RIYADH // Saudi Arabia has jailed four of its citizens for up to nearly three years after convicting them of joining or trying to join the conflict in Syria, media reported on Sunday.
Two of the men, who were not identified by name, had travelled to Yemen and then Turkey using falsified passports with the intention of joining rebel groups, news website Sabq.org reported.
It did not clarify whether the pair had surrendered to authorities, a possibility that would explain the lenient jail terms of four months for the first and two years and 10 months for the second, handed down by a special court in Riyadh.
King Abdullah in February decreed jail terms of up to 20 years for citizens who travel to fight abroad, as the country struggles to deter young Saudis from becoming jihadists.
The other two men made it to Syria but later gave themselves up to Saudi authorities after they were shocked by the extremist ideologies of the groups they had joined, Sabq said.
One was jailed for 18 months, and the second for two a half years, the website said.
The report did not mention which groups fighting in the Syria conflict, that has attracted foreign militants to fight mainly against the Syrian regime, had recruited the four Saudis.
The kingdom has been a key backer of the more than three-year revolt against president Bashar Al Assad’s regime, which is dominated by the Alawite offshoot of Shiite Islam.
There are no official figures on the numbers of Saudis who have joined militant ranks in Syria, but they are estimated at several hundred.
In 2011, Riyadh set up specialised terrorism courts to try dozens of Saudis and foreigners accused of belonging to Al Qaeda or of being involved in a wave of bloody attacks that swept the country from 2003.
The interior ministry had urged those wanting to “repent” to hand themselves in at Saudi embassies, saying they would be repatriated and reunited with their families.
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Name: Almnssa
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Founder: Areej Selmi
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Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
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PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
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Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
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What is double taxation?
- Americans living abroad file taxes with the Internal Revenue Service, which can cost hundreds of dollars to complete even though about 60 per cent do not owe taxes, according to the Taxpayer Advocate Service
- Those obligations apply to millions of Americans residing overseas – estimates range from 3.9 million to 5.5 million – including so-called "accidental Americans" who are unaware they hold dual citizenship
- The double taxation policy has been a contentious issue for decades, with many overseas Americans feeling that it punishes them for pursuing opportunities abroad
- Unlike most countries, the US follows a citizenship-based taxation system, meaning that Americans must file taxes annually, even if they do not earn any income in the US.
