LONDON: The Saudi-owned broadcaster MBC Group is to launch a new production unit — MBC Studios — in an effort to increase the production of high-quality film and television content for audiences in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East region.
The new studios are expected to give a boost the Saudi and Middle Eastern TV and film industry as well as meet the increased demand for more non-English language TV content in the region.
The production unit will specifically focus on dramas for both TV and film that will appeal to Middle East and North African viewers, a statement from MBC Group said.
It will build on the work of the company’s existing production units: O3 Productions Mena, based in Dubai; AlSadaf in Saudi Arabia and O3 Medya in Turkey.
“Due to the existence of an untapped story reservoir in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East across all genres of content, MBC Studios will take the initiative to produce the region’s most compelling stories for cinema, television and on-demand platforms,” read a statement on Sept. 18.
The and operates 18 TV channels including MBC Drama, which broadcasts Arabic drama 24 hours a day and the Al-Arabiya news channel.
MBC’s TV channels have also broadcast the Arabic version of “X Factor” as well as “Arab Idol” and the new Saudi soap opera “Al Assouf” launched earlier this year and set in 1970s Saudi Arabia.
“Content is the fuel that drives the success of both MBC television and Shahid.net, our VOD [video-on-demand] platform. Building on the group’s successes in drama, we are now expanding our ambition and widening our horizons yet further,” said Sam Barnett, CEO of the MBC Group.
MBC brought in Peter Smith to head up the new MBC Studios earlier this month. Smith is considered an industry veteran with a wealth of international experience, having previously held the role of president of International Home Entertainment at Universal Pictures.
“The future is certainly positive for MBC Studios especially in terms of leveraging the significant trend for non-English language television content to travel to more global markets,” said Smith in a statement.
MBC Group said it would release more information on specific projects the subsidiary will work on in the coming months.
MBC launches studios to produce more premium content for Arab market
MBC launches studios to produce more premium content for Arab market
- MBC Group founded by Saudi businessman Waleed Al-Ibrahim
- Unit will specifically focus on dramas for both TV and film
Over 3k flights cancelled across the Middle East after attack on Iran by the US, Israel
RIYADH: US and Israeli strikes on Iran led to widespread airspace shutdowns in the Middle East, canceling and rerouting thousands of flights and paralyzing key international travel corridors.
Flight cancellations affected seven airports across the Middle East, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE, Doha in Qatar, and Manama in Bahrain.
Emirates Airlines said in a statement: “Due to multiple regional airspace closures, Emirates has temporarily suspended all operations to and from Dubai, up until 1500 hrs UAE time on Monday, 2 March.”
A flydubai spokesperson said the situation is evolving, and the airline is closely monitoring developments while coordinating with authorities to adjust its flight schedule.
“Our teams are working diligently to implement comprehensive welfare for all affected customers. The safety of our passengers and crew remains our highest priority,” the spokesperson said.
He added: “We are currently experiencing a high volume of calls and appreciate our customers’ patience while our teams work to assist everyone as quickly as possible.”
Qatar Airways announced that the airport will remain closed until at least the morning of March 2.
“Qatar Airways flights to, and from, Doha have been temporarily suspended due to the closure of Qatari airspace,” the airline said.
It added: “Qatar Airways will resume operations once the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority announces the safe reopening of Qatari airspace.”
Saudia also said in an official statement that it had canceled a number of flights due to developments in the region and the closure of airspace.
The organization said the decision was taken in line with aviation safety and security standards, noting that its Emergency Coordination Center is closely monitoring developments with relevant authorities.
Saudia urged passengers to verify the status of their flights before heading to the airport and said guests would be notified of updates through the contact details associated with their bookings.
The carrier added that further information would be announced in a subsequent statement if available.
Air Arabia also said its flights were experiencing cancellations, delays, or rerouting as a result of the evolving situation and airspace closures.
Airlines cited airspace closures and safety concerns as the main reasons for flight disruptions, urging passengers to check official channels for updates as the situation develops.
Israeli airspace also remained closed on March 1st. Israeli airline El Al said it was preparing a recovery effort to bring home Israelis stranded abroad once the airspace reopened.
Travelers were either stranded or diverted to other airports on Feb. 28 after Israel, Qatar, Syria, and Iran as well as Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain, closed their airspace.
After the UAE announced a temporary partial airspace closure, FlightRadar24 recorded no flights over the country.
The closures affected key hub airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha. Emirates, Qatar Airways, and Etihad, airlines that operate from these hubs, normally handle around 90,000 passengers daily, with even more traveling to other Middle Eastern destinations, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Airports hit by attacks
Two airports in the UAE reported incidents as the government there condemned what it called a “blatant attack involving Iranian ballistic missiles” on Feb.28.
Dubai International Airport, the UAE’s largest and one of the world’s busiest, reported four injuries, while Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport said a drone attack killed one person and injured seven others. Strikes were also reported at Kuwait International Airport.
Though Iran did not publicly claim responsibility, the scope of retaliatory strikes that Gulf nations attributed to Iran extended beyond the US bases that it previously said it would target.
Flight delays, cancellations are likely to continue
“For travelers, there’s no way to sugarcoat this,” said Henry Harteveldt, an airline industry analyst and president of Atmosphere Research Group.
“You should prepare for delays or cancellations for the next few days as these attacks evolve and hopefully end,” he added.
To avoid conflict zones, airlines are rerouting Middle East flights over Saudi Arabia, adding hours and fuel costs, which could push ticket prices higher if the tensions persist.
The extra flights will strain air traffic controllers in the Kingdom, who may need to slow traffic for safety. Meanwhile, countries that closed their airspace will lose out on overflight fees from passing airlines.
Mike McCormick, former head of air traffic control at the FAA and now a professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, said some countries may reopen parts of their airspace in the coming days once US and Israeli officials provide airlines with details on military flight zones and Iran’s missile capabilities.
“Those countries then will be able to go through and say, ok, we can reopen this portion of our space but we’ll keep this portion of our airspace closed,” McCormick said.
“So, I think what we’ll see in the next 24 to 36 hours is how the use of airspace evolves as the kinetic activity gets more well-defined and as the capability of Iran to actually shoot missiles and create additional risk is diminished due to the attacks,” he added.
But it is unclear how long the disruption to flight operations could last. For comparison, the Israeli and US attack on Iran in June 2025 lasted 12 days.
