A1SaudiArabia.com

MADRID – The wreckage of Spains economic growth model stands neatly aligned on the roads leading out of Madrid – row after row of unsold houses, windows dark, for-sale signs out front.

Spain and other countries on Europes financially stricken fringe are groping for a new basis from economic growth to put people to work and pay down crushing deficits and debts. In Spains case, something to start generating jobs for 4 million unemployed people amid the rubble of an unsustainable construction and housing boom.

The question is especially urgent in countries with the eurozones messiest public finances: Spain, Portugal, Ireland, and Greece.

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JEDDAH – A one-week sign language training program for media women and social workers organized by the Deaf Club of Jeddah with the cooperation of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) concluded here on Wednesday. The program, under the patronage and sponsorship of Princess Sitat Bint Abdullah the CEO of the Supreme Council of the Deaf Club for women in Jeddah and a member of the Arab Federation for the Deaf, aimed to increase the number of people in the media and social work organizations capable of communicating with deaf people.

A similar one-week training program for men will be held starting from Mar. 27.

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AL-KHOBAR – There is now a profound revival of Islamic culture underway around the world which will reverse the stereotypical perceptions that some people have of Islam and the Islamic World, according to Ismail S. Nazer, the foremost Saudi advocate of Islamic cultural revival.

“An Islamic cultural renaissance is under way around the world; we are seeing it everywhere,” Nazer said.

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JEDDAH – The General Court in Jeddah has thrown out compensation claims for millions of riyals brought by a Saudi woman who suffered mosquito bites during her stay in a hotel.

The guest initially complained to hotel management over a rash she had developed which the hotel doctor later identified as resulting from mosquito bites, but she rejected the subsequent offer of a room upgrade in exchange for dropping her threats of a lawsuit.

Instead, she hired a lawyer to approach the court and seek millions of riyals in compensation from the hotel for the “physical and psychological harm she suffered because of the mosquito bites”.

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MADINA – A man with a disability has decided to drop charges of assault against a social worker who had beaten him with a bamboo stick at the Madina Rehabilitation Center.

Muhammad Al-Juhani, the disabled man, dropped the charges on Saturday after mediation between him and the social worker. While the private rights charges have been dropped, the social worker may still face public rights legal action.

It is believed the social worker has promised never to repeat his actions and to ensure he treats patients better in future.

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TABUK – Ahmad Abdullah Al-Khelawi, the brother of Ali Abdullah Al-Khelawi who is on trial in Jakarta on charges of financing terrorism has said there is no evidence of his brothers involvement in the July 17 attacks on the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels last year that killed seven people.

Ahmad, who attended last Wednesdays hearing, said that the “500 riyals hes accused of offering to finance the attacks is not enough for such a thing”.

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MADINA – A kiss, a hug and a warm apology were given Saturday to Muhammad Al-Juhani, the man with a disability who was allegedly physically assaulted by a social worker at a rehabilitation center in Madina last week.

The apology was made by the director of Social Affairs in Madina.

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JEDDAH – The uncle of five young women has supported their claim that they were physically and psychologically abused by their father, according to their lawyer.

The uncle, named as Faisal, is the brother of the man accused of the abuse.

The five women, Asma, Zuhoor, Athir, Ayman, and Razan have reportedly claimed that the abuse included physical assault and a refusal to provide them with food and water during the time they stayed with their father.

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MAKKAH – The Appeals Court in Makkah has overturned the conviction of a man accused by his mother-in-law of “harassing” two of her daughters and “damaging their reputations” by publishing photographs of them on the internet site Facebook.
The 32-year-old man had been sentenced to three months in prison and 45 lashes of the whip by the District Court in Makkah following a 75-day investigation conducted by the Commission for Investigation and Prosecution based on the mother-in-law’s complaint, but the Appeals Court overruled the sentence based on evidence brought by the defendant’s lawyer, Ibrahim Zamzami.
“The whole case was fabricated, and based on the evidence of printed images without any investigation conducted into the original online source of those images,” Zamzami said. “These cases involving technology should be looked into by specialist authorities and not simply rely on printed paper evidence.” – Okaz/SG

JEDDAH – The Emirate has received all the documents it needs to consider a dispute between a local businessman and a mayoralty official over a prized piece of beachfront property.

The businessman has accused the mayoralty official of changing the blueprints of the beachfront property so that it encroached on his property which he was turning into a resort.

In his complaint, the businessman demanded that the mayoralty official stop all construction of residential units on the land.

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