July 12, 2026. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)
Flames rise in the Fontainebleau Forest after a forestfire broke out late afternoon on July 12, 2026. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)
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Huge Fire Rages in Fontainebleau Forest Near Paris

Flames rise in the Fontainebleau Forest after a forestfire broke out late afternoon on July 12, 2026. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)
Flames rise in the Fontainebleau Forest after a forestfire broke out late afternoon on July 12, 2026. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP)

French officials rushed two firefighting planes to the Paris region Sunday, after a fire erupted south of the French capital, disrupting traffic during a busy summer travel weekend and piling more misery on a region sweltering through its latest heatwave.

The fire, which officials described as "very virulent" and of "exceptional scale", began late afternoon in the sprawling Fontainebleau forest about 60 kilometers (40 miles) south-east of the capital, a onetime royal hunting preserve that today is dotted with quiet villages.

It had raced across 800 hectares and was still spreading, officials said early Monday, causing the partial closure of the A6 highway, the country's main north-south artery.

And with nightfall, firefighting aircraft had been forced to suspend their operations.

Around 15 homes had been evacuated in the nearby village of Vaudoue and firefighters were defending several other towns in the area, said the local Seine-et-Marne fire service.

Residents anxiously gathered in the village, watching emergency vehicles race past and making calls to try to find out if their homes were still at risk.

Evacuated residents Valerie and her husband Daniel described the moment authorities and firefighters told them to leave their home.

"We could see the ash falling," Valerie told AFP, sitting outside near the war memorial in Vaudoue, unsure where they would sleep.

"We put the cats and dogs in the car... we could see the fire on both sides," she said.

Without the firefighting planes, other villages would already have been evacuated, said Olivier Compta, who is overseeing the firefighting operation.

Around 400 firefighters worked to contain the flames, which erupted just ahead of the July 14 national holiday and on the first major weekend for departures for the summer holiday season.

Traffic was disrupted along highways in the area, as well as along the high-speed rail line leading to the south-east of the country.

Eric Brocardi, of France's national federation of firemen, said it was the first time fire bomber planes had been sent up from the normally drier and hotter south of the country to extinguish fires in the Paris region.

Two firefighting helicopters and an observation aircraft were also helping to fight the blaze, he added.

"The aim is to save lives and property," he said later, as the fire advanced.

Earlier, firefighters dealt with a fire that had blocked a highway running east from Paris and disrupted a high-speed train line to the south of France.

French rail company SNCF said on Sunday evening there were delays of up to six hours for trains arriving at or leaving from Paris's Gare de Lyon.

At the station, 34-year-old physiotherapist Kelly took the delay in stride.

"It's global warming," she said. "It's the disruption of the seasons...there are political decisions to be taken."

The Paris region -- and large parts of the rest of France -- is currently experiencing the third heatwave since May, increasing the risk of fires.

The three heatwaves have seen temperature records broken in several countries across Europe and have caused thousands of excess deaths, according to estimates in Belgium, Britain, France and Spain.

The June heatwaves would have been "virtually impossible" without climate change, the World Weather Attribution group of scientists said.

Several other European countries have faced record-breaking average temperatures.

In France, the heatwave has also led officials to shut down three of the country's nuclear power stations.

And organizers of the Tour de France cycling race shortened Sunday's stage by 30 kilometers (19 miles) as temperatures on the route approached 40C.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, whose office announced he would visit Fontainebleau on Monday, said that forest fires had already consumed 17,000 hectares this year.

Once the figures had all been tallied, that would come to 25,000 hectares -- "twice as much as the same period" in 2025, he added.