31 December 2008
Here are some major events of 2008 in Saudi Arabia:
Jan. 5 - Authorities allow a family member to visit the Saudi blogger Fouad Al-Farhan in prison in Jeddah.
Jan. 9 - King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, orders the payment of SR20,000 per animal to the owners of camels that died after eating toxic feed.
Jan. 13 - French President Nicolas Sarkozy visits Riyadh and hold talks with King Abdullah.
Jan. 14 - US President George Bush visits Riyadh.
Jan. 16 - Authorities in Makkah execute a Saudi couple for torturing and killing their 9-year-old daughter.
Jan. 22 - King Abdullah orders payment of SR300,000 each as compensation to Saudi and Turkish parents whose newborn babies were mistakenly swapped at a government hospital in Najran four years ago.
Feb. 20 - King Abdullah orders implementation of the Makkah-Jeddah-Madinah railway project using local fund.
Feb 23 - Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah Region, opens the 9th Jeddah Economic Forum.
Feb. 24 - King Abdullah holds talks in Riyadh with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Feb. 25 - The Council of Ministers licenses three new companies to provide landline telephone services in the Kingdom.
Feb. 27 - King Abdullah holds talks with King Abdullah of Jordan in Riyadh.
March 3 - King Abdullah appoints Abdullah Zainal Alireza as Minister of Commerce and Industry.
March 5 - An oil tanker carrying one million barrels of crude oil sends a distress signal and Yanbu Port Authority tows it to safety.
March 10 - Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz visits Qatar, giving a boost to bilateral relations.
March 11 - Shamiyah and Shubaikah Districts in the heart of Makkah's Central Area are demolished to make room for the ever-increasing number of pilgrims.
March 15 - King Abdullah announces in the Shoura Council that nobody is above criticism.
March 30 - The Council of Ministers agrees to cut customs tariff on 180 products including foodstuff, building materials and consumer goods by 15 to 20 percent.
April 9 - King Abdullah holds talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Sharm El-Sheikh.
April 19 - King Abdullah holds talks with former American president Jimmy Carter in Riyadh.
April 26 - Saudi blogger Fouad Al-Farhan is released after about five-months detention.
April 28 - Saudi Arabia denies Yemeni press reports that its policemen had burned 18 Yemenis in Khamis Mushayt.
April 29 - King Abdullah receives in Riyadh and congratulates the winners of the King Abdullah International Prize for Translation.
May 2 - Crown Prince Sultan leaves Geneva after a two-day medical checkup.
May 5 - Seven inmates in Al-Ahsa prison die of suffocation when rioting prisoners set fire to their beds.
May 18 - Hadeel Al-Hudhaif, a leading Saudi blogger, 25, dies.
May 20 - King Abdullah opens Saudi Aramco's 75th anniversary celebration in Dhahran.
May 23 - King Abdullah launches 29 projects in the Jubail Industrial City.
May 28 - King Abdullah appoints Dr. Yousuf Othaimin as Minister of Social Affairs.
May 30 - Saad Al-Zuman, a young Saudi, conquers Mount Everest.
June 4 - King Abdullah inaugurates Makkah's Conference of Religious Dialogue. Representatives of Muslims from all over the globe attend the conference.
June 10 - Jeddah residents suffer acute water shortage.
June 11 - King Abdullah launches several key investment projects worth SR138 billion in Rabegh to establish King Abdullah Economic City.
June 25 - Saudi authorities announce the arrest of 701 terror suspects during the previous six months. The authorities added that 181 of these suspects had been released.
July 5 - Jebel Omar Company signs a SR12.4 billion agreement with Jadwa Investment to finance a major real estate project in front of the Grand Mosque.
July 6 - Saudi Arabia and Qatar sign an agreement to demarcate their borders.
July 11 - Police in Jeddah arrest a woman driving her family's car.
July 12 - A Saudi medical team separates Moroccan conjoined twins Safa and Marwa in a major operation in Riaydh.
July 15 - King Abdullah arrives in Madrid to participate in the interfaith World Dialogue Conference.
July 23 - Blackouts strike many parts of the Kingdom for several hours affecting homes, hospitals, factories etc.
