Second season of the Professional Fighters League launches in Jeddah

Second season of the Professional Fighters League launches in Jeddah
Jeddah is set for an action-packed night this Friday with the launch of the second season of the Professional Fighters League (PFL) at Onyx Arena. (Supplied)
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Updated 05 May 2025
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Second season of the Professional Fighters League launches in Jeddah

Second season of the Professional Fighters League launches in Jeddah
  • Iranian lightweight champion Mohsen Mohammad Saifi will defend his title against Egypt’s Ahmed El-Sisi
  • Saudi veteran Ahmed Makki, whose career spans 26 years, will take on Egypt’s Hisham Al-Nimr

JEDDAH: Jeddah is set for an action-packed night this Friday with the launch of the second season of the Professional Fighters League (PFL) at Onyx Arena. The event marks a major highlight in the 2025 mixed martial arts calendar for fighters from the Middle East and North Africa.

Headlining the card, Iranian lightweight champion Mohsen Mohammad Saifi will defend his title against Egypt’s Ahmed El-Sisi. Also in the lightweight division, Algeria’s Suhail Thaeri will square off against Kuwait’s Abdullah Saleem, making his return after a season-long suspension due to doping.

Other notable lightweight bouts include Bahrain’s Abbas Khan versus Morocco’s Salah Eddine Hamli, and Lebanon’s George Eid taking on Iraq’s Mohammed Fahmi.

In the featherweight division, Jordan’s Abdulrahman Hayasat— riding a five-fight win streak— returns after missing last season’s final due to injury. He will face unbeaten Moroccan Taha Ben Daoud. Elsewhere in the division, Jordan’s Ezzedine Al-Derbani will meet Algeria’s Mohamed Amin, while Iraq’s Hussein Salem faces Egypt’s Assem Ghanem.

In another featured bout, Egypt’s Islam Reda will go up against Algeria’s Akram Nasri, who steps in for injured Saudi champion Abdullah Al-Qahtani, last season’s gold belt holder.

Capping off the official fight card, Saudi veteran Ahmed Makki, whose career spans 26 years, will take on Egypt’s Hisham Al-Nimr.

The exhibition matches will include the debut of Saudi fighter Abdulaziz Bin Muammar against Morocco’s Fares Hamdani in the open weight division. In the flyweight category, Saudi fighter Malik Bashel will face Morocco’s Montaser Boutouta.


Fire that led to Heathrow shutdown caused by substation component failure, energy operator says

Fire that led to Heathrow shutdown caused by substation component failure, energy operator says
Updated 2 min 4 sec ago
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Fire that led to Heathrow shutdown caused by substation component failure, energy operator says

Fire that led to Heathrow shutdown caused by substation component failure, energy operator says
  • The closure of Heathrow, the busiest airport in Europe, on March 21 cost airlines tens of millions of pounds and stranded thousands of passengers

LONDON: The fire that caused a hugely disruptive shutdown at Heathrow airport in March was likely caused by the failure of a component at an electricity substation, Britain’s National Energy System Operator said in a report on the incident on Wednesday.
The closure of Heathrow, the busiest airport in Europe, on March 21 cost airlines tens of millions of pounds and stranded thousands of passengers. It also raised questions about the resilience of Britain’s infrastructure.
“This review has seen evidence that a catastrophic failure on one of the transformer’s high voltage bushings at National Grid Electricity Transmission’s 275kV substation caused the transformer to catch fire,” the report by the National Energy System Operator said.
“This was most likely caused by moisture entering the bushing, causing an electrical fault.”
National Grid Electricity Transmission’s controls in place were not effective and failed to identify that action had not been taken in relation to an elevated moisture reading in 2018, the report said, adding that the issue went unaddressed.


An oil-drilling ship capsized in the Gulf of Suez, killing at least four crewmen, Egypt says

An oil-drilling ship capsized in the Gulf of Suez, killing at least four crewmen, Egypt says
Updated 22 min 1 sec ago
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An oil-drilling ship capsized in the Gulf of Suez, killing at least four crewmen, Egypt says

An oil-drilling ship capsized in the Gulf of Suez, killing at least four crewmen, Egypt says
CAIRO: An oil-drilling ship capsized in the Gulf of Suez, killing at least four crewmen and leaving four others missing, authorities said Wednesday.
The drilling ship overturned Tuesday evening off the city of Ras Ghareb, on the African side of the Gulf of Suez, the Red Sea’s northwestern arm and a crucial shipping route, the Petroleum Ministry said in a statement.
There were 30 workers on board when the drilling ship capsized, said Amr Hanafy, governor of the Red Sea province.
Rescue teams recovered four bodies and rescued two 22 others who were taken to hospitals, he said.
He said ships from the Egyptian navy joined the search-and-rescue efforts which were still ongoing overnight for four missing crewmen.
The capsizing happened in an area called Gabel el-Zeit, a prominent Egyptian oil production site around 300 kilometers (186 miles) south of the Suez Canal, the ministry said in a statement.
The capsizing was unlikely to cause disruption to vessels transiting through the canal, which links the Gulf of Suez to the Mediterranean Sea.

