Sudanese culture in spotlight at Jeddah event
JEDDAH: Passport to the World, which is taking place in Jeddah until May 24, is offering visitors an immersive look at Sudan's cultural heritage through live folk performances, traditional dances, and interactive workshops that highlight customs, celebrations, and community rituals.
The event also features a food corner serving authentic Sudanese dishes, desserts, and traditional drinks that reflect the country's hospitality.
Guests are also given an opportunity to wear traditional Sudanese clothing and explore the meanings behind its regional colors and patterns.
Organized by the General Entertainment Authority, the event supports efforts to showcase the cultural diversity of expatriate communities in the Kingdom while promoting values of coexistence through interactive cultural programming.
The event previously placed the spotlight on Filipino, Bangladeshi, and Indian cultures.
The Sudanese showcase is its conclusion and has attracted strong public interest. A previous edition in Alkhobar was also well received.
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Al Arabiya
32 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Who will Saudi Arabia play at the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup?
The draw for the 2025 FIFA Under-20 World Cup has been made, with Saudi Arabia discovering its opponents for the tournament – which will be played in Chile between September 27 and October 19. It will be the first time that Saudi Arabia has competed in the global competition since 2019, after the 2021 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Green Falcons failed to qualify in 2023. But having finished as runner-up to Australia at the AFC U20 Asian Cup in China in April, Marcos Soares' side will be among the participants again at this year's edition in Chile. Saudi Arabia's team is expected to be led again by prodigious Al Ittihad youngsters Talal Haji and Farnah al-Shamrani, who played on loan at Al Riyadh and Al Kholood respectively in the Saudi Pro League this season. In Chile, Saudi Arabia will face Colombia, Norway and Nigeria in Group F, with all three of the Green Falcons' group stage matches taking place in the Estadio Fiscal de Talca – around 250 km south of the Chilean capital Santiago. Here, Al Arabiya English takes a closer look at Saudi Arabia's opponents at the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup. Colombia Colombia earned its spot in Chile after finishing third in the 2025 South American U20 Championship. While most confederations use a traditional knockout tournament format, in South America the continental championship is played across two group stages. Colombia – coached by Cesar Torres – topped its first group, drawing with Argentina before beating Ecuador, Bolivia and Brazil. In the final stage, Torres' side claimed convincing wins against Paraguay, Chile and Uruguay, but narrowly lost 1-0 to Argentina and eventual champion Brazil. Colombia's squad has a mix of domestic and international-based players –with the likes of Keimer Sandoval (Real Betis), Oscar Perea (Strasbourg). Yeimar Mosquera (Aston Villa) and Alexei Rojas (Arsenal) playing in Europe. Center-back Mosquera is looking to follow in the footsteps of Jhon Duran at Villa, with his compatriot having starred in the Premier League before making a record move to Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr earlier this January. The star of this team, however, is Néiser Villarreal. The 20-year-old midfielder plays for one of Colombia's most iconic clubs, Bogota's Millonarios, and won the 2025 South American U20 Championship Golden Boot with eight goals in nine matches. That included an eye-catching hat-trick against Paraguay for Villarreal, who also contributed four assists at the tournament. Colombia is a three-time continental champion at U20 level, most recently winning the title in 2013, and it has reached the quarter-finals of the past two FIFA U20 World Cups, losing to Italy in 2023 and Ukraine in 2019. Its best ever finish on the global stage was third place, achieved in 2003 in the UAE, with a team that included future internationals Fredy Guarin, Abil Aguilar and Yulian Anchico. When Saudi Arabia and Colombia meet in their opening match on September 29, it will be the first time they have competed against each other at the FIFA U20 World Cup. At senior level, the two nations have only played three previous matches – with Colombia winning their most recent friendly 1-0 in June 2022. Nigeria Saudi Arabia will take on Nigeria for the third time at the FIFA U20 World Cup, in the second Group F game on October 2. The two nations first battled it out in 1989 when what was then known as the FIFA World Youth Championships was held in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia faced Nigeria in its opening game but despite taking the lead, succumbed to a 2-1 defeat to the Super Eagles. One of the scorers that day was Mutiu Adepoju, who went on to play for Al Ittihad. That Super Eagles side was just one-game from history in Saudi Arabia, finishing as runner-up to Portugal in the final at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. Had it won, it would have become the first African side to win the tournament – an honor that eventually went to Ghana in 2009. Saudi Arabia and Nigeria also played each other in the 2011 tournament, which was held in Colombia. Goals from Ahmed Musa and Olarenwaju Kayode gave Nigeria a 2-0 win, with Musa also coincidentally going on to play his football in the Kingdom with Al Nassr. Both sides made it through Group D, with Saudi Arabia going on to lose to Brazil in the next round, while Nigeria beat England before losing to France in the quarter-finals. At senior level, there have only been two previous contests, a 0-0 draw in 