Haj and Umrah, are major components of the Saudi tourism industry, attracting millions of Muslims who come to the Kingdom every year.
The Kingdom annually earns over SR 62.5 billion (US $16.5 billion) from Haj and Umrah.
Around two million foreign pilgrims performed Haj in 2013, including some two hundred thousand from Pakistan.
Possessing 17% of the world's proven petroleum reserves, it ranks as the largest exporter of petroleum. Saudi Arabia’s total revenues for 2012 were $326.5 billion, 80% of which comes from earnings from the petroleum sector.
While money is constantly pouring in, the Saudi royal family spends billions out of it on extravagant vacations in Europe and North America. In May 2013, Saudi prince Fahd Al-Saud son of ex-King Fahad bin Abdul Aziz spent 15 million euros ($20.41 million) for three days of fun at Disneyland near Paris to celebrate his degree.
His father, namely, Fahd bin Abdul Aziz was known for his extravagant vacations in Spain’s Costa del Sol. The posh resort town of Marbella is where he built his palace named “Mar Mar”, and each year for a month or more he would stay there. Luxury villas and hundreds of rooms in five-star hotels would be reserved for his entourage, and anywhere between ninety to three hundred million dollars would be spent by the royal family on the vacation.
Other powerful Saudi royals can be seen living it up on the French Riviera. They fly on private jets, buy the finest jewels and dine at exclusive restaurants. Saudi prince Al Walid bin Talal has summered in Cannes for the last thirty years, and owns a 281 foot yacht called the "Kingdom" that he bought from Donald Trump. The yacht comes complete with a disco studio and helicopter. Examples of extravagance include one Saudi prince buying a $1.2 million emerald and diamond necklace, while a Saudi princess purchased a $10,000 Christian Lacroix outfit with pink and purple raccoon boas. Saudi royalty has property in most countries in the world including Pakistan where they have built huge walled compounds for themselves in which they do as they please. They visit the area once a year, usually during the hunting season. Their excesses know no bounds.
Similarly, the Saudi Arabian defense industry is estimated to have the fourth largest defense budget in the world, behind the US, China, and Russia.
Valued at US$52.9 billion in 2013, the country's defense expenditure, specifically for air-power capabilities in support of Kingdom’s protection is placed seventh among the top 10 military spenders, and is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.92%, to reach US$77.3 billion by 2018.
While all this goes on, 20 per cent of the population of Saudi Arabia is under poverty line. Few hundred yards beyond the luxurious shopping malls and recreation centers of Riyadh, the beggars are searching for food, and a few miles farther, residents in slum houses in poor neighborhoods of southern Riyadh grapple with poverty to live.
The money obtained from pilgrims who visit to perform Haj and Umra and oil sales is also spent on sponsoring terrorism all over the world.
Saudi Arabia is said to be the world's largest source of funds for Salafi jihadist terrorist militant groups, such as al-Qaeda, the Afghan Taliban, and Lashkar-e-Taiba in South Asia, and donors in Saudi Arabia constitute the most significant source of funding to terrorist groups worldwide.
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