Dalai Lama says he will have successor after his death

Dalai Lama says he will have successor after his death
Updated 16 min 10 sec ago
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Dalai Lama says he will have successor after his death

Dalai Lama says he will have successor after his death
  • The charismatic Nobel Peace Prize-winning Buddhist had previously said the institution of Dalai Lama would continue only if there was popular demand
  • Many exiled Tibetans fear China will name its own successor to bolster control over a territory it poured troops into in 1950

McLeod Ganj, India: The exiled spiritual leader of Tibet confirmed Wednesday that he will have a successor when he dies, reassuring Buddhist followers around the globe that the 600-year-old institution of the Dalai Lama will continue.

It is a landmark decision for Tibetans, many of whom had feared a future without a leader, as well as for global supporters who see the Dalai Lama as a symbol of non-violence, compassion and the enduring struggle for

Tibetan cultural identity under Chinese rule.

According to Tibetans, Tenzin Gyatso is the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama is lauded by his followers for his tireless campaign for greater autonomy for Tibet, a vast high-altitude plateau in China about the size of South Africa.

He and thousands of other Tibetans have lived in exile in India since Chinese troops crushed an uprising in the Tibetan capital Lhasa in 1959.

The charismatic Nobel Peace Prize-winning Buddhist had previously said the institution of Dalai Lama would continue only if there was popular demand.

He said Wednesday he had received multiple appeals over the past 14 years from Tibetan diaspora in exile, Buddhists from across the Himalayan region, Mongolia and parts of Russia and China, “earnestly requesting that the institution of the Dalai Lama continue.”

“In particular, I have received messages through various channels from Tibetans in Tibet making the same appeal,” he said in a video broadcast at the start of a meeting of religious leaders in the Indian Himalayan town where he has lived for decades.

“In accordance with all these requests, I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue,” he added, according to an official translation.

His advanced age had also sparked concern over the future of Tibetan leadership and the delicate question of his succession.

The announcement was made ahead of his 90th birthday on July 6.

While China condemns him as a rebel and separatist, the internationally recognized Dalai Lama describes himself as a “simple Buddhist monk.”

Many exiled Tibetans fear China will name its own successor to bolster control over a territory it poured troops into in 1950.

But the Dalai Lama said Wednesday that responsibility for identifying the 15th Dalai Lama “will rest exclusively” with the India-based Gaden Phodrang Trust, the office of the Dalai Lama.

“I hereby reiterate that the Gaden Phodrang Trust has sole authority to recognize the future reincarnation; no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter,” he added.

Chemi Lhamo, 30, a Tibetan activist in exile, said she was convinced the continuation of the role of Dalai Lama would serve the cause of a Tibetans.

“There isn’t a doubt that the Dalai Lama institution will also continue to serve the benefit of humanity,” Lhamo said, adding the announcement sent a message to Beijing to “unequivocally reject” any role in identifying the future leader.

The Dalai Lama handed over political authority in 2011 to an exiled government chosen democratically by 130,000 Tibetans globally.

At the same time, he warned that the future of his spiritual post faced an “obvious risk of vested political interests misusing the reincarnation system.”


‘Business must cooperate’: Russia seeks to double $1.8 billion trade with Pakistan

‘Business must cooperate’: Russia seeks to double $1.8 billion trade with Pakistan
Updated 17 min 10 sec ago
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‘Business must cooperate’: Russia seeks to double $1.8 billion trade with Pakistan

‘Business must cooperate’: Russia seeks to double $1.8 billion trade with Pakistan
  • Bilateral trade jumped over 100% in FY24 as Pakistan bought discounted Russian crude
  • New steel mill, IT, agriculture, energy and SCO ties mark expanding cooperation

KARACHI: Russia seeks to double the volume of its bilateral trade with Pakistan, Russian Consul-General Andrey V. Federov said this week, amid a thaw in Moscow-Islamabad ties.

Russia and Pakistan, once Cold War rivals, have strengthened ties in recent years, with Islamabad purchasing discounted Russian crude oil and liquefied petroleum gas in 2023 and Moscow now planning to build a new steel mill in Karachi.

The two countries traded goods and services worth $236 million from July 2024 till May 2025, compared with $1.04 billion in the same period last year, according to Pakistani central bank data. The volume of their trade rose more than 100 percent to $1.81 billion from July 2023 till June 2024, when Pakistan was facing dollar shortages and imported discounted crude oil from Russia, marking a shift from its traditional reliance on Middle Eastern suppliers.