2010 and a 2-2 draw in October 2023. Nigeria has a rich history at youth level and is a record seven-time winner of the CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations – though it hasn't won the trophy since 2015. As well as reaching the 1989 FIFA U20 World Cup final, Nigeria also finished second in 2005 after having the misfortune of facing an Argentina team led by Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi in the final. Messi scored twice in a 2-1 win over the Super Eagles. The current Nigeria team, coached by Aliyu Zubairu, relies on a number of players still based in West Africa. Defender Daniel Bameyi has already made his senior debut for the Super Eagles, while there are high hopes for Precious Benjamin and Emmanuel Shukwu, who are both in the youth system at German Bundesliga side Hoffenheim. The FIFA U20 World Cup has consistently been a great shop window for Nigerian players, with the likes of Daniel Daga, Solomno Agbalaka, Benjamin Fredrick, Jude Sunday and Samson Lawal all earning moves to Europe after the 2023 tournament. Nigeria won its place at the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup after finishing in third place at the 2023 U20 Africa Cup of Nations – recovering from a surprise semi-final defeat to Gambia to beat Tunisia 4-0 in the third-place playoff. Ahmed Abdullahi was one of the Super Eagles' strongest performers and is currently playing for newly-promoted English Premier League club Sunderland. Norway Saudi Arabia and Norway last faced off at the FIFA U20 World Cup back in 1993, sharing a 0-0 draw in their group stage encounter in Adelaide as neither team made it through to the knockout stage of the tournament Down Under. They will play again 22 years later in the final Group F match in Chile on October 5. At senior level, there has only been one previous meeting between Norway and Saudi Arabia, with the former winning 6-0 in a friendly match in 1998; Manchester United striker – and future Red Devils manager – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored twice. On its last appearance at the FIFA U20 World Cup in 2019, Norway made history by recording the biggest win in the tournament's history. That 12-0 thrashing of Honduras was notable for current Manchester City star Erling Haaland bagging a triple hat-trick – becoming the first player to score nine goals in one match for a national team at a major tournament. He unsurprisingly finished as the 2019 FIFA U20 World Cup's top scorer, though surprisingly failed to add any more goals as Norway was eliminated at the group stage thanks to defeats to Uruguay and New Zealand. Norway – led by coach Pal Arne Johansen – qualified for the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup after finishing third in its group at the 2024 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. That meant a one-off play-off against Turkey, which Norway won 10-9 in an astonishing penalty shootout after the teams had drawn 1-1. Norway successfully converted every single one of its spot-kicks. The 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup in Chile will be Norway's fourth time at the tournament but it has only won two of its nine games – suffering elimination at the group stage in all three of its previous appearances in 1989, 1993 and 2019. Norway's team is likely to feature many of the same players who played at last summer's UEFA U19 European Championship. That includes highly-rated Travis Hernes, the Jamaican-born midfielder who was signed by English Premier League club Newcastle United in 2023 and played on loan for Danish Superliga club AaB in the 2024-25 season. Fellow midfielder Benjamin Faraas was developed in the highly-rated youth system of Belgian side Club Brugge, while the rest of the squad is made up of players from Norway's top clubs – including Rosenborg and Molde.
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Death of Hajj-bound pilgrims raises questions about compliance in home countries
The death of a number of pilgrims on flights heading to Saudi Arabia where they were set to perform Hajj has raised questions about measures taken at their home countries to ensure that pilgrims are physically capable of performing the ritual. According to Indonesian media outlets, an Indonesian pilgrim died during flights to Medina. The woman in her sixties who suddenly collapsed on board. A video showed her body lying and covered aboard as passengers were trying to comfort a man, who appeared to be a relative of the woman who died on the flight. وفاة حاجة إندونيسية على متن طائرة متجهة إلى المدينة المنورة لأداء #الحج — فيديوهات ترند (@Trend_vide0s) May 10, 2025 Indonesian media reports said that the woman was later buried in Medina, home to Islam's second holiest mosque. While the initial medical report stated that the cause of death was dehydration, the mission suggested that a heart attack was the primary cause. In Malaysia, authorities confirmed the deaths of five pilgrims due to heart attacks. In Pakistan, five deaths have been recorded since the start of the Hajj pilgrimage, most of whom died from health complications just after their arrival to Saudi Arabia. While Indonesia and Malaysia previously accounted for the majority of early Hajj deaths, the list has recently expanded to include other countries such as Libya and Bangladesh. Most of these deaths are elderly people suffering from chronic illnesses. While all deaths reported up to the end of May were not linked to mass accidents or epidemics, some occurred before, during or just after their flights. The Saudi Ministry of Health had emphasized in its guidelines to foreign missions the need to ensure pilgrims' physical fitness and undergo medical examinations to prove their ability to endure the rigors of Hajj. Indonesian pilgrims benefit from a Saudi