Category: World

JERUSALEM: After the United Arab Emirates, Israel is warming up to Saudi Arabia and Indonesia

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said they are looking to “expand the Abraham Accords to additional countries” beyond the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.

“If you’re asking me what the important countries that we’re looking at are, Indonesia is one of them, Saudi Arabia of course, but these things take time,” he said.

Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest two sites, and Indonesia, which has the world’s largest Muslim population, have conditioned any eventual normalization with Israel on the addressing of the Palestinians’ quest for statehood on territory captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.

Lapid added that “smaller countries” he did not identify could normalize relations with Israel in the coming two years.

Israel’s President Isaac Herzog said he would visit the United Arab Emirates, the first country to normalize ties with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords, on Jan 30-31, and meet with its leaders.

Despite the absence of official ties, Saudi Arabia agreed in 2020 to allow Israel-UAE flights to cross its territory.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s El Al Israel Airlines plane flew through Saudi airspace when he visited Abu Dhabi last month.

A covert visit to Saudi Arabia in November 2020 by then-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was confirmed by Israeli officials but publicly denied by Riyadh. Both Israel and Saudi Arabia share concerns over their common enemy, Iran.

Both Saudi Arabia and Indonesia condemned Israel’s airstrikes in Gaza during 11 days of hostilities with Palestinians in May 2021. More than 250 Palestinians were killed in Gaza. Rockets fired by Hamas and other groups killed 13 people in Israel.

By: Olivia

Predators can become friends with their prey. They build a special bond with their “live” food instead of eating them. Some people may get doubted about this but it actually happens.

Friendship has no barrier. It can beat all the odds in this world.

This is what happens with Amur the tiger and Timur the goat in Primorye Safari Park. Timur was placed in Amur’s cage as live food but it didn’t happen in the way that zookeepers thought.

The predator and the prey befriended each other. Timur the prey was supposed to be afraid of its predator but it wasn’t. Amur was confused and gave up on its prey. A lifelong friendship between the fearless goat and the majestic animal blossomed. Amazing!

You can watch the beautiful friendship of the tiger and the goat below.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=U6dZs1SvzlE

Their special relationship even made their caretakers astonished. The reason was that Amur still ate live animals. The tiger had never behaved this way before. Refuse to eat the prey given to him, even befriend it.

The odd friends loved spending time together. They played, walked, hunted, and just had fun all together. Their friendship lasted until Timur the goat passed away.

If you love this beautiful friendship, just share the post with your family and friends.

H/T: Kingdomstv

Ayberk Pekcan’s aka Artuk Bey’s family Said that the actor has passed away due to lung cancer

Another sad news came from Ayberk Pekcan’s aka Artuk Bey’s family that the actor has passed away due to lung cancer after a long time of struggle.

The actor essayed the role of Artuk Bey in the historical series Diriis Ertugrul as the right hand man of Ertugrul Bey.

Pekcan will be sent off to his last journey in his hometown Mersea tomorrow.

In the past months, Pekcan said in a statement, “Dear friends… The process that started with the doctor I went to with a complaint of back pain has come to this point today. I have lung cancer. The tumor has also spread to the liver and adrenal glands. Unfortunately, this disease did not show any symptoms in its initial stages. The first day of chemotherapy… My biggest support is with my family. So are my friends nearby… I will do my best to regain my health. Keep your health wishes and prayers with you. Stay well…”

The actor was just 51 and his friends supported him well in his constant struggle but he could not make it unfortunately.

The news has sent shockwaves throughout Turkey and his co-actors have extended their condolences.

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told the Hebrew publication N12 News in an exclusive interview that the best way to combat COVID-19 is a vaccine that can be administered every year, not with boosters received every few months, according to Reuters.

“This will not be a good scenario,” he said when asked about people getting booster shots every four to five months. “What I’m hoping [is] that we will have a vaccine that you will have to do once a year.”

“Once a year — it is easier to convince people to do it. It is easier for people to remember,” he continued. “So from a public health perspective, it is an ideal situation.”

Bourla predicted the world will return to near-normal conditions within a few months. “The virus will not be eradicated. The virus will be with us for years to come,” he said, adding that “we should be able to come to normal lives… in a few months.” However, he stressed there will continue to be “anomalies, such as Omicron… that we will be able to control.”

