Saudi Crown Prince rebukes Iran over Gulf islands


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RIYADH // Saudi Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud described as “unacceptable” Tehran’s attitude towards three islands that Iran occupies and the UAE claims, a report said.

“I reiterate the kingdom’s condemnation to the unacceptable attitude of neighbouring Iran that continues to ignore the legitimate right of the United Arab Emirates over its three occupied islands,” said Prince Nayef, who is also the interior minister.

“Any harm towards any of our [GCC] countries affects us all,” he said in a statement carried by the state news agency SPA late on Wednesday.

Prince Nayef pledged his country’s full support to the UAE and Bahrain, saying “their security and stability is partof the security of all GCC states”.

Bahrain is facing daily pro-tests by members of its Shiite majority, and clashes between protesters and police.Bahrain and Saudi Arabia accuse Iran of backing the protesters in the kingdom.

Avisit by the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on April 11 to Abu Musa – the only one of the three disputed islands which is inhabited – sparked protests from the UAE and its Gulf allies.

The GCC angrily labelled the visit “a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of the UAE over its three islands”.

Who was Alfred Nobel?

The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.

  • In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
  • Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
  • Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Zakat definitions

Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.

Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.

Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.

Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.

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