An housemaid in Saudi Arabia who threatened to commit suicide by jumping off a building rescued.

The Saudi Civil Defence team rescued an Asian maid who threatened to commit suicide by jumping off the sixth floor of a building in a residential area in Riyadh, Arabic daily Sabq reports. The maid, who is employed by a Syrian family, managed to reach on to the window AC panel on the outer side of wall and then threatened to commit suicide.
 The rescue team rushed to the residential tower in Al-Maadhar district and persuaded the woman not to jump after they took her into confidence. The police has launched an inquiry into the incident. 

Source: Sabq

Father beats 7-year-old daughter to death

Prosecutors in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh are looking into the death of a seven-year-old girl from the violence inflicted on her by her father, reports Gulf News.
 Yara reportedly died a few hours after being attacked by her dad before Eid Al Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, one of the most auspicious occasions for celebrations by children in the Islamic world.

 "The family conflicts between men and my former husband had led to our separation," Yara’s mother said. "Yara moved in with me and I took care of her until she reached seven.
Her father refused to allow her to live with me and three months ago, she went to live with him in Riyadh as per the regulations. She did not wish to move in with him, and she was very unhappy," she told Saudi daily Al Watan.
 According to a statement by one of the prosecutors to the mother, Yara on the day of her death was beaten up by a hose and a cane. He used a hose that he snatched from the air-conditioning unit and beat her all over her body.
They believe that the fatal blow occurred when he hit her hard on the head," the mother said. "He started beating her simply because she told him that she did not love him. He was furious and locked her inside a room. She burst into tears and had an uncontrollable crying fit.
When he unlocked the room, he noticed she was in a bad condition and drove her to hospital. However, she died on the way," The father reportedly attributed the beating to his wish to “educate” her. A lab test proved the father was not on drugs.
"The case is still being probed and the investigation is moving as per the rules and regulations until the file reaches the stage of the court," Saeed Al Qahtani, the mother’s lawyer, said. "Prosecutors have been listening to all parties concerned, and they have covered a lot of ground.
We are now waiting for the final medical report and for the prosecutors’ charges,"
he said.

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia is dead at 90

Saudi King Salman, who succeeded his half-brother Abdullah on his death on Friday, is a 79-year-old stalwart of the royal family credited with transforming the capital Riyadh during his half-century as governor. Like Abdullah, Salman is seen as a moderate with a reputation for austerity, hard work and discipline, especially in his role overseeing the hundreds of young princes in the royal family. Recent years have seen concerns over his health after operations on his back, but Salman took on an increasingly high-profile role as Abdullah’s own health issues forced him from the limelight.
Born on December 31, 1935, Salman is the 25th son of the desert kingdom’s founder Abdulaziz bin Saud and a prominent member of a formidable bloc of brothers known as the Sudairi seven, after their mother Hassa bin Ahmed al-Sudairi. He is the sixth son of Abdulaziz to become king of the arid, oil-rich nation.
Salman was appointed governor of Riyadh province at the age of only 20, in line with a tradition of putting royal family members in charge of key provinces. He is considered the architect of the development of Riyadh from a desert backwater to a modern metropolis, balancing the historic power of the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
The governorship “allowed him to serve as a generally very well respected arbiter of al-Saud family affairs, as well as overseeing the city’s emergence,” said Eleanor Gillespie of the London-based Gulf States Newsletter. “Salman has a reputation for probity and for being ‘clean’ when it comes to money,” Gillespie said. Salman only took on his first ministerial post — as defence minister — in 2011 following the death of his brother Prince Sultan.
He was officially named crown prince following the death of the previous heir apparent, Nayef, in June 2012 and undertook a series of visits to Western and Asian nations. ‘A man of dialogue’ – He has since developed solid ties with foreign partners and “is probably Western policy-makers’ favourite choice when it comes to future kings”, Gillespie said. Said to be a hard worker who arrives in the office every day at 7:00 am sharp, Salman also has a reputation for accessibility, holding court three times a week. “He is a man of dialogue who always preferred to solve problems amicably,” said Anwar Eshki, the director of the Jeddah-based Middle East Institute for Strategic Studies. “He prefers moderation” in internal and foreign policy and “follows in the steps of Abdullah”, who was a keen reformer, said Eshki. Salman is also in charge of the many young princes in the royal family, who “respect and fear him”, Eshki said. Salman is reputed to be ill and there had been speculation he might not claim the throne at all, according to a source close to the circle of power. But one diplomat said: “Despite his age he is active on all fronts, especially since the king slightly stepped back.” Married three times, Prince Salman had 10 sons, two of whom have died, and a daughter. One of his sons, Prince Abdul Aziz bin Salman, was appointed assistant petroleum minister in 2004 and is considered likely to succeed veteran Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi.
His most famous son is Prince Sultan, who became the first Saudi to go into space when he joined a 1985 mission on the US space shuttle Discovery. He is currently head of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities.