Newly appointed Saudi ambassador to Mexico presents his credentials
Fahad bin Ali Al-Manawer handed over a copy of his credentials to Ambassador Jonathan Chait Auerbach, the director general of protocol at the ministry, at a reception held on Tuesday.
The diplomats also reviewed relations between their nations at the meeting.
Al-Manawer took his oath of office in from to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in March, in a ceremony attended by the Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Washington, D.C. residents protest as White House says federal agents will be on patrol 24/7
WASHINGTON: Residents in one Washington, D.C., neighborhood lined up Wednesday to protest the increased police presence after the White House said the number of National Guard troops in the nation's capital would ramp up and federal officers would be the streets around the clock. After law enforcement set up a vehicle checkpoint along the busy 14th Street Northwest corridor, hecklers shouted, 'Go home, fascists' and other insults. Some protesters stood at the intersection before the checkpoint and urged drivers to turn away from it. The action intensified a few days after President Donald Trump's unprecedented announcement that his administration would take over the city's police department for at least a month. The city's Democratic mayor walked a political tightrope, referring to the takeover as an 'authoritarian push' at one point and later framing the infusion of officers as boost to public safety, though one with few specific barometers for success. The Republican president has said crime in the city was at emergency levels that only such federal intervention could fix — even as District of Columbia leaders pointed to statistics showing violent crime at a 30-year low after a sharp rise two years ago. For two days, small groups of federal officers have been visible in scattered areas of the city. But a significant increase was expected Wednesday at the Guard's armory and troops were expected to start doing more missions in Washington on Thursday, according to a Guard spokesman who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the planning process. On Wednesday, agents from Homeland Security Investigations patrolled the popular U Street corridor. Drug Enforcement Administration officers were seen on the National Mall, while National Guard members were parked nearby. DEA agents also joined Metropolitan Police Department officers on patrol in the Navy Yard neighborhood, while FBI agents stood along the heavily trafficked Massachusetts Avenue. Hundreds of federal law enforcement and city police officers who patrolled the streets Tuesday night made 43 arrests, compared with about two dozen the night before. D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson downplayed the arrest reports as 'a bunch of traffic stops' and said the administration was seeking to disguise how unnecessary this federal intervention is. 'I'm looking at this list of arrests and they sound like a normal Saturday night in any big city,' said Henderson. Unlike in other US states and cities, the law gives Trump the power to take over Washington's police for up to 30 days. Extending his power over the city for longer would require approval from Congress, and that could be tough in the face of Democratic resistance. Trump suggested that he could seek a longer period of control or decide to call on Congress to exercise authority over city laws his administration sees as lax on crime. 'We're gonna do this very quickly. But we're gonna want extensions. I don't want to call a national emergency. If I have to, I will,' he said. Later, on his Truth Social site, Trump reiterated his claims about the city, writing, 'D.C. has been under siege from thugs and killers, but now, D.C. is back under Federal Control where it belongs.' Henderson, who worked for Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York before running for the D.C. Council, said she was already in touch with 'friends on the Hill' to rally opposition for any Trump extension request. She added, 'It's Day Three and he's already saying he's going to need more time?' Targeting a variety of infractions The arrests made by 1,450 federal and local officers across the city included those for suspicion of driving under the influence and unlawful entry, as well as a warrant for assault with a deadly weapon, according to the White House. Seven illegal firearms were seized. There have now been more than 100 arrests since Trump began beefing up the federal law enforcement presence in Washington last week, White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said. 'President Trump is delivering on his campaign promise to clean up this city and restore American Greatness to our cherished capital,' she said. The president has full command of the National Guard and has activated up to 800 troops to support law enforcement, though exactly what form remains to be determined. Neither Army nor District of Columbia National Guard officials have been able to describe the training backgrounds of the troops who have so far reported for duty. While some members are military police, others likely hold jobs that would have offered them little training in dealing with civilians or law enforcement. The federalization push also includes clearing out encampments for people who are homeless, Trump has said. US Park Police have removed dozens of tents since March, and plan to take out two more this week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has said. People are offered the chance to go to shelters and get addiction treatment, if needed, but those who refuse could be fined or jailed, she said. City officials said they are making more shelter space available and increasing their outreach. Violent crime has dropped in the district The federal effort comes even after a drop in violent crime in the nation's capital, a trend that experts have seen in cities across the US since an increase during the coronavirus pandemic. On average, the level of violence Washington remains mostly higher than averages in three dozen cities analyzed by the nonprofit Council on Criminal Justice, said the group's president and CEO, Adam Gelb. Police Chief Pamela Smith said during an interview with the local Fox affiliate that the city's Metro Police Department has been down nearly 800 officers. She said the increased number of federal agents on the streets would help fill that gap, at least for now. Mayor Muriel Bowser said city officials did not get any specific goals for the surge during a meeting with Trump's attorney general, Pam Bondi, and other top federal law enforcement officials Tuesday. But, she said, 'I think they regard it as a success to have more presence and take more guns off the street, and we do too.' She had previously called Trump's moves 'unsettling and unprecedented' while pointing out he was within a president's legal rights regarding the district, which is the seat of American government but is not a state. For some residents, the increased presence of law enforcement and National Guard troops is nerve-racking. 'I've seen them right here at the subway ... they had my street where I live at blocked off yesterday, actually,' Washington native Sheina Taylor said. 'It's more fearful now because even though you're a law-abiding citizen, here in D.C., you don't know, especially because I'm African American.' ___ Associated Press writers Alanna Durkin Richer, Konstantin Toropin and Will Weissert, photographer Jacquelyn Martin and video journalist River Zhang contributed to this report.
