Middle East Experience

This story could have been written in 2005, 2010, and 2015. It is as if time has stood still, as if the Palestinians have a set diplomatic menu from which they call in an order from time to time.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: The Palestinian ‘same old, same old’ is getting them nowhere - analysis

Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Hacker group leaks data, photos from Defense Ministry, Benny Gantz

Riyadh Season’s Winter Wonderland zone kicked off in Saudi Arabia’s capital on Wednesday with fireworks and games for visitors of all ages, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Winter Wonderland is the fifth zone to open in this year’s Riyadh Season.The zone features games, activities, and events, including the “Magic Toy Box” for children, the world’s first mobile “Skyloop,” “Horror House,” a skating rink, a dancing fountain, and more than 103 games.This year’s Riyadh Winter Wonderland has 40 percent more space than the previous season. The zone will be open until the end of March 2022.There will be more games in the expanded area of 376,025 square meters. The festival also offers countless food and drink options.Winter Wonderland includes six areas: Dreamland Carnival, Snow Forest, Magic Box, Horror Adventures, Wonder Road, and Winter Festival.Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Season 2021 launched October 20. The mega-event was first held in 2019, beginning in October and ending in January 2020. The inaugural event saw more than 10 million venue visits at the time.Read more:Riyadh Winter Wonderland back in Saudi Arabia, 40 pct larger than previous season‘Imagine more’: Riyadh Season 2021 promises bigger, better entertainment eventsIn pictures: Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Season 2021 opening celebrations
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Season’s Winter Wonderland kicks off with fireworks

Global film CEOs and distributers said they believe that Saudi Arabia can be a worldwide hub for storytelling and content creation as plans for more cinemas in the Kingdom were unveiled at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference heard on Thursday.While cinema box office revenue decreased by 71.5 percent in 2020 compared to 2019, according to a recent report by media and tech research firm Omdia, the appetite for films is going from strength to strength in Saudi, Ignace Lahoud, CEO, Majid al-Futtaim Group, which oversees VOX cinema in the region, told the forum.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“We felt the impact of the pandemic just like the rest of the world, but we have seen a strong revival,” he said. “With recent blockbusters such as Bond and Venom…we are back to levels before pandemic.“And in Saudi over the last few years we have seen strong growth. We plan to be in ten cities by the end of 2022. We believe we can triple our expansion.”Lahoud said this week the Majid al-Futtaim Group will officially break ground on the Mall of Saudi project the Kingdom’s flagship destination for retail, leisure and entertainment.The Mall, located in the al-Narjis District, will eventually be home to a growing number of cinema screens in Saudi Arabia.VOX, one of the main operators, already operates 15 cinemas, amounting to 154 cinema screens, across the country.Lahoud said many studies have placed the potential in Saudi as 2,000 cinema screens over the coming years. While Lahoud said this is still a long way off, VOX believes the Kingdom holds vast potential.“We plan to be in ten cities by the end of 2022. In the next three years we will double where we are today.”Ultimately, VOX believes they can “triple our expansion” in the Kingdom, he said.The forum heard how the COVID-19 pandemic led to an upsurge in streaming content online. Online transactional and subscription video revenue increased by 30 percent from 2019’s $26 billion to $34 billion in 2020.Demand for local contentLahoud said Saudi filmmaking talent can plug the demand for an increasing appetite for local content.“There is a hunger for local content. There is an emerging generation of young and talented creatives. We want to be at the center of the industry that promoting the local talent. “Robert Simonds, chairman and CEO of US-based mega media company STX Entertainment, said one of the by-products of COVID-19 was an “explosion” of appetite for new and readily available content.“As content makers we sell to everyone, obviously with COVID the world has changed, the model has changed. It has made it far more profitable. COVID was horrible but one of the interesting by-products is we are having some of the best few years since its existence.”Sanford Climan, president of Entertainment Media Ventures, also told the forum that he believed Saudi Arabia could become a filmmaking hub.He said films such as Netflix megahit Squid Game showed the demand for well-made local content.“Saudi Arabia will be the center for content creation – not just in MENA. People are watching high-quality content in any language with the effortlessness of subtitles. The hope is this region will be the true hub of storytelling,” he said.“It is taking the heart of Arab hospitality and taking it to the people. Take the young Saudi filmmakers and give them the tools and let them tell the stories that reach the hearts of the world.”Read more:Saudi Arabia concludes participation at Cannes as region's new filmmaking hubSaudi Arabia’s AlUla signs deal for Hollywood film productionEmaar’s Reel Cinemas announces ‘aggressive’ expansion into Saudi Arabia
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi can be global content hub; more cinemas set for Kingdom: Film CEOs tell FII

