Saudi Arabia
FILE - China's fan holds national flag before the AFC Asian Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Iran and China at Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Jan. 24, 2019. China withdrew as host of soccer's 2023 Asian Cup on Saturday, May 14, 2022, in the latest cancellation of the country's sports hosting duties during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)
China cites pandemic and withdraws as host of 2023 Asian Cup

May. 14, 2022 03:56 AM EDT

FILE - Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin enter a hall for talks in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, June 5, 2019. The U.S., Britain and a handful of others aren’t sending dignitaries to the Beijing Games as part of a diplomatic boycott, but the Chinese capital is still attracting an array of world leaders for Friday’s opening ceremony. Russia’s athletes will be competing under a neutral flag, but the presence of Putin, an enthusiastic skier and hockey player, will reinforce that they are the Russian national team in all but name and soothe wounded national pride. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, Pool, File)
World leaders: Who's coming, who isn't to Beijing Olympics

Feb. 03, 2022 09:43 PM EST

Tyrrell Hatton, of England, watches his shot on the second tee on day three of the Hero World Challenge PGA Tour at the Albany Golf Club, in New Providence, Bahamas, Saturday, Dec. 4, 2021.(AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
Players with Saudi releases have to decide if it's worth it

By Doug Ferguson Dec. 21, 2021 01:26 PM EST

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, center, prepares to present the trophy to Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal midfielder Salman Al-Faraj, left, after winning the AFC Champions League final soccer match against South Korea's Pohang Steelers 2-0, at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, Nov. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Pohang Steelers FC vs Al Hilal Rijad 11/23/2021

Dec. 20, 2021 10:38 AM EST

FILE - This April 11, 2021 file photo from the Royal Court twitter account, shows Jordan's King Abdullah II, center, Prince Prince Hamzah, second left, and others during a visit to the tomb of the late King Hussein, in Amman Jordan. Jordan's version of a trial of the century gets under way as early as Monday, June 21, 2021. A relative of King Abdullah II and a former chief of the royal court will be ushered into the defendants’ cage at the state security court to face sedition charges. They are accused of conspiring with Prince Hamzah, a half-brother of the king, to foment unrest against the monarch. (Royal Court Twitter Account via AP, File)
Jordan's unprecedented palace drama moves to the courtroom

By Karin Laub Jun. 20, 2021 07:21 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 25, 2008 file photo, Dr. Bassem Awadallah, then Director of the Office of King Abdullah II of Jordan, attends a celebration to mark Independence Day, in Amman, Jordan. The prosecutor of Jordan's state security court on Sunday, June 13, 2021 filed sedition and incitement charges against Awadallah and Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, both confidants of King Abdullah II’s half-brother Hamzah, marking the latest step in a rare, intrigue-filled palace drama that has rattled the Western-backed kingdom. (AP Photo/Nader Daoud, File)
2 confidants of senior Jordan royal charged with sedition

Jun. 13, 2021 10:05 AM EDT

People shop at the La Vega market in Santiago, Chile, Saturday, June 12, 2021, amid the new coronavirus pandemic. The Chilean capitol has reinstated quarantine measures due to the increase in COVID-19 infections. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
The Latest: Lebanon marks daily record of vaccinations

By The Associated Press Jun. 13, 2021 01:40 AM EDT

FILE - In this May 28, 2021 file photo, travelers wait for their luggage at a baggage carousel at Miami International Airport in Miami. The airline industry’s recovery from the pandemic passed a milestone as more than 2 million people streamed through U.S. airport security checkpoints on Friday for the first time since early March 2020. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
The Latest: Brazil president fined for not wearing mask

By The Associated Press Jun. 12, 2021 07:53 AM EDT

FILE - In this July 31, 2020, file photo, pilgrims walk around the Kabba at the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia said Saturday, July 12, 2021, that this year's hajj pilgrimage will be limited to no more than 60,000 people, all of them from within the kingdom, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. (Saudi Ministry of Media via AP, File)
Saudi Arabia says hajj to be limited to 60,000 in kingdom