Aug. 9 - The Saudi stock market index tumbles suffering a loss of about 25 percent since the start of the year.
Aug. 20 - Yemen authorities extradite to the Kingdom eight Saudi nationals wanted for criminal charges.
Aug. 25 - The Court of Cassation upholds the six years imprisonment and 1,000 lashes handed down by a Jeddah court against a Saudi citizen who held a judge captive in his own home and robbed him of SR300,000 at gunpoint.
Aug. 30 - The body of a Sri Lankan housemaid found in the desert 10 months earlier is finally repatriated to Colombo.
Sept. 3 - The European Court of Justice annuls the EU's decision to freeze the funds of Yassin Kadi, a Saudi businessman, for lack of evidence of linkage with terrorism.
Sept. 8 - Saudi triple jumper Osamah Al-Shanqiti wins the first gold medal in the Olympic history of the Kingdom with a world record-breaking jump of 15.37 meters in the Paralympics Games in Beijing.
Sept. 10 - Authorities arrest five men on charges of promoting militant activities on Internet forums.
Sept. 21 - Authorities receive eight Saudi citizens who had been serving jail terms in Iraq.
Sept. 23 - Saudi Arabia celebrates its 78th National Day.
Oct. 7 - Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz inaugurates Fahd Bin Sultan University in Tabuk.
Oct. 9 - Prince Abdul-Ilah is appointed as advisor to King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
Oct. 11 - The Saudi stock market dives almost six percent to a four-year low.
Oct. 12 - King Abdullah holds talks with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman in Jeddah.
Oct. 13 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques launches a number of electricity and water projects in Madina. The projects are estimated to cost SR9 billion.
Oct. 16 - Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah, announces that residents who head for Haj without permits will be deported from the Kingdom.
Oct. 21 - The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency pours between $2-3 billion in deposits into the banking system to ease liquidity pressure.
Oct. 25 - Saudi stock market plunges nine percent, sinking to its lowest point in four years
Nov. 2 - Khalid Al-Falih is appointed the new president of Saudi Aramco starting from Jan. 1, 2009.
Nov. 3 - The Kingdom is blessed with heavy rains across its vast area.
Nov. 8 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques arrives in New York for the international interfaith meeting.
Nov. 10 - Shoura Council rejects a proposal to ease Saudi-foreign intermarriages.
Nov. 15 - King Abdullah gives the green light to increase by 50 percent the allowances given to Saudi students pursuing higher studies abroad.
Nov. 17 - Pirates in the Arabian Sea seize the oil supertanker Sirius Star carrying a shipment of Saudi Aramco crude oil.
Nov. 22 - Saudi stock market loses more than nine percent of its value.
Nov. 29 - King Abdullah says oil at $75 per barrel is a fair price.
Dec. 1 - Frontier Guards arrest a gang of 19 fugitive smugglers and seize a huge cache of arms.
Dec. 2 - Saudi and US officials sign in Riyadh a science and technology cooperation agreement that includes nuclear energy technology.
Dec. 3 - Al-Ahli lifts the GCC Clubs Cup after beating Al-Nasr 2-0 in an all-Kingdom final.
Dec. 4 - King Abdullah gets the first Lech Walesa Prize for his charity and humanitarian work. The prize was announced in Gdansk, Poland.
Dec. 5 - Saudi Arabia donates two passenger ferries to Egypt.
Dec. 7 - Haj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage, reaches its peak with about 3.5 million pilgrims gathering in Arafat valley.
Dec. 12 - Conergy Asia-Pacific (a regional subsidiary of Hamburg-based Conergy AG) awarded a contract for a two-megawatt solar power plant for the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).
Dec. 14 - Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, Citigroup Inc.'s largest individual investor, lost 19 percent of his personal wealth since the start of the year.
Dec. 16 - The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) cut two key lending rates by 50 basis points in its efforts to ease the cash flow and support private sector growth in the Kingdom.
Dec. 22 - King Abdullah unveils a SR475 billion State budget that is SR65 billion more than last year's budget.
Dec. 28 - The Ministry of Interior warns the general public that fake riyal bills are in circulation in the Eastern Province.