Hamed Fayez, Saudi Arabia’s Vice Minister of Culture on Thursday said Saudi Arabia led the efforts to put culture and the creative industries on the global map through an important platform, the G20.“Our proudest moment happened last year when Prince Badr [the Minister of Culture] in the year of us [Saudi Arabia] assuming the presidency of the G20, convinced G20 countries and the body to embed a cultural theme for the first time,” Fayez recalled.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The vice minister was speaking at the fifth annual Future Investment Initiative (FII) Forum in Riyadh.He added: “With the help of our Italian friends in 2021, this had been formalized, and today it’s part of the G20 agenda for the foreseeable future.”“Fifty percent of our employees are young, talented Saudi females. And more than a third of our leadership, actually are Saudi talented leaders - female leaders as well,” Fayez said.The average age within the Ministry of Culture, he said, is around 32 years old.“What our demographics show is that we are a true reflection of [Saudi Arabia’s] Vision 2030,” he added.“Change is happening now,” he said, in a session titled: ‘Feeding our Minds: The Future of Culture.”Future plansFor the next three months, the ministry will have “more than 100 cultural engagements, events, or initiatives that are being launched,” Fayez said.“In 2022, we have 940 cultural days planned, we have three new public libraries, ten [public libraries] revamped... we have hundreds of millions of riyals worth of sector developmental programs that have either been launched or will be launched,” the vice minister added.This includes $100 million slated for the film sector alone, he said.“We feel that over the next 10 years, the cultural sector’s contribution to the Saudi economy will multiply by more than five times and more than 100,000 jobs will be created in the process.”One of the Ministry of Culture’s main strategic aspirations is to be “at the center of global cultural exchange.”“We want to share with the rest of the world what the best of our culture has to offer and learn from the rest of the world.”The vice minister said they will be doing this through partnerships and by participating in global events.Other speakers in the session included Shashi Menon, the CEO of Nervora, and Jerry Inzarello, the Group CEO of Diryah Gate Development Authority.Read more:Saudi Arabia inaugurates record-breaking Expo 2020 Dubai pavilionSaudi’s Crown Prince announces new $13 billion ‘Arabian Highland’ developmentExpo 2020: Saudi showcases culture and history through dance, music performances
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia led efforts to put culture on the global map: Saudi official at FII

Saudi Arabia is the second-biggest market for luxury electric car manufacturer Lucid Group in terms of pre-orders, CEO Peter Rawlinson said on Thursday at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh.Lucid Motors is an electric vehicle company with backing from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The Kingdom said earlier this week that at least 30 percent of cars in its capital would be electric by 2030, as the world’s biggest oil exporters seeks to reduce planet-warming emissions.The target, announced on Saturday at the start of a Saudi climate conference, is part of a plan to halve carbon emissions in the city of 8 million people over the next nine years, said Fahd al-Rasheed, president of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City.California-based Lucid is in talks with PIF to build an EV factory in the Kingdom, according to people familiar with the matter. Australia’s EV Metals Group Plc recently announced a project to invest $3 billion in Saudi Arabia to process minerals used in EV batteries.In August, Lucid announced that it would be producing two distinct versions of its upcoming Lucid Air Dream Edition car.The two versions are the Dream Edition Performance and the Dream Edition Range, each with a different focus. While the Dream Edition Performance features a powertrain optimized for speed and acceleration and boasts 1,111 horsepower, the Dream Edition Range only delivers 933 horsepower but will focus on providing the most amount of possible range to the user.With Reuters.Read more:Saudi PIF’s investment in electric vehicle maker Lucid Motors to net $20 bln profitSaudi Arabia to start electric-vehicle push in Riyadh: OfficialSaudi PIF-backed EV company Lucid Motors makes Nasdaq debut
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Lucid CEO: Saudi Arabia is second-biggest market for car pre-orders

