Dr Mark C. Thompson

Delighted to announce the publication of my new edited book ‘Realizing Saudi Vision 2030: Governance, Institutions and Human Capital Development’. Many thanks to Sophie Rudland @EditorSophie and @BloomsburyBooks IB Tauris and King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies @KFCRIS @kfcris_en for all their support throughout this project. Special thanks to my wonderful chapter contributors without whom this book would not have happened: Khulood Basha Abdullah Almuqrin David Jones Radhika Punshi Gauri Gupta Abdullah Alabdulkarim, PhD Adam Daoud May Al-Baz Saleh Al Nashwan, PMP® Hanaa Almoaibed, PhD Neil Quilliam and David Des Roches. ebook editions of this book are available to download free (Open Access) under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. and a hardcover version is also available to purchase. Open Access was funded by the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies: bloomsbury.com/uk/realizing-s…

To all my friends, colleagues, students and followers. Eid Mubarak to you and your families, may you enjoy a blessed and peaceful Eid despite these difficult times 🌙

The clock tower in Makkah celebrates Eid night

يهنئكم #مركز_الملك_فيصل بحلول عيد الفطر المبارك، تقبل الله منا ومنكم صالح الأعمال، وكل عام وأنتم بخير.

Goodbye Ramadan 💔

BREAKING NEWS: Eid Al Fitr is on Friday, 20 March 2026 The Crescent of month of Shawwal 1447 was NOT SIGHTED anywhere in the Kingdom today, subsequently the month of Ramadan will complete 30 days tomorrow and Eid Al Fitr will be on Friday

Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court has called on Muslims across the Kingdom to look for the crescent moon of Shawwal on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reports.

NEWS : The Supreme Court calls for the sighting of the crescent of the month of Shawwal on the evening of Wednesday the 29th of Ramadan 1447 AH corresponding to 18 March 2026. The sighting results will determine the day of Eid Al Fitr

AL-MASJID-AL-HARAM #ليلة_القدر

🇸🇦 Camel overpass on the Riyadh-Taif road, Saudi Arabia

Giant umbrellas that open daily to shade thousands of pilgrims in Medina.

Masjid An Nabawi on the 26th night of Ramadan

Camels in Saudi Arabia: A Legacy Carved in Rock and Culture - alriyadhdaily.com/article/f69fa0…

ليست بابًا يُغلق… بل حكاية تُفتح على زمنٍ منقوشٍ بالهوية. في كل مسمارٍ وزخرفة، أثر بيتٍ… وأمان وطن. #حرفة_الأبواب_النجدية #لقطات_من_فيلم_الحرف_اليدوية #نحن_تراثنا

Saudi Arabia announced the establishment of the Royal Institute of Anthropology and Cultural Studies, approved today by the Cabinet. This is an important development within the Kingdom’s evolving cultural sector. Since the establishment of the Ministry of Culture in 2018 to drive Vision 2030’s cultural transformation, Saudi Arabia has been steadily investing in cultural institutions across multiple domains. A royal institute dedicated to anthropology and cultural studies signals a deeper layer of that investment. It represents a long-term commitment to research, documentation, interpretation, and knowledge production about society, identity, memory, and cultural transformation. Anthropology and cultural studies sit at the heart of how societies understand themselves. They explore identity, memory, traditions, and the meanings people attach to everyday life. An institute devoted to these fields strengthens the Kingdom’s capacity to study its own society and document its transformation. Saudi Arabia already has a respected anthropological tradition. Scholars such as Thuraya AlTurki (Soraya Altorki) and Saad AlSowayan (PhD, UC Berkeley, 1973 and 1982 respectively) helped document and interpret the cultural worlds of the Arabian Peninsula. AlTurki’s work examined social change and family life in Saudi society, while AlSowayan’s research focused on Bedouin oral traditions and Nabati poetry and produced studies widely regarded as among the most authoritative works on the oral traditions of Arabia. He was honored as Cultural Personality of the Year at the fourth edition of Saudi Arabia’s National Cultural Awards in 2024. In a country changing at remarkable speed, the Royal Institute of Anthropology and Cultural Studies could become part of Saudi Arabia’s cultural knowledge infrastructure and contribute to global conversations on culture and society. More broadly, the cultural transformation underway in Saudi Arabia is also a project of narrative authorship. Across museums, heritage initiatives, creative industries, and cultural institutions, the Kingdom is reclaiming its cultural memory and presenting its story to the world on its own terms. The new institute strengthens the scientific and intellectual foundations of that effort.

Painting Art by @bader1349 #SaudiArabia

The 21st Night: Thousands Observe the Final 10 Days of Ramadan at the Grand Mosque. #SPAGOV

Sunset in Medina.

Madinah 🤎

🇸🇦 Historical Village of Rijal Almaa, Asir Province, Rijal Alma, Saudi Arabia Photos by Abdul Wahab Faya

@AJEnglish Why do the innocent always suffer? God bless them

Children wounded in US-Israeli air strikes on Iran are being treated at a hospital in Tehran, with some requiring intensive care. Iranian officials say children account for around 30% of those killed in the conflict since the start of the war.