Here are some major events of 2008 in Saudi Arabia:
Jan. 5 - Authorities allow a family member to visit the Saudi blogger Fouad Al-Farhan in prison in Jeddah.
Jan. 9 - King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, orders the payment of SR20,000 per animal to the owners of camels that died after eating toxic feed.
Jan. 13 - French President Nicolas Sarkozy visits Riyadh and hold talks with King Abdullah.
Jan. 14 - US President George Bush visits Riyadh.
Jan. 16 - Authorities in Makkah execute a Saudi couple for torturing and killing their 9-year-old daughter.
Jan. 22 - King Abdullah orders payment of SR300,000 each as compensation to Saudi and Turkish parents whose newborn babies were mistakenly swapped at a government hospital in Najran four years ago.
Feb. 20 - King Abdullah orders implementation of the Makkah-Jeddah-Madinah railway project using local fund.
Feb 23 - Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah Region, opens the 9th Jeddah Economic Forum.
Feb. 24 - King Abdullah holds talks in Riyadh with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Feb. 25 - The Council of Ministers licenses three new companies to provide landline telephone services in the Kingdom.
Feb. 27 - King Abdullah holds talks with King Abdullah of Jordan in Riyadh.
March 3 - King Abdullah appoints Abdullah Zainal Alireza as Minister of Commerce and Industry.
March 5 - An oil tanker carrying one million barrels of crude oil sends a distress signal and Yanbu Port Authority tows it to safety.
March 10 - Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz visits Qatar, giving a boost to bilateral relations.
March 11 - Shamiyah and Shubaikah Districts in the heart of Makkah's Central Area are demolished to make room for the ever-increasing number of pilgrims.
March 15 - King Abdullah announces in the Shoura Council that nobody is above criticism.
March 30 - The Council of Ministers agrees to cut customs tariff on 180 products including foodstuff, building materials and consumer goods by 15 to 20 percent.
April 9 - King Abdullah holds talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Sharm El-Sheikh.
April 19 - King Abdullah holds talks with former American president Jimmy Carter in Riyadh.
April 26 - Saudi blogger Fouad Al-Farhan is released after about five-months detention.
April 28 - Saudi Arabia denies Yemeni press reports that its policemen had burned 18 Yemenis in Khamis Mushayt.
April 29 - King Abdullah receives in Riyadh and congratulates the winners of the King Abdullah International Prize for Translation.
May 2 - Crown Prince Sultan leaves Geneva after a two-day medical checkup.
May 5 - Seven inmates in Al-Ahsa prison die of suffocation when rioting prisoners set fire to their beds.
May 18 - Hadeel Al-Hudhaif, a leading Saudi blogger, 25, dies.
May 20 - King Abdullah opens Saudi Aramco's 75th anniversary celebration in Dhahran.
May 23 - King Abdullah launches 29 projects in the Jubail Industrial City.
May 28 - King Abdullah appoints Dr. Yousuf Othaimin as Minister of Social Affairs.
May 30 - Saad Al-Zuman, a young Saudi, conquers Mount Everest.
June 4 - King Abdullah inaugurates Makkah's Conference of Religious Dialogue. Representatives of Muslims from all over the globe attend the conference.
June 10 - Jeddah residents suffer acute water shortage.
June 11 - King Abdullah launches several key investment projects worth SR138 billion in Rabegh to establish King Abdullah Economic City.
June 25 - Saudi authorities announce the arrest of 701 terror suspects during the previous six months. The authorities added that 181 of these suspects had been released.
July 5 - Jebel Omar Company signs a SR12.4 billion agreement with Jadwa Investment to finance a major real estate project in front of the Grand Mosque.
July 6 - Saudi Arabia and Qatar sign an agreement to demarcate their borders.
July 11 - Police in Jeddah arrest a woman driving her family's car.
July 12 - A Saudi medical team separates Moroccan conjoined twins Safa and Marwa in a major operation in Riaydh.
July 15 - King Abdullah arrives in Madrid to participate in the interfaith World Dialogue Conference.
July 23 - Blackouts strike many parts of the Kingdom for several hours affecting homes, hospitals, factories etc.
Aug. 9 - The Saudi stock market index tumbles suffering a loss of about 25 percent since the start of the year.
Aug. 20 - Yemen authorities extradite to the Kingdom eight Saudi nationals wanted for criminal charges.
Aug. 25 - The Court of Cassation upholds the six years imprisonment and 1,000 lashes handed down by a Jeddah court against a Saudi citizen who held a judge captive in his own home and robbed him of SR300,000 at gunpoint.
Aug. 30 - The body of a Sri Lankan housemaid found in the desert 10 months earlier is finally repatriated to Colombo.
Sept. 3 - The European Court of Justice annuls the EU's decision to freeze the funds of Yassin Kadi, a Saudi businessman, for lack of evidence of linkage with terrorism.
Sept. 8 - Saudi triple jumper Osamah Al-Shanqiti wins the first gold medal in the Olympic history of the Kingdom with a world record-breaking jump of 15.37 meters in the Paralympics Games in Beijing.
Sept. 10 - Authorities arrest five men on charges of promoting militant activities on Internet forums.
Sept. 21 - Authorities receive eight Saudi citizens who had been serving jail terms in Iraq.
Sept. 23 - Saudi Arabia celebrates its 78th National Day.
Oct. 7 - Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz inaugurates Fahd Bin Sultan University in Tabuk.
Oct. 9 - Prince Abdul-Ilah is appointed as advisor to King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
Oct. 11 - The Saudi stock market dives almost six percent to a four-year low.
Oct. 12 - King Abdullah holds talks with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman in Jeddah.
Oct. 13 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques launches a number of electricity and water projects in Madina. The projects are estimated to cost SR9 billion.
Oct. 16 - Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, Emir of Makkah, announces that residents who head for Haj without permits will be deported from the Kingdom.
Oct. 21 - The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency pours between $2-3 billion in deposits into the banking system to ease liquidity pressure.
Oct. 25 - Saudi stock market plunges nine percent, sinking to its lowest point in four years
Nov. 2 - Khalid Al-Falih is appointed the new president of Saudi Aramco starting from Jan. 1, 2009.
Nov. 3 - The Kingdom is blessed with heavy rains across its vast area.
Nov. 8 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques arrives in New York for the international interfaith meeting.
Nov. 10 - Shoura Council rejects a proposal to ease Saudi-foreign intermarriages.
Nov. 15 - King Abdullah gives the green light to increase by 50 percent the allowances given to Saudi students pursuing higher studies abroad.
Nov. 17 - Pirates in the Arabian Sea seize the oil supertanker Sirius Star carrying a shipment of Saudi Aramco crude oil.
Nov. 22 - Saudi stock market loses more than nine percent of its value.
Nov. 29 - King Abdullah says oil at $75 per barrel is a fair price.
Dec. 1 - Frontier Guards arrest a gang of 19 fugitive smugglers and seize a huge cache of arms.
Dec. 2 - Saudi and US officials sign in Riyadh a science and technology cooperation agreement that includes nuclear energy technology.
Dec. 3 - Al-Ahli lifts the GCC Clubs Cup after beating Al-Nasr 2-0 in an all-Kingdom final.
Dec. 4 - King Abdullah gets the first Lech Walesa Prize for his charity and humanitarian work. The prize was announced in Gdansk, Poland.
Dec. 5 - Saudi Arabia donates two passenger ferries to Egypt.
Dec. 7 - Haj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage, reaches its peak with about 3.5 million pilgrims gathering in Arafat valley.
Dec. 12 - Conergy Asia-Pacific (a regional subsidiary of Hamburg-based Conergy AG) awarded a contract for a two-megawatt solar power plant for the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).
Dec. 14 - Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, Citigroup Inc.'s largest individual investor, lost 19 percent of his personal wealth since the start of the year.
Dec. 16 - The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) cut two key lending rates by 50 basis points in its efforts to ease the cash flow and support private sector growth in the Kingdom.
Dec. 22 - King Abdullah unveils a SR475 billion State budget that is SR65 billion more than last year's budget.
Dec. 28 - The Ministry of Interior warns the general public that fake riyal bills are in circulation in the Eastern Province.
By Mohammed Ali Al-Jifri
© The Saudi Gazette 2008