The US sanctioned two Lebanese businessmen and one lawmaker on Thursday for “contributing to the breakdown of the rule of law in Lebanon,” the Treasury Department said.And for the first time, an individual widely believed to be backed by former Prime Minister Saad Hariri was added to the list.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Jihad al-Arab, a wealthy businessman in Lebanon, Dany Khoury, close to the also-sanctioned Gebran Bassil, and MP Jamil al-Sayyed were designated in the latest announcement.“These individuals, who are members of Lebanon’s business and political elite, are being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13441, which targets persons contributing to the breakdown of the rule of law in Lebanon,” a statement from the Treasury Department read.Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US was sanctioning the three men in “solidarity with the Lebanese people, who have long demanded accountability, transparency, and an end to endemic corruption.”Al-Arab is a wealthy businessman and was sanctioned for being awarded contracts in exchange for kickback payments to government officials, the Treasury Department said. Arab announced he was closing his businesses and leaving Lebanon earlier this year and is widely seen as one of the most corrupt men in Lebanon.Treasury accused al-Arab of being an intermediary in 2014 to broker a meeting between top Lebanese officials ahead of the 2016 presidential election, “in exchange for two government contracts valued at approximately $200 million.”Thursday’s announcement also cited two different contracts al-Arab received, one worth $18 million and another worth $288 million, due to his ties with powerful politicians.Washington said Khoury is “a close business associate of US-designated Gebran Bassil,” and because of his ties with Lebanon’s former top diplomat, he received “large public contracts that have reaped him millions of dollars while failing to meaningfully fulfill the terms of those contracts.”Khoury is notorious for being awarded a contract worth more than $100 million from the government to operate a landfill along Lebanon’s coastline in the heavily populated Burj Hammoud district. Khoury’s company has “been accused of dumping toxic waste and refuse into the Mediterranean Sea, poisoning fisheries, and polluting Lebanon’s beaches, all while failing to remedy the garbage crisis,” Treasury said.As for al-Sayyed, one of the more disliked MPs in Lebanon, Treasury said he “sought to skirt domestic banking policies and regulations and was aided by a senior government official in transferring over $120 million to overseas investments.”He is close to Hezbollah and Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad. He is also the former head of Lebanon’s General Security and called on Lebanese security officials to shoot and kill protesters during the 2019 uprising when people demonstrated in front of his home.The MP tweeted that he would hold a press conference to respond to the sanctions announcement on Friday.“The Lebanese people deserve an end to the endemic corruption perpetuated by businessmen and politicians who have driven their country into an unprecedented crisis,” Director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Andrea Gacki said. “Now is the time to implement necessary economic reforms and put an end to the corrupt practices eroding Lebanon’s foundations. Treasury will not hesitate to use its tools to address impunity in Lebanon.”Read more: US officials in Beirut as new sanctions await Lebanon’s politicians and Iran
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US sanctions Hezbollah-backed MP, two Lebanese businessmen over corruption

On Wednesday, residents of the Iraqi village of Al-Rashad killed 11 people in the predominantly Sunni neighbouring hamlet of Nahr al-Imam, in retaliation for ISIS attack..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Islamic State claims responsibility for deadly attack on Iraqi village

The UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen said Wednesday the Syrian government’s refusal to negotiate on revisions to the country’s constitution is a key reason for the failure of talks last week that left the road map to peace in the conflict-torn country in question..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: UN envoy blames Syria for failure of talks on constitutional revisions

Qatar-owned gas supplier QatarEnergy has rejected a report by Reuters on 'green bonds'..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: QatarEnergy rejects 'baseless' Reuters report on plans for 'green' bonds – Doha News | Qatar