88,000 Iranian Pilgrims Arrive in Saudi Arabia for Hajj

Sun 28 July 2019: Some 88,000 Iranians have arrived in Saudi Arabia to perform this year’s Hajj pilgrimage, revealed Nasser Jaber Hweizawi, head of the office of Iranian pilgrims affairs. Upon their arrival, they witnessed the high levels of services provided by Saudi authorities at the Madinah and Jeddah airports, he added after holding talks […]

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Amnesty International ‘gravely concerned’ prominent cleric will be executed for peaceful activism

Fri 26 July 2019: Ahead of the trial of prominent cleric Salman al-Awdah in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, rights group Amnesty International has made pressing calls for his release, fearing he may soon be executed. The reformist cleric was arrested on terrorism charges in a sweeping crackdown in September 2017, after he posted a tweet calling for […]

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Christianity gives way to atheism in Britain, survey suggests

Thu 11 July 2019: Just one-in-three people polled for the British Social Attitudes report described themselves as Christian – the lowest figure since records began. There has been a “dramatic decline” in Britain’s Christian identity over the last 35 years – with a “substantial increase” in atheism, a state-of-the-nation survey has suggested. Slightly over one-third […]

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German churches lose 430,000 Catholic and Protestant members in 2018

Sun 21 July 2019: The Catholic and Protestant churches both lost over 200,000 members last year. The losses have hit the churches hard, as members of both churches pay up to 9% of their taxable income as church taxes. Germany’s Catholic Church lost 216,078 members and Protestant churches lost some 220,000 in 2018, according to data published on […]

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Makkah successfully reduces heat in pedestrian pathways at holy sites

The Secretariat of the Holy Capital has implemented a project to apply a heat-blocking coating to pavement surfaces in pedestrian pathways at holy sites. (Supplied) Fri 26 July 2019: RIYADH: The Secretariat of the Holy Capital has implemented a project to apply a heat-blocking coating to pavement surfaces in pedestrian pathways at holy sites. The first […]

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Riyadh to sponsor Hajj for NZ terror victims’ families

Wed 17 July 2019: King Salman issues executive order to host 200 Hajj pilgrims from families of victims of Christchurch terrorist attacks Saudi Arabia will host 200 Hajj pilgrims from families of victims of the March twin terrorist attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand, the country’s official news agency reported Wednesday. According to the Saudi Press […]

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