In the interview, Bourla also said Pfizer was working on a vaccine that could combat omicron.

“I do not know if we will have to use it, but we are working on the vaccine. We will know if it is the best solution only after we see the data,” he said. “We know we will be able to mass-produce the vaccine, if necessary, because we are already building the infrastructure for production.”

United Nations: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said that he hopes the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan can be solved peacefully.
“Well, the position of the UN and the resolutions that were taken are the same, remain the same. We have, as you know, a peacekeeping operation there. We are, of course, committed,” Guterres said on Friday.
“I’d offered my good offices several times, and we hope that this is something that can be solved peacefully and that the situation in Kashmir is a situation in which human rights are respected and in which people can live in peace and security,” he said.
Guterres was responding to a question by a Pakistani journalist on the Kashmir issue during a press conference here.
New Delhi has been categorically rejecting any scope for third party mediation between India and Pakistan on Kashmir, saying that India’s stand has been clear for decades and the two countries can discuss the issue bilaterally.
Guterres, in an August 2019 statement, had recalled the 1972 Agreement on bilateral relations between India and Pakistan — the Simla Agreement.
The Simla Agreement was signed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Pakistan President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1972 and is a bilateral agreement between the countries and rejects any third-party mediation on the Kashmir issue.
The 1972 Simla agreement provides that the resolution of differences between the parties should be resolved by peaceful means and by bilateral negotiations.
Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after India abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution, revoking the special status to Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcating the state into two Union Territories on August 5, 2019. The move evoked strong reaction from Pakistan.
India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 was an internal matter and also advised Pakistan to accept the reality.
India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir “was, is and shall forever” remain an integral part of the country.
New Delhi has also told Islamabad that it desires normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

MAKKAH: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has shut down rumors regarding suspension of Umrah due to increase in COVID-19.

A Ministry source told Haramain Sharifain that the Ministry has no plans to suspend Umrah and instead it calls on visitors and pilgrims to adhere to the precautionary measures decided by the competent authorities.

The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques recently reintroduced Physical and Social Distancing in the Two Holy Mosques after a rise in COVID-19 cases was noted.

“We call on every pilgrim and visitor to adhere to physical distancing and wearing of masks at all times as this will ensure your safety and the safety of others.” The Imam of the Grand Mosque Sheikh Yasir Al Dossary announced before commencing the afternoon prayers.

“I donated a kidney to her mother, she left me and got married a month later,” he said.Key Highlights”I donated a kidney to her mother, she left me and got married a month later,” Uziel saidHe insisted that he was over with the breakupHe added that they are not friends but they don’t hate each other

A man has said that he was dumped by his girlfriend – weeks after he donated his kidney to her mother.

Uziel Martínez, from Baja California, Mexico, in a TikTok video, said that he donated his kidney to save the life of his girlfriend’s mother. A month after the operation, the girlfriend dumped him and married someone else, Uziel said.

“I donated a kidney to her mother, she left me and got married a month later,” he said.

The video was made in response to a trend in which men recounted their worst experiences with exes.

The clip has been viewed over 14 million times and has made national headlines in Mexico. Netizens showered support for Uziel, with one saying, “Don’t look so sad, she lost a great gentleman. Keep moving forward and find the perfect woman who appreciates you.”

After the video went viral, Uziel insisted that he was over with the breakup.

In another video, he said, “Actually I’m fine, I’m fine emotionally, I think so is she. I have nothing against her, we are on good terms.” He added that they are not friends but they don’t hate each other.

When someone urged Uziel not to repeat the mistake, he joked that he has no spare kidneys left to donate.

“We just have two kidneys and if I already gave one, I only have another one for me, so … I can’t feel it,” he said.

In another incident, a man lifted his ex-partner’s eyelids to gain access to her phone while she was asleep. He then used her fingerprints to open her money transfer application and steal 1,51,202 yuan (Rs 18 lakhs).

Stray Kids is forced to postpone their first in person concert of 2022

Arab News

Wind and heavy rain in Riyadh on Friday caused many outdoor events to close for public safety as part of Riyadh Season.

At sunset rain began to pour across the city, with winds of 31 km/h whipping up sand.

