Dubai: Saudi Arabia has announced that prominent figures in religious, cultural, medical, investment and technical fields will be granted Saudi citizenship, Asharq Al Awsat newspaper reported.
Those who were granted the citizenship include Mukhtar Alim, chief calligrapher of the cover (kiswa) of the Holy Kaaba, eminent historians Dr. Amin Seido and Dr. Abdul Karim Al Sammak, renowned researcher Dr. Mohammad Al Baqai and noted theatre artist Samaan Al Ani.
The list also included a number of distinguished figures in the religious, medical, educational, investment, digital, and sports fields.
Earlier yesterday, King Salman approved granting Saudi citizenship to a select number of expatriates with distinguished talents, unique expertise and specialised skills in a number of key professions.
According to a royal decree, certain high-skilled expatriate professionals working in specialized areas within the legal, medical, scientific, technological, cultural and sport fields will be granted citizenship.
Mukhtar Alim
Mukhtar Alim at present is working as the chief calligrapher of the kiswa of the Holy Kaaba at kiswa factory in Mecca.
He also worked as calligrapher for holders of diploma certificates, master’s and PhD degrees at Umm Al Qura University. He has won several awards and certificates of appreciation from various agencies.
Dr. Amin Seido
Seido has to his credit several remarkable academic and historical research works. He has authored over 30 publications focusing on the local cultural movement, thought and literature in the Kingdom.
Dr. Mohammad Al Beqai
He is an eminent researcher, historian and translator. He authored about 40 books in various arts, most notably historical and critical studies and translation, and worked as a professor of linguistics studies and critical literature in a number of academic institutions, including King Saud University of Riyadh.
Dr. Abdul Karim Al Sammak
Well-known historian Dr. Abdul Karim Al Sammak is holder of a doctorate degree in modern and contemporary history. He spent nearly half a century publishing translations of a number of statesmen during the Kingdom’s founding period, especially about the Arabs who worked with King Abdul Aziz.
Samaan Al Ani
Al Ani is one of the pioneers of theatre in Saudi Arabia. He is one of the first to join the Saudi theatre as a director since 1970s, after graduating from the theatre department of Baghdad University.