scheme offering Hajj-linked facilities, within an initiative known as the 'Mecca Route.' In addition to Indonesia, pilgrims from Malaysia, Pakistan, Morocco, Bangladesh, Turkey and Cote d'Ivoire benefit from the 'Mecca Route' initiative. The initiative aims at providing fast-track services to pilgrims from these countries by smoothly finalizing their procedures in the homeland, tagging and sorting out luggage at the departure airports and eventually delivering their luggage right to their residences inside Saudi Arabia. They head directly to their residences in Mecca and Medina on designated smooth routes. These steps are implemented after verifying all health requirements are met. However, these recent deaths, which have affected various nationalities through different travel methods, have raised questions about the fitness of some pilgrims to perform the physically demanding Hajj under harsh climatic conditions. It also raised concerns about the extent to which some countries adhere to the health requirements set by Saudi Arabia and that aim at ensuring the safety of pilgrims, according to observers who spoke to Saudi media outlets. Saudi physician Ahmed Al-Omari addressed the issue in an interview with Asharq al-Awsat saying that 'if some pilgrims collapse during the flight or upon arrival, how will they fare in the extreme crowding and temperatures that can reach 45 degrees Celsius in Arafat and Mina?' Last year, hundreds of people died while performing Hajj amid soaring temperatures. The total death toll during last year's pilgrimage reached 1,301, according to Saudi health ministry. 83 percent of the deceased were pilgrims who had undertaken the journey without the necessary permits, according to the ministry. It said that the Kingdom provided approximately 1.3 million preventive services to pilgrims, adding that authorities also delivered over 465,000 treatment services, including 141,000 for those without Hajj authorization. The Kingdom has been keen on ensuring that the pilgrims' needs are met, however, pilgrims without Hajj authorization from the authorities organizing the process often find themselves either without guidance or far from several places offering assistance. Facilities, including buses, are pre-arranged and conveniently accommodate regular pilgrims who have registered in advance. Some governments have acknowledged the existence of fraud by some travel companies to transport pilgrims illegally due to the great pressure on visas and costs. To tackle this, the Kingdom has issued an extensive awareness campaign ahead of this year's Hajj season, warning against fraud Hajj announcements and warning pilgrims from embarking on the journey without authorization. The Kingdom has also warned facilitators of violators from breaking the law under the threat of being held accountable legally. Climate change an important factor Climate studies have raised the alarm about further increases in temperatures in the coming years. The scientific journal Geophysical Research Letters previously noted this in a 2019 study, stating that climate change will raise heat stress for pilgrims to levels exceeding the threshold for severe danger in the coming years. A study from King Faisal Specialist Hospital found that temperatures in Mecca are rising at a rate of 0.4 degrees Celsius per decade, but heatstroke cases have dropped by 74.6 percent, resulting in a nearly halved mortality rate. To tackle the rising temperatures, the Saudi government has implemented many measures. These include spray fans and water mist columns to cool open spaces, the distribution of water and umbrellas, the provision of air-conditioned transportation, free medical services during the Hajj, in addition to painting the asphalt surfaces of the Namirah Mosque, near Mount Arafat, to lower temperatures.
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan says Makkah Route Initiative to be extended to other cities for next year's Hajj
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf announced on Sunday that the Makkah Route Initiative facility will be extended to other cities of the country for next year's Hajj pilgrimage. The Makkah Route Initiative is designed to streamline immigration processes by enabling pilgrims to complete official travel formalities at their departure airports. Initially tested in Islamabad in 2019, the program was later expanded to Karachi, benefitting tens of thousands of Pakistani travelers. This saves pilgrims several hours upon arrival in the Kingdom, as they can simply enter the country without having to go through immigration again. Yousaf met Saudi Arabia's Minister of Hajj and Umrah Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al-Rabiah, Pakistan's religion ministry said on Sunday, to discuss Hajj 2025 arrangements in the Kingdom. 'The scope of the Road to Makkah project will be extended to other cities of Pakistan for the next (2026) Hajj,' Yousaf was quoted as saying by the ministry. He thanked the Saudi government for introducing 'innovations and new facilities' every year for the convenience of Hajj pilgrims, including those from Pakistan. 'The best facilities of food, transport and accommodation are being provided to Pakistani pilgrims,' Yousaf said. As per the Pakistani religion ministry, Al-Rabiah said the Kingdom would provide the best possible facilities to Pakistani pilgrims at Mina and Arafah. 'A large number of pilgrims come from Pakistan, it is an honor to serve them,' the Saudi minister was quoted as saying. This year, the Hajj rituals will commence on June 4, with the Day of Arafah on June 5, and Eid Al-Adha observed on June 6 in Saudi Arabia. Pakistan on Saturday successfully concluded its 33-day pre-Hajj flight operation, with more than 115,000 pilgrims transported to Saudi Arabia ahead of this year's pilgrimage.
