RIYADH, Saudi Arabia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb 10, 2026--
Umm Al Qura for Development & Construction Company, the owner, developer, and operator of Masar Destination in Makkah, has concluded its participation as a strategic partner in this year’s Real Estate Forum (RFF). The forum was held in Riyadh from January 26 to 28 under the patronage of His Excellency, the Minister of Municipal Rural Affairs and Housing, Mr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail.
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The company’s pavilion, which drew strong interest from investors and visitors, presented Masar Destination’s key components, available investment opportunities, and recent project developments. It also highlighted the significant progress achieved in recent months.
During the forum, Umm Al Qura for Development & Construction announced the launch of a unified digital ownership platform through approved developers. The platform provides accurate and comprehensive information in both Arabic and English, enhancing transparency and governance across the development process.
Coinciding with its participation in the forum, Masar Destination also recently received LEED Gold certification in the Communities category, marking a key milestone for the project. The recognition reflects Masar’s commitment to the highest international sustainability standards and to creating an integrated urban environment that balances environmental, social, and economic considerations.
This achievement reinforces Masar’s position as a leading urban development in the heart of Makkah and reflects its continued alignment with the objectives of Vision 2030, contributing to the creation of a sustainable urban model that enhances quality of life and meets future aspirations.
Through its active participation in RFF, Umm Al Qura for Development & Construction reaffirmed its commitment to developing Masar in accordance with the highest international standards and to strengthening strategic partnerships that advance sustainable urban development. These efforts support both visitors and residents of the Holy City, while reflecting the Kingdom’s aspirations for a well-planned and sustainable urban future.
Source:AETOSWire
Masar Promenade View (Photo: AETOSWire)
ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV will personally carry the wooden cross through all 14 stations of the Way of the Cross at the Colosseum on his first Good Friday as pontiff, marking the first time in decades that a pope carries the cross to every station.
“I think it will be an important sign because of what the pope represents, a spiritual leader in the world today, and for this voice, that everyone wants to hear, that says Christ still suffers,” Leo told reporters this week outside of the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo. “I carry all of this suffering in my prayer.”
John Paul II carried the cross for the entire procession from his first Good Friday as pontiff in 1979 until his hip surgery in 1995, when he carried it just part of the way, according to AP reports at the time.
For the first two years of his papacy, Benedict XVI carried the cross for the first station inside the Colosseum, then followed other bearers in the procession that ends on a platform on the Palatine Hill.
Pope Francis never carried the cross, but participated in the procession until his health worsened. He died after a long illness last year on Easter Monday, which fell on April 21.
Pope John Paul II was just 58 when he became pope, and was known as a hiker and outdoorsman. His two successors were in their late 70s when they began their papacies, and Francis was missing part of a lung due to a pulmonary infection as a young man.
At 70, Leo is physically fit and an avid tennis player and swimmer. Before becoming pope, Leo would work out regularly at a gym near the Vatican, with a plan befitting a man in his early 50s, according to his former trainer.
Crowds are expected to gather outside of the Colosseum for the Way of the Cross, which commemorates the final hours of Jesus’ life, from his death sentence to taking up the cross to his crucifixion, death and burial. The procession ends outside the Colosseum atop the Palatine Hill.
The meditations, which are read aloud at each station, were composed by the Rev. Francesco Patton, who was custos (or custodian) of the Holy Land 2016-25, charged, among other things, with looking after sacred sites
“The Way of the Cross is not intended for those who lead a pristinely pious or abstractly recollected life,” Patton wrote in his introduction. “Instead, it is the exercise of one who knows that faith, hope and charity must be incarnated in the real world.”
On Holy Saturday, the pontiff will preside over Easter vigil rites at St. Peter’s Square and lead Roman Catholics into Christianity’s most joyous celebration marking Christ’s resurrection.
On Easter Sunday, the pope will celebrate an open-air Mass in St. Peter’s Square before delivering his Easter message and offer the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” blessing to the city (of Rome) and the world.
Pope Leo XIV attends the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Catholic Good Friday, Friday, April 3, 2026 (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Pope Leo XIV attends the Celebration of the Passion of the Lord in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Catholic Good Friday, Friday, April 3, 2026 (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
