RIYADH: The King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid (KSRelief) has spent $8.2 billion on aid for Yemen since its opening in 2015, it was revealed on Monday.
Dr. Samer Al-Jetaily, spokesman of KSRelief, was speaking at a press conference in the non-profit’s headquarters alongside Abdullah Al-Rwaily, the organization’s director of community support services.
“We have spent around $750 million on humanitarian and relief projects (in Yemen),” Al-Jetaily said, citing security, camp management, water and sanitation, nutrition, health, logistical support, telecoms, and relief coordination as examples. He added that there had been around 150 projects initiated in Yemen, in cooperation with 86 local and international organizations.
The remainder of KSRelief’s aid for Yemen was focused on development, aid provided to Yemenis inside Saudi Arabia, bilateral government assistance and $1 billion deposited in Yemen’s central bank, he explained.
Al-Jetaily also pointed out that between 1994 and 2014, Saudi Arabia had spent more than $65 billion in foreign aid, which had benefitted millions in over 38 countries.
Referring to the recently published UN Secretary-General’s Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict, which claimed that the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen is responsible for killing and maiming hundreds of children there, Al-Jetaily said the report is “full of inaccuracies”.
He stressed that the report originated from areas held by Houthi rebels, and that it is “fully prejudiced, impartial, and tilted towards the interests of the rebels.”
Al-Rwaily concurred, adding that the report is “completely false” and gives “a distorted version” of the state of affairs in Yemen.
He told Arab News that KSRelief has organized rehabilitation for approximately 20,000 child soldiers in Yemen.
“We have four centers to help these children turn over a new leaf and facilitate their re-entry into society as normal people,” he explained.
Al-Rwaily also urged other NGOs to consider rehabilitation programs for child soldiers in Yemen, warning that, without such aid, the situation could become similar to that in Afghanistan.
KSRelief, he added, has been active in Yemen ever since it became apparent that humanitarian assistance was needed there. He said the Kingdom has been almost single-handedly responsible for maintaining hospitals in Saad and Hajja, noting that locals refer to them as the “Saudi hospitals.”
And earlier this week, Yemen’s Deputy Prime Minister and Civil Services Minister, Abdul Aziz Jabari, announced that KSRelief had provided $2 million for the newly opened Orthopedic and Surgical Center at Al-Thawra General Hospital in Taiz.
KSRelief provides over $8 billion worth of aid to Yemen in two years
KSRelief provides over $8 billion worth of aid to Yemen in two years
‘Cake not hate’ campaign becomes ‘Dates not hate’ in Madinah
- Dan said he was very impressed by Saudi hospitality and that his family was warmly welcomed
- He said being in Madinah exposed him to the true diversity of Islam
LONDON: A British autistic and non-verbal boy who has been visiting UK mosques and distributing cakes to promote solidarity amid an increase in far-right support in the country has taken his message of love to Madinah.
Joshua Harris, or “The Joshie-Man” as the 12-year-old is known to his social media fans, has handed out hundreds of his baked goods to worshipers at mosques in major British cities over the last few months.
The “Cake not hate” campaign came about after an Islamophobic attack on a mosque in his home city of Peterborough in October 2025.
Harris and his father visited Masjid Darassalaam, the mosque that was targeted, with cakes that the boy had baked and distributed them to the congregation soon after the attack. Since then, Harris has visited dozens of mosques in the UK.
On a recent trip to the Middle East, he and his father visited Madinah. In a local twist that pays tribute to the holy city’s famous date varieties including ajwa and ambar, Harris handed out dates to people in the courtyard of the Prophet’s Mosque. The “Cake not hate” campaign became “Dates not hate” for Saudi Arabia.
“He was greeted really, really warmly. There were some really touching moments where people were kissing his hands and his head. It was really lovely,” his father, Dan Harris, said.
Dan, the founder of global charity Neurodiversity in Business, said being in Madinah exposed him to the true diversity of Islam.
“We met people from all around the world. It was amazing. It’s like the United Nations there, you get people from different countries and it just goes to show you that the Muslim community, or the Ummah more generally, is not a homogeneous group,” he said.
“We saw people from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan and it was really interesting for us.”
Dan said his visit to Madinah, considered the second holiest city in Islam after Makkah for Muslims, was “profound and life-changing.”
He added: “I would say it’s my favourite city in the world due to the peace and tranquillity I felt there.”
Dan added that he was very impressed by Saudi hospitality: “Everywhere we went, people were taking down my number and insisting that we come for dinner, insisting they pick us up from the location. They were extremely attentive to Joshie as well, making sure his needs were met. We felt a great sense of welcome, something Saudi Arabia is known for.”
