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GCC Delays Syria Meeting to Sunday, Moves It to Cairo

Gulf foreign ministers have rescheduled their meeting on Syria to Sunday in Cairo, a Gulf Cooperation Council official said on Wednesday.

"The meeting which was set to take place in Riyadh on Saturday will now be held in Cairo on Sunday ahead of the Arab League ministerial meeting" in the Egyptian capital, the GCC official told Agence France Presse on the condition of anonymity.

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Saudi Snow: New Mall Plans Indoor Winter 'Village'

Dubai's famed indoor ski slope is about to get some Gulf competition. Saudi developers say they plan a "snow village" inside a new mall in Riyadh.

A statement on company websites Monday says the latest snow-in-the-desert attraction will be part of an entertainment area in the mall, which is scheduled to be opened later this year in the Saudi capital.

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GCC Ministers to Meet on Syria

Foreign ministers from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) will meet in the Saudi capital later this week to discuss developments in Syria, Oman's foreign minister said on Monday.

The announcement came just two days after China and Russia vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning a deadly crackdown by Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime on nearly 11 months of protests.

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British PM, Saudi King Discuss Syria, Iran, Yemen

British Prime Minister David Cameron held talks with Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud in Riyadh on Friday, as tensions soar between the West and Tehran, the oil-rich kingdom's arch-rival in the Gulf.

The two leaders "discussed the importance of the UK-Saudi bilateral relationship and agreed to strengthen cooperation in a range of areas," Cameron's office said in a statement.

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British PM to Meet King Abdullah in Riyadh Friday

British Prime Minister David Cameron is expected Friday in the Saudi capital for talks with King Abdullah, SPA state news agency reported.

Cameron and the Saudi monarch will discuss "bilateral relations, and ways to strengthen them," said SPA, adding without elaborating that the two leaders will also discuss "regional and international issues of common interest."

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Hariri Denies Escaping Assassination Attempt in Riyadh

Former prime minister Saad Hariri on Friday denied what he said was a “rumor” of a failed attempt on his life in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

“You might have heard the rumor about my so-called assassination in Riyadh. My presence here, now, is a natural denial of this lie,” Hariri said in English on the social networking website Twitter.

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Geagea Holds Talks with Hariri in Riyadh on Local, Regional Developments

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea returned to Beirut on Tuesday from his trip to Riyadh where he held talks with former Prime Minister Saad Hariri and a number of high-ranking Saudi officials, said the LF media department in a statement.

Geagea and Hariri held lengthy and comprehensive talks on the situation in Lebanon and the region, it added.

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Saudi Needs $74 Oil Price to Balance Budget

Saudi Arabia will need a breakeven crude oil price of $74 per barrel to generate the funds required to meet its widening expenditure next year, Jadwa Investment said on Tuesday.

The OPEC kingpin announced on Monday yet another expansionary budget with spending marked at 690 billion riyals ($184 billion), and revenues reaching 702 billion riyals.

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GCC Leaders to Meet as Region Struck by Upheaval

Leaders of the wealthy Gulf Arab states will meet at their annual summit in Riyadh on Monday, against a backdrop of accelerating regional turmoil and fears of growing Iranian influence after the U.S. pullout from Iraq.

"Several regional issues impose themselves on the summit this year," including relations with Iran as well as the situation of Syria and Yemen, the Omani minister for foreign affairs, Yussef ben Alawi Abdullah, told Agence France Presse.

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Saleh Forces Clash with Rivals in Sanaa

Forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh clashed Wednesday with dissident tribesmen in the Yemeni capital, residents said, while the veteran leader was in Riyadh to sign a power transfer deal.

The clashes broke out between gunmen loyal to dissident tribal chief Sheikh Sadiq al-Ahmar and pro-Saleh troops in al-Hasaba district, while explosions were heard in the nearby neighborhood of Sufan, residents there said.

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