RIYADH: Prince Mansour bin Muqrin, deputy governor of Asir, on Wednesday said the naming of the province’s capital Abha as Capital of Arab Tourism 2017 will jumpstart development in the region.
Tourism will enable the region to achieve sustainable development throughout the year in line with Vision 2030, which seeks to move the Kingdom away from an oil-based economy.
Bin Muqrin stressed the importance of youths in creating ideas that focus on tourism as a centerpiece of development. He said such ideas should include the customs and traditions of the region’s people.
Prince Mansour also opened several exhibitions showcasing artwork depicting costumes and traditions at the King Fahd Cultural Center in Muftah village.
![]()
Abha named Capital of Arab Tourism 2017
Abha named Capital of Arab Tourism 2017
Saudi, Pakistan defense chiefs discuss ‘measures needed to halt’ Iranian attacks on Kingdom
RIYADH: Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and Pakistan’s Chief of Defense Forces Asim Munir discussed Iran’s attacks on the Kingdom, amid the escalating military conflict in the Middle East.
“We discussed Iranian attacks on the Kingdom and the measures needed to halt them within the framework of our Joint Strategic Defense Agreement,” Prince Khalid wrote on social media early on Saturday.
“We stressed that such actions undermine regional security and stability and expressed hope that the Iranian side will exercise wisdom and avoid miscalculation.”
The US and Israel began a large-scale military campaign against Iran on Feb. 28. Iran has since attacked a number of sites across the Gulf.
Tehran has also attacked US and Israeli military assets as the war as escalated, impacting lives in the peaceful Arabian Gulf peninsula and risked shaking the global economy as Iran continued restricting energy shipping along the Strait of Hormuz.
The Saudi Defense Ministry said a number of drones had been shot down that were targeting the Shayba oil field in the Empty Quarter on Saturday.
A drone attacked the US embassy in Riyadh on Tuesday causing a minor fire, but no one was hurt in the incident.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a “Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement” in September, pledging that aggression against one country would be treated as an attack on both.
Separately, Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif, the Saudi interior minister, received a call from his Pakistani counterpart Raza Naqvi, who condemned the blatant attacks targeting the Kingdom and affirmed his country’s solidarity in confronting any threats to the Kingdom’s security and stability, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Saturday.
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.