Arabic press review: Bin Talal grounded in Saudi in 'a state of gloom'

Bin Talal stuck in Saudi Arabia

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal does not have permission to travel outside of Saudi Arabia, despite his release in late January after being detained in the kingdom's anti-corruption purge, Qatari newspaper al-Sharq reports.

Bin Talal had hoped to spend time in the south of France and also travel overseas to meet with his aides and advisers.

But he has not received the necessary licence to leave the kingdom which has left him in "a state of gloom", sources told the newspaper.

As a result, the prince has let his Twitter account, where he has regularly commented on events in the past, to slide into inactivity.

Instant humanitarians?

The Palestinian Authority has rejected a US invitation to attend a meeting in Washington this week which aims to find ways to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, according to the Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat.

US envoy Jason Greenblatt wrote in the Washington Post last week that the White House would hold a "brainstorming session" on Gaza "to find real solutions to the problems that Hamas has caused".

Rejecting the invitation, a member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization's (PLO) executive committee suggested the meeting was an American political ploy which would not bring an end to Israel's occupation.

"We are aware that Greenblatt’s alleged humanitarian compassion did not come out of the blue," said Ahmed Majdalani. "The Gaza Strip is primarily a political issue and not a relief or humanitarian issue."

Hamas has also rejected any US intervention on Gaza, accusing it of employing and exploiting the suffering of Gaza's residents to impose its vision of a solution in Palestine and the region, the paper writes.

Houthis seizing most of Yemen's revenues, says government

The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of looting the majority of the country's revenues and has asked the United Nations for help in pressuring the group to stop, according to the Saudi newspaper Okaz.

During a meeting with UN representative Lise Grande in Riyadh on Sunday, Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdulmalik al-Mekhlafi said that the Houthis have seized 70 percent of the state's revenues and used them to finance the war, according to Okaz.

Mekhlafi said the seizure of money has been a major obstacle in paying the salaries of state employees.

The Yemenis have asked the UN to set up a mechanism that would allow the government to collect resources and pay wages in in Houthi-held areas.

Expats in Kuwaiti government no more

In five years, Kuwaiti government institutions will no longer hire expatriates, a parliamentary commitee has decided, according to a report in Kuwait's al-Rai newspaper.

Government agencies will need to start planning ahead of the 2023 deadline when foreign workers will be permanently eliminated and only Kuwaitis will be hired, the committee said.

As part of its strategy, the committee also called on the Ministry of Higher Education to ensure that Kuwaiti graduates are being prepared to work in the public sector in the coming years.

* Arabic press review is a digest of reports that are not independently verified as accurate by Middle East Eye.