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Saudi Arabia

August 8, 2026

Riyadh 4:34 pm

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Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, speaks to the media during a FIFA World Cup 2026 Opening Press Conference at Mexico City Stadium on June 10, 2026 in Mexico City, Mexico.

Analysis

FIFA in turmoil: Middle East takes center stage as Infantino fights to stay in power

Amid the backlash to FIFA President Gianni Infantino's controversial investment plan, upcoming World Cup hosts Morocco and Saudi Arabia have starring roles in the drama.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif in Mecca after signing the defense pact, Aug. 7, 2026.

Analysis

How Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan pact puts Iran's regional strategy to test

The defense agreement is not an anti-Iran bloc, but it may reflect a deeper regional adjustment to years of Iranian asymmetric warfare as well as uncertainty over US security commitments.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman (R) during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on June 22, 2022.

Explainer

'A claim to be tested': Can Saudi Arabia-Turkey-Pakistan defense pact deter Iran?

The pact commits the three countries to collective defense, bringing together NATO's second-largest army, the Muslim world's only nuclear power and the guardian of Islam's holiest sites.

Latest News

Turkey’s Erdogan heads to Saudi Arabia for talks with MBS, Pakistan’s Sharif

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) welcomes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (L) upon his arrival during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on June 22, 2022.

Explainer

Iran-Oman deal spurs Hormuz hopes as Red Sea threats evolve

Khaled ZIAD / AFP via Getty Images

Oil falls 5% after Trump calls off Iran strikes, says Hormuz deal agreed

SAEED KHAN / AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

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

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas heads the Palestinian leadership meeting at his headquarters, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, during the COVID-19 pandemic on May 7, 2020. (Photo by Nasser Nasser / POOL / AFP) (Photo by NASSER NASSER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Saudi prince rattles Palestinian leaders in televised critique

Former Saudi Ambassador to the United States Bandar Bin Sultan called for a new Palestinian leadership in the first two parts of an interview whose final portion has yet to air.

An undated recent file picture shows prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi who resigned suddenly on May 16, 2010 in Riyadh from the helm of Al-Watan days after the newspaper published a controversial column criticising Salafism. Al-Watan announced that Khashoggi, 52, was stepping down as editor-in-chief "to focus on his personal projects," in a statement published on its website and in its Sunday edition. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo credit should read -/AFP via Getty Images)

Human rights group launches two years after death of founder Jamal Khashoggi

The Washington Post columnist founded the Democracy for the Arab World Now, or DAWN, in the months before his 2018 murder.

A Saudi woman fills a passport renewal application at the Immigration and Passports Centre in the capital Riyadh on August 29, 2019. - Saudi Arabia has eased travel restrictions on women, allowing those aged over 21 to obtain passports without seeking the approval of their "guardians" - fathers, husbands or other male relatives, but observers say loopholes still allow male relatives to curtail their movements and, in the worst cases, leave them marooned in prison-like shelters. (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE / A

Rich families buy second citizenship in post-Ritz Saudi Arabia

Political repression following the rise of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has pushed some wealthy Saudis to buy second passports.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan (C) attends an emergency meeting at the Arab League headquarters in the Egyptian capital Cairo, on November 25, 2019, to discuss the US decision to no longer consider Israeli settlements in Palestinian Territories illegal. - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on October 18 that after legal consultations, that Washington had concluded the establishment of settlements was "not, per se, inconsistent with international law". (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by

Saudi Arabia’s fragile support to Palestine

Saudi Arabia’s traditional pro-Palestinian positions are unlikely to be compromised even if some gestures are made to the Israelis and to the Trump administration.

Saudi Arabia warns of ‘oil spot’ near aging tanker off Yemen's coast

UN officials have described the FSO Safer, an aging vessel that contains 1.14 million barrels of light crude oil, as a ticking time bomb.

Saudi Arabia to allow limited umrah pilgrimage beginning Oct. 4

After a seven-month suspension, Saudi Arabia will allow Muslim pilgrims to perform umrah in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

Saudis ready for kingdom’s first women’s soccer league

Saudi female soccer players are eagerly waiting for Saudi Arabia’s first women’s soccer league to be launched in October, after being delayed for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

OPEC+ pressures Iraq, UAE to further cut oil production

Saudi Arabia and other OPEC members held a virtual meeting with Russia and other allied oil producers today to discuss the continuing low price of oil amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Major General Abdullah Yahya al-Hakim (C), chief of intelligence of the administration of Yemen's Huthi rebels in control of the capital Sanaa, and other Huthi officials attend an official parade commemorating the sixth anniversary of the Huthi takeover of the capital Sanaa on September 20, 2020. (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Stakes high in Yemen's Marib province for Houthis, Saudis

Yemen’s Houthi rebels face fierce resistance from the Saudi-backed government forces in the oil-rich province of Marib.

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 15: (L-R) Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Donald Trump, Foreign Affairs Minister of Bahrain Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, and Foreign Affairs Minister of the United Arab Emirates Abdullah bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan wave from the Truman Balcony of the White House after the signing ceremony of the Abraham Accords on the South Lawn of the White House on September 15, 2020 in Washington, DC. Witnessed by President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu si

The Takeaway: Trump scores diplomatic win with eye on November election

Iran deal coming after elections, Trump says; Qatar says normalization not the answer; Netanyahu returns home to COVID-19, political crises.

State Department officials testify before Congress on arms sales to Saudi Arabia, UAE

The chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said the May 2019 sale did not warrant an emergency certification, but a State official cited the threat from Iran.

Saudi Arabia to resume some international flights Sept. 15

The Interior Ministry said a limited number of citizens and nonresidents will be eligible for flights entering and exiting the kingdom.