Mecca – News Stories About Mecca - Page 2

Fatah and Hamas Sign Deal, But Feuding Continues

Mar 23, 2008 8:02 PM CDT

Fatah and Hamas Sign Deal, But Feuding Continues

Rival Palestinian factions bicker over control of Gaza

(Newser) - In a second attempt to mend fences, rival Palestinian groups Fatah and Hamas agreed to resume direct talks today to resolve disputes and revive their failed coalition. A Hamas official called the deal “a new beginning and the start of a new stage,” but just hours after signing...

57 Saudi Men Arrested
for Flirting

Feb 23, 2008 1:03 PM CST

57 Saudi Men Arrested for Flirting

Prosecutors say they exhibited 'bad' behavior to woo girls at malls

(Newser) - Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested 57 young men accused of flirting with girls at shopping malls in Mecca, the BBC reports. Prosecutors say the men wore indecent clothing, played loud music, and danced to attract the girls’ attention. The arrests were prompted by Saudi’s Commission for the Promotion of...

Pilgrims Use Wi-Fi at
Hajj for First Time

Dec 22, 2007 3:06 PM CST

Pilgrims Use Wi-Fi at Hajj for First Time

Wireless routers set up at 70 holy sites for ancient Islamic ritual

(Newser) - Muslim pilgrims had free access to Wi-Fi for the first time during the Hajj, which ended yesterday in Saudi Arabia. The short-term service, provided by two telecom firms, had 70 access points around holy sites and took only two months to assemble. Pilgrims say that online access helped them seek...

Saudis Foil Hajj Attack

Dec 22, 2007 6:27 AM CST

Saudis Foil Hajj Attack

Militants aiming to disrupt Muslim ritual nabbed

(Newser) - As millions of Muslims completed the annual Hajj pilgrimage yesterday, Saudi police said they'd arrested a group that had been planning attacks, Al Arabiya reports. An official said the al-Qaeda suspects, detained at cities across the country, had been intent on disrupting the ritual and causing "security confusion."...

Islamic Rituals Face a
Celestial Test

Oct 10, 2007 1:44 PM CDT

Islamic Rituals Face a Celestial Test

Scholars send astronaut aloft with guide to following Koran in orbit

(Newser) - He wasn’t the first Muslim in space, but Malaysia's Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor will be the first to follow customized guidelines for religious observance in orbit, the Guardian reports. Praying toward Mecca and fasting between sunrise and sunset seemed impossible until scholars spent a year bringing the challenges down to...

Does Saudi Arabia Have a Dubai Complex?

Mar 12, 2007 1:23 PM CDT

Does Saudi Arabia Have a Dubai Complex?

Building binge aims to diversify boom-or-bust oil economy

(Newser) - Saudi Arabia is on a building binge. King Abdullah City—a planned $26.7-billion development where multi-million-dollar yachts will dock in the ports that currently welcome 300,000 Mecca-bound pilgrims—is one of five major “economic cities” the government is building in an attempt to spur private-sector growth and...