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Saudi Arabia

September 6, 2026

Riyadh 1:23 pm

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The entrance to the city of Qiddiya, south of the capital Riyadh, April 25, 2019.

Analysis

Iran war tests Gulf's theme park ambitions

Saudi Arabia is pressing ahead with multibillion-dollar projects as the conflict disrupts regional tourism and exposes weaknesses in the Gulf states' entertainment strategies.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

A man walks past a mural depicting oil pumps and the Venezuelan flag, with portraits of Venezuelan independence leader Simon Bolivar (L) and former late President Hugo Chavez (R), in Caracas, Venezuela, on Sept. 3, 2026.

Analysis

Could Trump’s oil push in Venezuela upend OPEC’s energy order?

Washington’s growing role in controlling the Latin American country's crude riches could help reshape an energy order centered on OPEC as the Hormuz crisis pressures Gulf exports.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Guests stand at the booth of Saudi artificial intelligence company Humain during the Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh, on Oct. 29, 2025.

Saudi Arabia taps China’s MiniMax for Arabic AI model

The development signals that the kingdom continues deepening AI ties with China while simultaneously pursuing major US technology partnerships, keeping the Gulf state at the center of an intensifying technology race between the superpowers.

Latest News

Saudi oil exports hit nine-year low as tanker attacks threaten recovery

A commercial vessel passes through an international shipping lane off Yemen's Hanish Island in the Red Sea on July 27, 2026.

Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan set Mecca Alliance into motion

Mecca Alliance

Iraq reinforces Saudi border security amid militia tensions: What to know

Iraqi army troops patrol the Iraq-Saudi Arabia border

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

A general view of Business Bay area, after a curfew was imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 28, 2020. REUTERS/Satish Kumar - RC2VSF94JGLQ

How COVID-19 will change GCC labor markets

A siren is blaring for local labor markets as the global pandemic and falling oil revenues begin to upend the Gulf states' economies.

Airstrikes on Yemen intensify, shatter hope for peace

The latest Saudi-led airstrikes against Houthi positions in the Yemeni capital Sanaa have ended all hopes for peace as the war-torn country braces for the coronavirus pandemic.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend a meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 14, 2019. Sputnik/Alexei Nikolsky/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC16798088B0

Intel: Russia rebuts Trump’s claim that Saudis agreed to oil compromise

President Donald Trump tweeted on Thursday that Russia and Saudi Arabia agreed to a compromise to end the ongoing oil price war after a discussion between President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia imposes 24-hour coronavirus curfew in Mecca, Medina

Saudi Arabia has shut down virtually all activity in Mecca and Medina as it fights the global pandemic, and authorities are urging Muslims around the world to delay making travel plans for the hajj this summer.

A view shows branded oil tanks at Saudi Aramco oil facility in Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia October 12, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - RC2QVF91B7M0

Saudis risk losing last Republican defenders with oil price war

The oil price war places the Saudis at risk of losing their previously stalwart defenders on Capitol Hill, the last line of defense against legislation targeting the kingdom.

Intel: Trump laments oil price war as Saudis lose key defenders in Congress

President Donald Trump on Tuesday bemoaned the oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia that has rattled energy markets and exacerbated coronavirus-related layoffs throughout the United States.

Can Russia, Saudi Arabia strike new OPEC+ deal with US help?

As the OPEC+ deal has expired, Russia and Saudi Arabia remain at odds, though the United States offered encouraging words that production cuts might be negotiated.

Hamas, Houthis hope for deal with Saudi Arabia

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group is suggesting the release of Saudi captives in exchange for the release of Palestinians detained in Saudi jails, an unprecedented proposal that was widely welcomed by the Palestinian Hamas movement.

COVID-19 menaces oil market

The novel coronavirus pandemic could have an even greater impact on the global oil glut than the Saudi-Russian showdown over prices and output.

A man carries a sack of wheat flour he received at a camp for people recently displaced by fighting in Yemen's northern province of al-Jawf between government forces and Houthis, in Marib, Yemen March 8, 2020. Picture taken March 8, 2020. REUTERS/Ali Owidha - RC29GF9R1PMN

US slashes millions in Yemen aid despite pandemic

As Yemen stares down a coronavirus crisis, the United States is set to slash $73 million in humanitarian assistance because of worsening Houthi aid restrictions.

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz speaks via video link during a virtual G20 summit on coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia March 26, 2020. Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC2PRF9ANFVP

Saudi Arabia says it will pay for coronavirus patients' treatment

Saudi Arabia has the highest known rate of coronavirus infection in the Gulf, with eight deaths so far out of over a thousand cases.

Pope Francis greets Mohammad bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, Secretary General of the Muslim World League, during a meeting at the Vatican, September 20, 2017. Osservatore Romano/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. - RC168FEBB020

Saudi leader of Muslim World League: Interfaith partnerships during pandemic ‘religious, moral duty'

Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa says, “We try to lead by example, and show that we are all in this together.”