Cairo: Prominent Saudi writer and journalist, Abdullah Manna passed away aged 81, local media reported. He passed away Saturday after a fight against unspecified illness. The Saudi Media Ministry mourned him. 'Abdullah Manna is one of the pioneers who devoted his life to serving literature and journalism,' acting Media Minister Majid Al Qasibi said on Twitter.
Born in 1939 in the Saudi port city of Jeddah, Manna attended the dentistry school in Egypt in 1957. After his graduation in 1962, he returned to Saudi Arabia where he was appointed as a dentist in a hospital in Jeddah. Later he launched a career in journalism, starting at the weekly newspaper Al Raed (Pioneer). And became the editor of Iqra (Read) magazine. He was also a columnist in Al Bilad newspaper.
In 1960, he published a collection of short stories titled 'Touches'. He later quit dentistry and devoted himself to writing. His other books include 'The World is A Journey'; 'A Sense of Thought'; and 'The Empire of Tone'.
The Jeddah Cultural Club has named Manna as the Personality of the Forum for 2021.
