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JAZAN: Saudi Border Guard land patrols in Farasan, Jazan, arrested three Yemenis for violating border security system regulations and attempting to smuggle 171 kg of qat.
Meanwhile, Border Guard land patrols in Al-Daer, Jazan, foiled an attempt to smuggle 45 kg of hashish. Preliminary procedures have been completed, and the seized narcotics were handed to the competent authority.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s National Research and Development Center for Sustainable Agriculture — known as Estidamah — has distributed over 20,000 black mulberry and damask rose seedlings to farmers in Al-Baha.
The initiative, carried out through the center’s tissue culture laboratory, is part of efforts to support farmers and transfer modern agricultural techniques to areas with comparative advantages. It continues Estidamah’s contribution to a former agricultural project which saw 52,000 black mulberry, damask rose and strawberry seedlings distributed across the area.
The aim is to introduce new types of seedlings, increase production efficiency and achieve a qualitative leap in the region’s agricultural landscape.
It reflects the center’s keenness to support sustainable agricultural development by spreading highly economically viable plant varieties, which are propagated using tissue culture techniques to ensure quality, genetic purity and suitability to the targeted climatic and environmental conditions.
The center continues to implement several programs that aid farmers by providing research and technical solutions based on sustainable agricultural practices, achieving optimal efficiency in using resources and maximizing production value, in line with National Agriculture Strategy objectives.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s counter-narcotics authority has dismantled a major amphetamine trafficking operation, seizing 1.52 million pills hidden within a table shipment in Riyadh and apprehending four suspects linked to the scheme.
The General Directorate of Narcotics Control executed the bust as part of broader Interior Ministry initiatives to disrupt drug networks threatening national security. Investigators tracked the contraband to recipients in both Riyadh and Eastern Province, culminating in the arrest of three Syrian expatriates and one Saudi national.
Security authorities urged the public to report drug smuggling or selling by calling 911 in Makkah, Madinah, Riyadh and the Eastern Province, or 999 in other regions.
Reports can also be made to the General Directorate of Narcotics Control at 995 or via email.
RIYADH: Deep within the mountains and plains of Aseer, nature unveils one of its most magnificent geological masterpieces in the form of the region’s basalt columns.
Meticulously shaped, they stand tall as timeless witnesses, narrating chapters of the province’s rich volcanic history.
These formations are not just rigid rock structures, but natural sculptures, shaped over millions of years, embodying a harmonious blend of natural beauty and scientific depth.
The basalt columns of Aseer are among the most remarkable and rarest geological phenomena in the Kingdom, captivating the attention of visitors and science enthusiasts.
Composed of volcanic rock formed from slowly cooled lava flows, these columns have shrunk and cracked over time, creating stunning geometric shapes, often hexagonal, pentagonal, or quadrilateral, with astonishing natural precision.
King Saud University Seismic Studies Center director and Saudi Society for Geosciences president Prof. Abdullah Al-Amri shared exciting insights.
He highlighted the Aseer region’s rich geological formations, which can be found in several captivating locations, including Muhayil Aseer, Jabal Mishrif in Al-Harajah, Qarn Mujal east of Tendha, Wadi Al-Asran, and the coastal area between Al-Qahma and Al-Barak, nestled within the Black Mountain range.
Al-Amri noted that these formations have been recognized since ancient times.
Renowned geographer Abu Muhammad Al-Hasan Al-Hamdani described them in his book “Sifat Jazirat Al-Arab” as part of the Sarat Janb range, stretching from the north of Dhahran Al-Janub to the north of Sarat Ubaida, now known as Harrat Al-Sarat.
A Cenozoic volcanic field, Harrat Al-Sarat covers around 700 square km and boasts towering mountains like Jabal Ferwa, which rises 3,004 meters above sea level, and Jabal Zalm, standing at 2,575 meters.
Saudi Geological Survey spokesperson Tariq Aba Al-Khail elaborated on the fascinating formation of basalt columns.
The unique structures arise from thermal contraction when lava cools and solidifies, resulting in vertical cracks at right angles to the cooling surface.
While the columns typically appear vertical, they may bend or tilt depending on the cooling conditions.
Aba Al-Khail likened the formations to the cracking of clay as it dries, but instead, they occur in igneous rocks, particularly basalt, and can also be found in andesite, trachyte, and rhyolite.
