Schools and universities in Saudi Arabia's Makkah province will remain closed on Thursday amid expectations of rain.
The province's education department suspended physical classes for pupils and students in Jeddah, Rabigh and Khulais.
King Abdulaziz University suspended lectures at its campuses in Jeddah and Rabigh while the University of Jeddah suspended in-person attendance at all its campuses.
Classes will resume through the Madrasati remote learning platform for all schoolchildren.
The National Centre of Meteorology forecast moderate to heavy rain in many parts of Makkah and Madinah, as well as Jeddah and Rabigh.
Majid Abu Zahra, the head of the Astronomical Society in Jeddah, said the winter solstice began on Thursday at 1.48am.
Thunderstorms are expected in Al Qassim, Riyadh, the eastern region and Tabuk, the Saudi Press Agency reported, with the possible appearance of thunderclouds in Jizan, Asir and Al Baha.
Makkah Municipality said on Wednesday that the city was prepared to deal with the heavy rain.
Earlier, the NCM said thunderstorms accompanied by high winds would limit visibility in parts of Madinah, Makkah and Al Baha.
The civil defence department called for caution in parts of the kingdom due to the possibility of thunderstorms from Wednesday until Friday.
Fully equipped field teams were on standby in all residential areas, ready to protect residents and their possessions, officials said.
The teams will help to manage water flows and prevent pooling as part of the municipality’s response to the NCM's warnings.
The department stressed the need to stay away from places with fast-moving streams of water, valleys, dams and areas where water pools rapidly.
It advised residents to adhere to instructions issued through various media and social networking sites.
NCM spokesman Hussein Al Qahtani said Jeddah was not expected to experience the torrential rains that lashed the city for several hours last month.
Two people were killed in November after strong winds and heavy rain hit Jeddah and swept away cars.
Several people were rescued from submerged cars.
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Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
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Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
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Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
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Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
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- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
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- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
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- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Director: Zack Snyder
Stars: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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