Riyadh - An Australian woman trapped in Saudi Arabia because of the fallout from a divorce case is being given "all possible consular assistance," the Australian ambassador was quoted Sunday as saying.

"Our consular staff are committed and are extending all necessary support to to the woman," Ambassador R. Kevin Magee told the Arab News daily.

The mother-of-four has complained the Australian government is not helping her.

Australia's Foreign Affairs Department reportedly told the woman two months ago it could not help her in winning custody of her children, the newspaper wrote.

The husband, also an Australian citizen, has reportedly filed for custody of the children in a Saudi court.

Riyadh - A Saudi religious scholar says it is better for engaged couples to meet through web cameras than to have face-to-face contact, Saudi local media reported Thursday.

The webcam acts as a "shield" between couples and this is much preferable from a religious point of view, according to Abdel Mohsen al-Abikan, Consultant of Legal Affairs in the Ministry of Justice.

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia  - Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) finance ministers on Wednesday approved proposals to set up a monetary union, but the timing of the launch of a single currency was not revealed.

"We have an agreement to set up the monetary union and the monetary council, as well as the basic structure," Qatari Finance Minister Youssef Kamal, who chaired the meeting of GCC countries in the Western Saudi city of Jeddah, told reporters.

London, Sept. 16: A former Saudi diplomat-turned cleric, Sheikh Muhammad Munajid, has described Walt Disney cartoon character Mickey Mouse as "one of Satan''s soldiers" who turns everything around it impure.

The cleric, who worked with the Saudi embassy in Washington D C, said that under Sharia, both household mice and their cartoon counterparts must be killed.

Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Sept. 15 : A Saudi cleric who reportedly issued a fatwa on television programs that he deemed controversial, has said that edict has been misinterpreted and used out of its context.

The Gulf News quoted Shaikh Saleh Al Luhaidan, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Council, as saying that his controversial fatwa permitting the killing of the owners of television networks broadcasting "depravation and debauchery" was wrongly interpreted.

Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Sept. 13: A Saudi cleric has issued a new fatwa against Arabic satellite TV channels that broadcast programs considered immoral.