A1SaudiArabia.com

WASHINGTON – The US Senate on Wednesday passed a $149 billion package of jobless aid and tax breaks, as Democrats continued efforts to lower the 9.7 percent unemployment rate before congressional elections in November.

The measure, approved by a vote of 62 to 36, now heads to the House of Representatives, where many Democrats have pushed for more aggressive job-creation measures in the face of the worst US economic downturn since the 1930s.

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RIYADH – King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Wednesday received a message from Libyan President Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, inviting him to attend the Arab Summit in Libya later this month. The message was delivered by Ahmed Qaddaf Al-Dam, Special Envoy to the Libyan President, during an audience with the Monarch. Qaddaf Al-Dam also conveyed greetings and appreciation of President Gaddafi to the King who in turn conveyed his greetings to the Libyan leader. – SPA

JEDDAH – Four Saudi women have been selected to attend US President Barack Obamas “Entrepreneurial Spirit” gathering in Washington on April 26 and 27.

Maria Al-Mahdli, Lamis Al-Mufti, Noura Al-Maghrabi and Mona Al-Amir, all students from Jeddahs Dar Al-Hekma College, have been chosen to join 26 other students from around the world following the success of their business ventures, Al-Hayat Arabic daily reported Wednesday.

Al-Mahdli set up and runs a website to help improve social youth culture, while Al-Mufti is the founder and chief executive of a home-run business named “You Be the Change”, a project to help improve and support youth skills.

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JEDDAH/MAKKAH – The residence of late King Abdul Aziz, the historic Al-Saqqaf Palace in Makkah, has been taken over by the Supreme Commission of Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) for restoration and preservation, under an order from Crown Prince Sultan.

The palace will be open to the public when maintenance and renovation work has been completed. The Crown Prince has donated SR2 million to the cause.

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LISBON, Portugal – Financially troubled Portugal raised ?990 million ($1.34 billion) Wednesday in a key bond auction that had more bids than bonds available, suggesting the governments austerity plan is easing market concerns about the countrys ability to pay off its high debts.

Alberto Soares, president of the Portuguese debt agency, told The Associated Press the institution received bids worth ?1.58 billion ($2.15 billion) for the April, 2021 bonds at a rate of 4.17 percent. The agency had intended to auction just ?750 million ($1.02 billion) but agreed to sell more as demand soared.

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Washington – The number of millionaires in the United States jumped by 16 percent last year after slumping by 27 percent in 2008, a report released Tuesday shows.

Last year, some 7.8 million US households had a million dollars or more in investable assets – not counting capital invested in their primary residence, the report by the Spectrem Group shows.

That was up by 1.1 million from the year before, when the number of US millionaires fell to its lowest point since 2003, hitting 6.7 million as the US economy stumbled.

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JEDDAH – Dr. Bandr Al-Aiban, President of the Human Rights Commission (HRC), said that society must facilitate procedures to enable women to get their rights in accordance with Islamic Shariah.

Addressing a press conference on the occasion of International Womens Day, he said that the simplification of procedures would enable divorced women and widows to obtain their rights and all necessary official documents as quickly as possible. He pointed out that the delay in such procedures always has a negative effect on families and children.

Al-Aiban also stressed the importance of allowing women to run their own affairs and of securing more job opportunities for them. He said that women had made a great success in the practical and scientific fields and that the Cabinets Decision No. 120 referred to the creation of more job opportunities for Saudi women.

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JEDDAH – Prince Mishal Bin Majed, Governor of Jeddah, has promised severe punishment for those who are found to have intentionally harmed the historic area of Old Jeddah.

He said that directives have been issued in this regard.

The governor was speaking during a visit to the area on Tuesday along with Prince Sultan Bin Salman, President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA). The governor said that an inspection will take place next week and electricity will be cut off from all houses that have wiring flaws. “The houses here are not only for their legal owners but for everyone. We need to preserve them for our children and grandchildren so they can see the history of their city, and for that we need everyones cooperation,” Prince Mishal said.

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JEDDAH – Fahd Al-Jenaidel, the winner of the wheelchair event of the seventh Jeddah-Mobily Marathon for people with special needs held Tuesday, says that he is able to win his events because he believes his disability is in his body, not his mind.

Fahd is a 25-year-old who has been practicing wheelchair racing since 2002.

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JEDDAH – The recommendations of the Gulf Environment Forum (GEF) will be announced this week and will be submitted to the King, Prince Turki Bin Nasser, President of the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment Talking to reporters here Tuesday, the Prince

added that the speech of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, delivered during the opening session of the forum, will act as an important guide in making recommendations.

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