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Theater Supervisors from Australia Train Saudi School Teachers

Training on making marionettes and how to move them on stage (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Training on making marionettes and how to move them on stage (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Theater Supervisors from Australia Train Saudi School Teachers

Training on making marionettes and how to move them on stage (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Training on making marionettes and how to move them on stage (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Ministry of Culture gives great attention to enhancing arts and culture in the local community, and recognizes the vital role school theater plays in growing the talents and skill of students.

As part of its efforts to promote school theater, the ministry has carried on an initiative aimed at training school teachers on theater arts, with the help of 160 supervisors who provide the guidance and support that schools need to develop and implement theater-related activities.

The School Theater Initiative is one of the top national initiatives launched by the Theater and Performing Arts Commission, as part of a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Education, to create a school theater movement aimed at enhancing the theater culture and growing a generation interested in theater.

The commission stated that the initiative will develop and grow the skills of supervisors and teachers through international programs curated by experts in theater and performative arts, in collaboration with Australia’s Monash University. The efforts seek to provide the trainees with the skills needed to fuel the sector with the essential theater elements, including acting, drama, design and direction.

The training program consists of several phases: the first ran from October 2002 until November 2022, during which several visits were paid to schools in Riyadh, to take a closer look at theater activities in the Kingdom and form the training team. The second saw the launch of the training program for the first promotion, including 20 teachers and 40 supervisors, as well as reviewing and assessing the content after the conclusion of the training.

The training started in the third phase, while the fourth, which ran between December 2023 and January 2024, graduated the first promotion of supervisors, who were responsible for training several groups of 20 teachers. The training program of the third and fourth promotions covered the cities of Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Abha and Tabuk.

The fifth phase, which has kicked off earlier this year and ends in December, is designed to supervise and support the teachers that will be trained by 160 supervisors, in addition to selecting the best 1,000 school plays from different cities and provinces.

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US Congressman from Wisconsin Swims to Safety After Plane Makes Emergency Landing in a Lake

Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) speaks, before US Vice President JD Vance discusses anti-fraud initiatives during a visit to Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing, at Milwaukee Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, July 8, 2026. (Reuters)
Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) speaks, before US Vice President JD Vance discusses anti-fraud initiatives during a visit to Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing, at Milwaukee Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, July 8, 2026. (Reuters)
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US Congressman from Wisconsin Swims to Safety After Plane Makes Emergency Landing in a Lake

Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) speaks, before US Vice President JD Vance discusses anti-fraud initiatives during a visit to Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing, at Milwaukee Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, July 8, 2026. (Reuters)
Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) speaks, before US Vice President JD Vance discusses anti-fraud initiatives during a visit to Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing, at Milwaukee Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, July 8, 2026. (Reuters)

A Republican congressman said he had to swim to safety after a plane he was traveling in made an emergency landing in a lake late Saturday.

US Rep. Tom Tiffany says he was returning from the La Crosse County Lincoln Day Dinner when the light aircraft lost power as it approached Wausau Downtown Airport. The pilot made an emergency landing in Lake Wausau. They both ended up in the water and swam to safety.

“After landing, we called 911. As the plane began to submerge, we exited the aircraft and swam to a shallow area, where we waited until emergency responders reached us by boat," he wrote on X.

Emergency responders got both Tiffany and the pilot to a nearby hospital, where they were treated for minor injuries.

Tiffany is running for governor on the Republican ticket in Wisconsin and has been endorsed by President Donald Trump.

The plane Tiffany was traveling in was a single-engine, four-seat Bonanza aircraft.

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Beijing Bans Drone Possession in the City After Earlier Moves to Tighten Rules

People commute as the sun sets in Beijing on September 12, 2026. (AFP)
People commute as the sun sets in Beijing on September 12, 2026. (AFP)
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Beijing Bans Drone Possession in the City After Earlier Moves to Tighten Rules

People commute as the sun sets in Beijing on September 12, 2026. (AFP)
People commute as the sun sets in Beijing on September 12, 2026. (AFP)

Beijing is banning the possession of drones within city limits in new rules announced Sunday that further tighten its regulations on drones, which already include a May ban on sales of the devices. The ban on possession will come into effect in mid-November.

Beijing has barred unauthorized drone flights, citing security reasons, and has designated the city’s administrative area as restricted airspace.

The latest revised rules come after a fatal accident in late June when a small aircraft crashed into a Beijing skyscraper, killing the pilot and injuring 13 others.

Under regulations approved in March and which came into effect May 1, existing drone owners in Beijing had to register their devices with their real names and identities, but owners have been allowed to keep their registered drones under strict requirements.

However, according to the revised regulations approved this month, which will be effective from Nov. 15, the possession or storage of drones or key components within Beijing's city limits will also be banned. The revised rules were released Sunday by authorities.

Authorities can confiscate the drones of those who do not comply and can impose fines on individuals and companies.

Beijing authorities will be offering subsidies for existing drone owners to sell their devices at designated buyback locations, according to the state-owned newspaper Beijing Daily. Drone owners can also consider scrapping and recycling their drones with a small subsidy provided, or shipping them outside of Beijing before the new rules come into effect.

Drone users can still fly drones outdoors in other parts of the country, but real name registrations are required. Beijing, the Chinese capital, often has more stringent security rules than other parts of China.

Varieties

Around 230 Flee Croatia Island Fire

A firefighter inspects the area of a forest fire in Trebisevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 7, 2026. (Reuters)
A firefighter inspects the area of a forest fire in Trebisevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 7, 2026. (Reuters)
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Around 230 Flee Croatia Island Fire

A firefighter inspects the area of a forest fire in Trebisevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 7, 2026. (Reuters)
A firefighter inspects the area of a forest fire in Trebisevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, September 7, 2026. (Reuters)

Around 230 people were evacuated overnight Sunday on the Croatian Adriatic island of Brac because of a fire that has ravaged some 3,500 hectares (8,600 acres), according to authorities.

With the wildfire threatening peoples' houses after being fanned by strong winds, the authorities sounded the alarm shortly before midnight for residents and tourists in the small town of Milna and its surrounding settlements in the island's west.

"After an extremely difficult night, the situation... has noticeably improved this morning," the national firefighting command said.

Four Canadair water-bombing airplanes have been at work since the morning, while more than 220 firefighters backed by 69 vehicles have worked through the night to douse the blaze, the firefighters' statement said.

Several boats from the harbormaster's office and the maritime police worked alongside private vessels to get people out of the areas near Milna threatened by the flames.

The official Hina agency reported that some 230 people had been evacuated as a result, citing firefighter commander Slavko Tucakovic.

"The firefighters saved a large number of residential buildings and helped secure the safety of tourists and local residents. Some damage was reported to facades and awnings. Two people were slightly injured," Tucakovic said.

In total, about 3,500 hectares of pine forest and scrubland were devastated by the blaze, Hina reported, citing a senior firefighter.

As with elsewhere in Europe, Croatia has seen an extremely hot and dry summer which has created tinderbox-like conditions for wildfires to rage.

Scientists have long warned that climate change driven by humanity's burning of fossil fuels is making periods of extreme heat and drought more frequent, intense and longer-lasting.