Saudi Arabia to give Yemen $3.25 billion in aid: TV

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia pledged $3.25 billion in aid to neighboring Yemen on Wednesday, the Saudi foreign minister said at the opening of a Yemen donors' meeting in the capital Riyadh, state TV reported. "I assert one more time our support to Yemen to back all the phases of the political initiative to help achieve security, stability and prosperity in facing the threats of extremism and terrorism," Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal told representatives from Western and Arab Gulf nations at the start of the meeting. He gave no details on how the money would be disbursed. ...

Arab League to Iran: stop anti-Bahrain campaign

CAIRO (Reuters) - The Arab League called on Tehran on Monday to halt what it described as a media campaign against Bahrain over a proposal for political and military union between Gulf Arab states. Saudi Arabia has been pushing the idea of closer Gulf integration to contain Shi'ite Muslim unrest in Bahrain and counter the influence of regional Shi'ite power Iran. Riyadh's initial goal appears to be a merger with Bahrain, where majority Shi'ites have been staging pro-democracy demonstrations targeting the Sunni Muslim ruling family for over a year. ...