Turki Al-Sheikh, CEO of the General Entertainment Authority and chairman of Riyadh Season, tweeted that due to the weather conditions in Riyadh, events had to be postponed.

لسلامتكم، ونظرًا للأحوال الجوية ⛈
تم تأجيل حفلة فرقة ستراي كيدز والنجمة تشونغها في #بوليفارد_بلس حتى إشعار آخر 🙏❤️#موسم_الرياض
For everyone's safety, Stray Kids & Chungha's concert has been postponed until further notice due to weather conditions ☔ #RiyadhSeason pic.twitter.com/8Xd7bPkaIN

— موسم الرياض | Riyadh Season (@RiyadhSeason) January 14, 2022

One of the quickly canceled celebrations was the completely sold out K-pop Stray Kids and Chungha concert that was set to kick off at 7:30 p.m.

Event organizers asked fans to evacuate the outdoor arena as “quickly and quietly as possible,” citing circumstances out of their control, with th high winds not allowing the concert to go ahead.

Riyadh Season tweeted out shortly after: “For everyone’s safety, Stray Kids & Chungha’s concert has been postponed until further notice due to weather conditions.”

Organizers were not able to say whether the K-pop concert would be postponed or canceled completely.

At 1 p.m. the National Center for Meteorology reported that there will be medium to heavy rain and expected sandstorms in the area. Many Riyadh Season visitors were prepared and equipped with umbrellas and raincoats for the festivities.

During the day, Riyadh Season sent a thread of tweets announcing the closure of all outdoor events and zones for public safety.

Winter Wonderland closed as well due to the heavy rains in the northern region, with many of its rides unable to operate.

Among the outdoor events closed in Riyadh were Combat Field, Riyadh Safari, and Nabd Al-Riyadh.

As per the Riyadh Season official Twitter page, many of the events will return as normal on Saturday following the passing of the rain.

The Saudi Press Agency reported earlier that along with Riyadh, it will rain in Makkah, Madinah, Hail, Qassim, and Alkhobar region.

With inputs from Arab News

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

MAKKAH: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has shut down rumors regarding suspension of Umrah due to increase in COVID-19.

A Ministry source told Haramain Sharifain that the Ministry has no plans to suspend Umrah and instead it calls on visitors and pilgrims to adhere to the precautionary measures decided by the competent authorities.

The General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques recently reintroduced Physical and Social Distancing in the Two Holy Mosques after a rise in COVID-19 cases was noted.

“We call on every pilgrim and visitor to adhere to physical distancing and wearing of masks at all times as this will ensure your safety and the safety of others.” The Imam of the Grand Mosque Sheikh Yasir Al Dossary announced before commencing the afternoon prayers.

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has banned women to visit the burial site of Prophet Muhammed (SAW).

The Saudi government has stopped giving permits to women for visiting the site. Only men can visit the site that too only once in 30 days.

According to the Saudi Ministry of Pilgrimages, the Prophet’s tomb will be restricted to men. Women may request special permission to visit “Al Rawda”, the courtyard of the Prophet’s Mosque located between the pulpit and the tomb where Muhammad (SAW) met with his relatives.

Ministry of Pilgrimages did not cite the reasons for this ban. It only indicated that the mobile application with which pilgrimages to the holy places of Mecca and Medina are managed will no longer allow women to book a visit to the site, according to the newspaper `Specimen’.

With the `Eatmarna’ app, people can reserve tickets to the Great Mosque of Mecca and the Mosque of the Prophet.

The ministry said no timings are set for performing the obligatory prayers at the Prophet’s Mosque.

However, for praying in Al Rawdah Al Sharifa and visiting the Prophet tomb, advance reservations are required via the “Eatmarna” app, the report added.

The ministry also stressed that it is mandatory for applicants who are applying for the permits to be fully vaccinated and show a status of ‘immunization’ on the health app “Tawkkalna.”

This decision comes after the increase in cases of COVID-19 during the past few days after it reached its lowest level during the month of November, where 36 cases were recorded.

On Sunday, January 9, Saudi Arabia reported 3,460 more COVID-19 cases, raising the total to 578,753. It also reported one more related death, bringing the total fatalities to 8,893.