Contrary to the current situation, the Arab self-confidence in 1975, was at its climax due to the victorious October war against Israel, which followed a series of defeats and catastrophic endeavors.
The October war, however, clearly reflected the importance of Saudi Arabia’s role, in which the late King Faisal bin Abdulaziz was the think tank behind the unanimous Arab stance of halting oil sales to the western world, in order to clinch Israel’s war against the Arabs.
At such a peak period of Arab evolution, many thinkers and writers strongly believed in creating a daily newspaper in English, in order to convey the ongoing developments in Saudi Arabia, as well as, the moderate policy adopted by the Saudi government represented by its King, Saudi Arabia›s assistance to Muslims and Islam; moreover, to make the world understand there is an international player mostly concerned with Islamic and Arab issues.
As a result, Hisham and Muhammad Ali Hafiz, launched on April 20, 1975, the first Arab English newspaper ... Arab News. Since then, 39 years have elapsed since the launch of the first edition of Arab News ... A newspaper which was the cornerstone for motivating a new generation of Saudis to travel abroad and master the English language, being the business language worldwide. In addition to that, Arab News played a vital role in connecting the new Saudi generation, being the window through which they can monitor the world’s news and developments taking into consideration that the Internet and social media was not available at that time. Arab News is an encyclopedia of history ... We are indebted to Arab News, and therefore, congratulate such a successful newspaper, which continues to inspire us through a team of professionals who are determined to take the paper to new horizons.
Faysal Alaquil
Director, Business Development and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility
Construction Products Holding Company (CPC)
Jeddah