Al Arabiya
3 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Trump says will seek three-way meeting with Putin, Zelenskyy
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he would seek a three-way meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin immediately after his Alaska summit with the Russian leader aimed at ending the three-year war in Ukraine. Trump spoke after what he described as a 'very good' call with European leaders, including Zelenskyy -- even as Russian forces made their biggest advance into the Ukrainian president's country in more than a year. 'If the first one goes okay, we'll have a quick second one,' Trump told reporters as he was questioned about the face-to-face in the Alaskan city of Anchorage with his Russian counterpart, set for Friday. 'I would like to do it almost immediately, and we'll have a quick second meeting between President Putin and President Zelenskyy and myself, if they'd like to have me there.' The high-stakes summit comes with Trump struggling to broker an end to the conflict, and Zelenskyy and his European allies earlier urged the Republican to push for a ceasefire. The stepped-up Russian offensive, and the fact Zelenskyy has not been invited to Anchorage, have heightened fears that Trump and Putin could strike a deal that forces painful concessions from Ukraine. The US leader promised dozens of times during his 2024 election campaign to end the conflict on his first day in office but has made scant progress towards securing a peace deal. He threatened 'secondary sanctions' on Russia's trading partners over its invasion of Ukraine but his deadline for action came and went last week with no measures announced. 'Severe consequences' Trump warned Wednesday that he would take a follow-up meeting off the table if he felt Putin was acting in bad faith. 'There may be no second meeting because, if I feel that it's not appropriate to have it because I didn't get the answers that we have to have, then we are not going to have a second meeting,' Trump said. According to an AFP analysis of battlefield data from the US-based Institute for the Study of War, Russian forces made their biggest 24-hour advance into Ukraine in more than a year on Tuesday. As the war rages on in eastern Ukraine, Zelenskyy flew to Berlin and joined Chancellor Friedrich Merz on an online call with other European leaders, and the NATO and European Union chiefs, in which they talked to Trump and urged a united stance against Russia. The consensus was for Trump to secure a ceasefire, and Trump said Russia would face 'severe consequences' if it didn't halt its offensive. But Zelenskyy also voiced doubt about Moscow's intentions, saying: 'I have told my colleagues -- the US president and our European friends -- that Putin definitely does not want peace.' Trump on Monday played down the possibility of a breakthrough in Alaska but said he expected 'constructive conversations' with Putin. 'This is really a feel-out meeting a little bit,' Trump said. But he added that eventually 'there'll be some swapping, there'll be some changes in land'. Merz said Ukraine is ready to negotiate 'on territorial issues' but stressed that legal recognition of Russian occupations 'would not be up for debate'. After the call, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said Europe, the United States and NATO had 'strengthened the common ground for Ukraine' while NATO head Mark Rutte declared: 'The ball is now in Putin's court.' 'Wool over our eyes' The Russian foreign ministry had earlier branded the frantic round of diplomacy 'politically and practically insignificant' and an attempt at 'sabotaging' US and Russian efforts to end the conflict. Despite the upbeat comments by European leaders, Russia's offensive in eastern Ukraine was gaining speed and seizing ground Wednesday. Russia has made rapid advances this week in a narrow but important section of the front line in Ukraine. The AFP data analysis showed that the Russian army took or claimed 110 square kilometers (42.5 square miles) on August 12 compared to the previous day. It was the most since late May 2024. Ukrainian soldiers in Kramatorsk, an eastern city about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the front, said they had low expectations for Trump's meeting with Putin. Artem, a 30-year-old serviceman, said the war would likely continue for 'a long time.' 'Putin is massing an army, his army is growing, he is stockpiling weapons, he is pulling the wool over our eyes.'
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
UPDATE 1-Trump orders easing of commercial spaceflight regulations, in boon to Musk's SpaceX
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday to streamline federal regulation governing commercial rocket launches, a move that would benefit Elon Musk's SpaceX and other private space ventures. Trump's order, among other things, directs the US transportation secretary to eliminate or expedite environmental reviews for launch licenses administered by the Federal Aviation Administration, the White House said in a statement. The declaration also calls on the secretary to do away with 'outdated, redundant or overly restrictive rules for launch and reentry vehicles.' 'Inefficient permitting processes discourage investment and innovation, limiting the ability of US companies to lead in global space markets,' the executive order states. It added: 'Overly complex environmental and other licensing and permitting regulations slow down commercial space launches and infrastructure development, and benefit entrenched incumbents over new market entrants .' Although Musk and Trump have remained embroiled in a high-profile feud for months, the billionaire entrepreneur's SpaceX rocket and satellite venture potentially stands to be the single biggest immediate beneficiary of Trump's order on Wednesday. SpaceX, although not mentioned by name in the executive order, easily leads all other US space industry entities, including NASA, in the sheer number of launches it routinely conducts. Musk has complained that environmental impact reviews and post-flight mishap investigations have repeatedly slowed down testing of SpaceX's ambitious new Starship rocket vehicle, under development at the company's South Texas launch facility.