By Jon Gambrell Jun. 12, 2021 06:25 AM EDT

Residents wait in line for the coronavirus test in a district in Guangzhou in southern China's Guangdong province on Sunday, May 30, 2021. The southern Chinese city of Guangzhou shut down a neighborhood and ordered residents to stay home Saturday to be tested for the coronavirus following an upsurge in infections that has rattled authorities. (AP Photo)
The Latest: Germany hunts down possible fraud in virus tests

By The Associated Press May. 30, 2021 07:12 AM EDT

People with COVID-19 symptoms wait to be assisted outside a hospital that is at full capacity in Ribeirao Preto, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, Friday, May 28, 2021. The city imposed strict shutdown measures this week to stop the spread of the virus, halting public transportation for the first time and closing supermarkets. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)
The Latest: Two-thirds of NY adults have at least one shot

By The Associated Press May. 29, 2021 01:03 AM EDT

People enjoy their vacations at the pool of Nissi Blue hotel in southeast resort of Ayia Napa, in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus, Saturday, May 22, 2021. Cypriot hotel and other tourism-related business owners say they'd like to see the COVID-19 pandemic-induced uncertainty over travel bookings to the tourism-reliant island nation winding down by July when they're hoping authorities in Cyprus' main markets including the U.K., Russia, Germany and the Scandinavian countries will make it easier for their citizens to travel abroad. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
Countries eager to reopen to travel as pandemic recedes

By David Koenig And Menelaos Hadjicostis May. 26, 2021 12:01 AM EDT

Healthcare workers transport to a morgue the body of a patient who died from COVID-19 at Clinicas Hospital in San Lorenzo, Paraguay, Wednesday, May 19, 2021. The Health Ministry reported that a record number of people died from COVID-19 on Tuesday, May 18. (AP Photo/Jorge Saenz)
The Latest: Detroit archbishop ends mask rule for vaccinated

By The Associated Press May. 19, 2021 01:10 AM EDT

FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during the 45th UEFA Congress in Montreux, Switzerland, Tuesday April 20, 2021. In a speech that seemed to blame the club owners and absolve players, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said he can only "strongly disapprove" of the Super League. "If some elect to go their own way, then they must live with the consequences of their choice," Infantino said. "They are responsible for their choice." (Richard Juilliart/UEFA via AP)
Saudis put World Cup every 2 years back on FIFA's agenda

By Graham Dunbar May. 18, 2021 03:59 PM EDT

A Saudi passenger walks in front of an enlargement of an old photograph showing the late King Abdul Aziz Al Saud as he peers out of an airplane, at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Monday, May 17, 2021. Vaccinated Saudis will be allowed to leave the kingdom for the first time in more than a year as the country eases a ban on international travel that had been in place to try and contain the spread of the coronavirus and its new variants. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
Saudi Arabia eases travel ban for vaccinated citizens

By Amr Nabil And Aya Batrawy May. 17, 2021 02:40 AM EDT

Yemen national soccer team coach dies from COVID-19

May. 16, 2021 09:16 AM EDT
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen’s soccer association said Sunday that the country's national team coach Sami al-Naash has died from COVID-19. The...

UN Security Council urges immediate cease-fire in Yemen

By Edith M. Lederer May. 12, 2021 09:26 PM EDT
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council called for an immediate halt to fighting in Yemen on Wednesday, saying that only a lasting cease-fire and...

Members of a civil society group burn representations of Israeli, U.S. and Indian flags during a demonstration in support of Palestinians during the latest round of violence in Jerusalem, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)
The Latest: Israeli aircraft strike another building in Gaza

May. 11, 2021 09:22 AM EDT

John Velazquez, right, rides Medina Spirit ahead of Florent Geroux aboard Mandaloun to win the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, Saturday, May 1, 2021, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Medina Spirit gives Baffert record 7th Kentucky Derby win

By Beth Harris May. 01, 2021 08:04 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 20, 2021, file photo, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman wears a face mask to help curb the spread of the coronavirus as he attends the Saudi Cup award ceremony during the final race of the $20 million, the Saudi Cup, at King Abdul Aziz race track in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The crown prince laid out a vigorous defense of his domestic policies and the thinking behind his push to transform Saudi Arabia economically and socially during a wide-ranging interview broadcast across Saudi television channels late Tuesday, April 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)
Saudi crown prince defends austerity steps, social loosening

By Aya Batrawy Apr. 27, 2021 08:32 PM EDT