He explained that the remarkable formations date back around 30 million years and have been discovered in the southwestern volcanic lava fields, such as Harrat Al-Barak.
The phenomenon holds significant scientific value, offering researchers the opportunity to explore ancient volcanic activity in the Arabian Peninsula.
RIYADH: The Saudi Arabian Museums Commission signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tareq Rajab Museum in Kuwait on Wednesday.
The agreement aims to strengthen cultural cooperation and the exchange of expertise in the fields of museums and exhibitions.
It aims to strengthen the broader cultural relations between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, helping to promote mutual understanding and intercultural dialogue between the two countries.
Mona Khazindar, adviser to the Saudi Ministry of Culture and representative of the Museums Commission, signed the memorandum alongside Ziad Tareq Rajab, director of the Tareq Rajab Museum. The document outlines areas of cultural cooperation and mutual interest for both parties.
Key areas of cooperation include the exchange of research, the loan of objects and the organization of temporary exhibitions, with the aim of enriching the cultural content and enhancing the value of both collections. The memorandum also establishes a joint working group to implement these areas of cooperation and facilitate the exchange of knowledge.
Khazindar said that the memorandum reflected the Museums Commission’s commitment to forming strategic partnerships with long-established private museums in the Arab region.
She underlined the importance of the Tareq Rajab Museum as a leading institution dedicated to Islamic art and heritage, adding that the collaboration would support cultural and knowledge-exchange initiatives across the museum sector.
RIYADH: British content creator and social influencer John bin London has said he is amazed at the resilience of Saudi Arabia and its people and believes nothing will stop the Kingdom’s success.
Bin London, a native of Nottingham, England, who grew up in Abu Dhabi, was the first guest on the seventh season of The Mayman Show.
He expressed his admiration of the Saudi people and the Kingdom’s rapid transformation.
“Saudis have a ‘nothing will stop us or will get in our way and we will succeed’ (attitude),” he said. “This is something that I saw within the people.”
He added that whether it was Telfaz 11 — a creative media studio led by an enthusiastic team of storytellers and social influencers — or students he met from small Saudi villages who had traveled to the UK to obtain university degrees, everyone seemed to have a “never quit” mentality.
Bin London also used the partial privatization of oil giant Saudi Aramco as a prime example of the Kingdom’s flourishing economy potential and appeal.
The initial public offering saw 100 percent of the shares transferred to the Public Investment Fund. Some 95 percent remained with the sovereign wealth fund, with the other 5 percent floated to private investors.
“The economics say, ‘Oh this is not going to work, and if it fails this and that,’ and then in a few years, what did we see? We saw a growth of 150 percent,” said bin London.
He also highlighted NEOM’s The Line project. Built on 34 sq. km, it will eventually accommodate 9 million people with a reduced infrastructure footprint, creating new methods of efficiency.
“I remember, not long ago, people doubted The Line and then suddenly they saw the trucks going in, and The Line being built, this shut them up,” he said.
Bin London’s view of Saudi perseverance did not just come from observing projects and financial deals, however. He firmly believes that success comes from the people behind it — starting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman: “I think it was obvious to everyone who was following and paying attention what was going to happen in this country.”
The influencer, who is fluent in Arabic and has also mastered the Najdi Arabic dialect, creates content in the language to advocate for the opportunities offered in the land he has decided to make his home.
“I started picking up on vocabulary, pronunciation, from their dialects. It was, I guess, an unconscious thing,” he said.
“It was just who you hear around you, how they speak. You start copying it and then later on a lot of my friends were from the Otaibi tribe, which … spreads from Taif, Hijaz and into Najd.”
The Briton lauds many Saudi tourist destinations but says Diriyah, the Kingdom’s birthplace and home of At-Turaif, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, will always have a special place in his heart.
“Diriyah is one of my favorite places. It was somewhere that before my first visit to Saudi Arabia, which was in the end of 2022, I literally dreamt about visiting.
“It’s the jewel of the Kingdom, it’s the place of the Al-Saud family, who created this country.
“I used to watch the videos and see the pictures and I want(ed) to visit the museums, like it was literally a dream, so much so that the first time I came I woke up super early — and I’m not a morning person — with excitement to go visit Diriyah,” he said.
The excitement of that visit, he recalled, meant he spent an entire day wandering around and taking in the depth of history and captivating surroundings.