In an interview with Arab News, Federov said this volume can be boosted as the two countries have started implementing the decisions of the 9th meeting of Russia-Pakistan Intergovernmental Commission, held in December, in which they agreed on a protocol for cooperation in the fields of trade, finance, energy, industry and agriculture, transport and infrastructure, business and finance, and science and technology.

“In last five years it (bilateral trade) was duplicated. Now we have one billion US dollars [of trade volume],” the Russian consul-general said, adding that the Russia-Pakistan trade turnover had showed 50 percent growth in the last five years. “My idea [is] that we can duplicate it once again during my staying here in Karachi.”

Federov didn’t say when his term is going to end.

Moscow could provide machinery, fertilizers, oil and gas, and some lentils and grains as part of agricultural exchange with Pakistan, according to the diplomat. Islamabad could in return supply sports goods, surgical instruments, textiles, pharmacy and kinnows that are “very, very famous” in Russia.

“Some of the Russian leading agriculture companies are ready to work with Pakistan,” he said. “There are a lot of things... we can exchange.”

Federov said Moscow and Islamabad were working to “create a bridge” which would stand for decades and that the bilateral trade would be sustained.

“It won’t be affected by any political issues. Business must cooperate. Sorry for using this word must, but I insist that business must cooperate,” he said.

Another area in which Moscow could help Pakistan was information technology (IT), according to the diplomat. Russia has a very good experience in information security, smart cities and e-government that make life of people much easier.

Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) could also assist Russia in data documentation as the South Asian had a “very good experience in this sphere.”

“World is not easy right now, and there are, as I said, a lot of spheres. We can share our experience and Pakistan also,” Federov said.

“We were together.”

Besides economy and trade, Russia and Pakistan saw their interests converging on the issue of last month’s Iran-Israel conflict. Together with China, the two countries co-sponsored a resolution in the United Nations, calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East after the conflict killed hundreds on both sides.

“We were together the co-sponsors of the UN resolution on Iran situation,” the Russian envoy said. “Our relations are very close, and we are working hard on many international issues together.”

Putin last month interacted with the leaders of Iran, Israel and Pakistan to end the conflict.

“Maybe some, some of the countries are not satisfied with our role, and they want to take part of one side or another side,” the consul-general said, in an apparent reference to the United States (US) which sided with Israel and bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 22 before announcing a ceasefire.
Federov said Moscow was “not satisfied” with Israel’s behavior in the region.

“But, also, I should say that we have good contacts also not only with Iran and Pakistan. We have good contacts with Israel,” he said. “We do not break our relations with Israel.”

Pakistan and Russia are members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a Eurasian political, economic and security organization, and have had sustained high-level interactions and institutional mechanisms.

Federov said the top leadership of Pakistan and Russia had been actively interacting at different international diplomatic forums almost every year.

“Both sides realized that we cannot live without [support from] each other,” he said.

Asked about Putin’s long-pending visit to Pakistan, Federov said: “We are all working on that, but we do not know the plans of the president.”


Pakistan PM vows to expand water storage amid Indian threat to divert river waters

Pakistan PM vows to expand water storage amid Indian threat to divert river waters
Updated 59 min 52 sec ago
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Pakistan PM vows to expand water storage amid Indian threat to divert river waters

Pakistan PM vows to expand water storage amid Indian threat to divert river waters
  • New Delhi suspended the Indus Waters Treaty after a gun attack in Indian-administered Kashmir
  • Prime Minister Sharif welcomes international court ruling rejecting India’s move on river waters

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said the government had decided to fast-track the construction of water reservoirs across Pakistan, citing growing climate risks as well as India’s decision to manipulate transboundary water flows after suspending the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty in April.

New Delhi decided to put the World Bank-backed 1960 treaty “in abeyance” after a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir killed 26 people earlier this year, blaming it on Pakistan and stating it would not resume cooperation until Islamabad “irrevocably abjures its support for cross‑border terrorism.” Pakistan denied any involvement in the incident and called for an independent international investigation.

Sharif mentioned his administration’s priority to build water reservoirs during a visit to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) in Islamabad, as heavy monsoon rains battered parts of the country and left more than 50 people dead. He also referred to a recent ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague, which rejected New Delhi’s attempts to suspend the treaty this month.

“But the enemy has certain evil designs against Pakistan,” he was quoted as saying by the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan, as he warned that water could be “weaponized” by India.

“In view of this, the government has decided to fast-track non-controversial water storage projects under the water accord, which provides legal cover for provincial coordination,” he added.

Sharif emphasized the key role of the NDMA in strengthening climate preparedness and resilience, and called for public alert systems to be improved in collaboration with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

Referring to the devastating floods of 2022, he said Pakistan was among the countries most vulnerable to climate-related disasters.

The prime minister also praised the NDMA for its coordinated emergency response capacity, including recent international relief missions to Türkiye and Myanmar, and expressed hope that real-time data sharing and early warning systems managed by the National Emergencies Operations Center under the NDMA would continue to guide provincial disaster response.