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NEWS ABOUT: King Abdullah

Saudi Arabia Displays Beheaded Convict

(Newser) - Saudi Arabian authorities decapitated and publicly displayed a convicted killer last night, drawing fire from Amnesty International, CNN reports. A state press agency said Ahmed Al-Shamlani Al-Anzi was sentenced for murdering an 11-year-old boy and his father. The Saudis likely sewed Al-Anzi's head back on before his display, or "... More »

White House Denies Prez Bowed to Saudi King

President accused of royal breach of protocol at G20 summit

(Newser) - The White House denies President Obama broke centuries of protocol by bowing to a foreign monarch at the G20 talks, Politico reports. A video from the summit showing the president dipping as he greeted Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has infuriated right-wingers who believe the movement was a bow. The deep... More »

Israel, Palestine Need Outside Support for Lasting Fix

Neighbors must be involved: Friedman

(Newser) - The dominant theory holds that the two-state solution is the answer to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But the war in Gaza has pushed tensions past the point where an equitable sharing of geography is enough, argues New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman. He wants a "five-state solution—Palestine, Egypt, Jordan,... More »

Arab Leaders Shower Condi With Jewelry; Bush, Meh

State chief got $316K in gifts last year, to about $100K for Bush

(Newser) - Condoleezza Rice scored $316,000 worth of lavish jewelry from Arab royals last year, the AP reports. Jordan’s King Abdullah treated Rice to an emerald and diamond necklace, ring, bracelet, earrings, and other finery; King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia a ruby and diamond necklace and earrings, bracelet and ring.... More »

Jordan's King Pledges Iraq Support

First visit by Arab head of state big boost for Iraqi government

(Newser) - In a key sign of returning stability in Iraq, King Abdullah of Jordan paid a surprise visit to Baghdad yesterday, becoming the first Arab head of state to travel to the nation since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by the US military. The trip, postponed from last month after a... More »

United Arab Emirates Cancels Iraq's $7B Debt

Baghdad wins boost from key Arab states

(Newser) - Iraq's diplomatic isolation among its Arab neighbors is easing, reports the BBC. The United Arab Emirates canceled Iraq's entire debt of close to $7 billion and appointed a new ambassador, while Jordan's King Abdullah will become  the first Arab head of state to visit Iraq since 2003, boosting the Baghdad... More »

Saudis to Boost Oil Output to Record Level

Kingdom aims to stabilize prices to protect oil market

(Newser) - Saudi Arabia aims to put the brakes on oil prices by raising output to its highest ever, the New York Times reports. The kingdom resisted calls from President Bush earlier this year to boost production, but is now concerned that record oil prices could lead to lower demand in the... More »

Bush, Stop Begging the Saudis

Don't publicly ask for oil favors you won't get, WSJ writes

(Newser) - Whichever adviser sent President Bush to plead with the Saudi king to help bring down oil prices should be canned, the Wall Street Journal opines. Bush had the same request turned down during a visit in January, and the rebuff is even more humiliating the second time around. If Bush... More »

Pope Pushing for Church in Saudi Arabia

Islam's holy ground could be ready to open up

(Newser) - Pope Benedict XVI is lobbying Saudi Arabia to let a Catholic church on its soil, Time reports. The Vatican confirms that it's discussing forging diplomatic relations with the Saudis, but a house of worship would be a major coup in a country where all religions besides Sunni Islam are banned. More »

Saudi Video Protests Driver Ban

YouTube clip shows woman driver calling for change in law

(Newser) - Activists have posted a video online to protest the Saudi ban on women drivers, the BBC reports. Made to honor International Women’s Day, the 3-minute clip on YouTube follows protester Wajeha Huwaider as she turns onto a forbidden highway and discusses the legality of the ban. “Many women... More »

Berkeley, Stanford Partner with Saudi University

American schools to help develop science and technology graduate school

(Newser) - Berkeley and Stanford University will help choose faculty and develop curricula for a new university in Saudi Arabia, reports the San Jose Mercury News. The graduate-level King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, funded by a $10 billion gift from the king, will focus on fields like petrochemicals and nano-technology... More »

Saudis to Let Women Behind the Wheel

Driving ban lifted to pre-empt growing protest movement

(Newser) - Saudi Arabia’s Royal Court has decided to allow women to drive. The move is calculated to stem growing activism, including protest convoys of women drivers, reports the Daily Telegraph. "If girls have been in schools since the 1960s, they have a capability to function behind the wheel when... More »

Bush Begs Saudi King for Oil

Public plea rejected, Bush entreats Abdullah personally

(Newser) - After his public request for increased oil production and the resulting price drop was rejected yesterday, President Bush made a personal appeal to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to be more generous with his wells, ABC News reports. Only an hour after Bush’s public plea, the Saudi oil minister announced... More »

Bush Asks OPEC for More Oil

Warns even rogue Iranian attack would have 'serious consequences'

(Newser) - OPEC should start producing more oil, President Bush told Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah today, or it risks damaging “consuming economies,” like the US. Bush said high oil prices were reducing consumer purchasing power, and said more supply “would be helpful.” He also warned Iran to... More »

Bush Sells Arms on Saudi Visit

Prez and Abdullah discuss weather, plan to talk oil and Mideast peace

(Newser) - President Bush announced a $123 million arms deal with the Saudis as he visited the oil kingdom for the first time today. Part of $20 billion in military sales to shore up Gulf states against Iran, the Saudi deal will offer advanced "smart bomb" technology that some US lawmakers... More »

Companion in Saudi Rape Case Pardoned

Male friend of raped woman also subjected to 'enough torture'

(Newser) - The companion to the Saudi rape victim who was convicted of a crime for being alone with him, and then pardoned after an international uproar, has himself been pardoned, CNN reports. Saudi Arabia's minister of justice confirmed this—and by implication revealed that the man, kidnapped along with the woman... More »

King Abdullah Pardons Saudi Rape Victim

Acts out of compassion, but still believes jail time, lashes were 'fair'

(Newser) - A young Saudi gang rape victim whose case sparked worldwide condemnation when she was sentenced to a lashing and jail time for violating Islamic law has been pardoned, Al Jazeera reports. King Abdullah pardoned the woman in the "interests of the people" and out of compassion for the victim,... More »

Greenback Assaulted at OPEC meeting

Dollar a 'worthless piece of paper,' Iran's president says

(Newser) - Calling it a "small and worthless piece of paper,” Iran’s president today urged OPEC's members to drop the depreciating US dollar as its official currency. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blamed President Bush for the dollar’s decline and its adverse effects. The comments highlight mounting tension among OPEC members,... More »

Chavez Warns of $200 Oil if US Strikes Iran

But call to make OPEC 'geopolitical agent' rejected by Saudis

(Newser) - Crude oil prices could hit $150-$200 a barrel if Bush is “mad enough” to strike Iran, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warned today at the OPEC summit. “The basis of all aggression is oil,” said Chavez, arguing that OPEC should set itself up as “an active geopolitical... More »

Saudi King Meets the Pope

King Abdullah travels to the Vatican on his European tour

(Newser) - Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah visited with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican today—the first official meeting of any pope with a reigning Saudi monarch. The visit comes as relations are improving between the Vatican and the Muslim world, the BBC reports. Still, the pontiff was expected to press Abdullah... More »

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