Latest from Saudi Arabia

Uber Saudi deal hasn't gone down well with women
Saudi's big $3.5b investment in Uber isn't popular with many women.

'Mating lizards' halt take-off
A pair of lizards mating on a runway caused a pilot to abort take-off earlier this week.

Destruction only fruits of Saudis' war in Yemen
It is difficult to view Saudi Arabia's relentless war of attrition in Yemen as anything other than a destructive failure.

Wreck window on violent era
The wreck uncovered off the coast of Al Hallaniyah, Mearns announced this week, is almost certainly da Gama's ship Esmeralda, which sank in 1503.

Female crew flies into no drive zone
Royal Brunei's first all-female flight crew touched down in Saudi Arabia - a country they're not allowed to drive in.

Saudis find love on social media
Citizens of the conservative Saudi Arabia are increasingly turning to social media networks to pursue relationships and plan forbidden rendezvous.

Saudi Arabia faces new oil titan
Even if Saudi Arabia wins its struggle with US shale producers over market share, it will face a new billion-barrel adversary.

Saudi Arabia reeling from falling oil prices
Saudi Arabia - Stung by falling oil prices, Saudi Arabia has cut spending and subsidies as part of harsh austerity measures that threaten the lavish welfare programs underpinning its stability.

Malaysia PM's $1b Saudi gift
Malaysia's attorney-general says $1 billion transferred into PM Najib Razak's personal bank account was a gift from the royal family in Saudi Arabia.

5 Facts about Sunnis and Shias
A look at Islam's two main denominations to help make sense of the Saudi-Iran crisis.

Donna Miles-Mojab: History shows House of Saud at tipping point
With 158 beheadings in the past 12 months, it is hard to tell whether it is Saudi Arabia that has gone mad, or the United Nations, writes Donna Miles-Mojab.

Saudis cut air links to Iran
Saudi Arabia defied the world by escalating its crisis with Iran over the execution of a prominent Shia cleric.

Editorial: Saudi mass execution a cynical ploy
As tensions escalate between Saudi Arabia and Iran over the Saudi execution of a Shia cleric, countries such as ours will be reluctant to take sides.

Over 2,400 killed in September Saudi hajj stampede, crush
The September stampede during the hajj in Saudi Arabia killed at least 2,411 pilgrims, a new Associated Press count shows.

Saudi guards find cans of Pepsi actually beer
"A truck carrying what first seemed to be normal cans of the soft drink Pepsi was stopped and after the standard process of searching the products, it became clear that the alcoholic beers were covered with Pepsi's sticker logos,"

Saudi is St Lucia's man in London
One of Saudi Arabia's most prominent billionaires has gained legal immunity in Britain since his appointment as a Caribbean diplomat representing the island nation of St Lucia.

Hajj tragedy may fan political storm
Saudi Arabia faces questions of accountability as it feels the pressures of war and falling oil prices.

Editorial: McCully ought to stand aside for enquiry
Foreign Minister Murray McCully ought to stand aside while the Auditor-General conducts her inquiry into the Saudi sheep deal.

Women get a voice in new Saudi Arabia
At a workshop on a summer day in Riyadh, prospective candidates in local elections are limbering up. One wants to help kids, one to improve living conditions in the Saudi capital, another to become a political role model.

Saudi deal includes high-tech abattoir
Taxpayer money will be spent on an abattoir that could be gifted to Saudi Arabia - part of a deal done partly to secure a free-trade deal with Gulf states.

Saudi farm: Complaints against McCully
The Labour Party has asked the Auditor-General and Treasury to investigate Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully over a deal made with a Saudi businessman.

Tom Clifford: The war that started it all ... and left the Arab world reeling in disbelief
Whatever his shortcomings in executing the war, Saddam felt he had saved the Gulf sheikdoms and was worthy of greater respect, writes Tom Clifford.

John Roughan: McCully's Saudi deal clumsy
Unconvincing explanations for settling live sheep export grievance should not hurt New Zealand's clean reputation, writes John Roughan.

Saudi farm deal was opposed by Treasury
A controversial deal that saw $11.5 million in taxpayer money spent on a businessman's private farm in Saudi Arabia was opposed by the Treasury, documents show.

Warnings before sheep deaths in Saudi
Documents reveal a briefing from NZ Trade and Enterprise warned ministers about sending breeding sheep to Saudi in the latter half of 2014.

Weather blamed for lamb deaths
The best Kiwi farmers would have struggled with the conditions that led to a very high death rate among lambs from pregnant ewes sent to a farm in Saudi Arabia, a company involved in the operation says.