Al Arabiya media bias and reliability
The rating organisations do not give Al Arabiya one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans right. We have seen it on 135 published stories of ours.
The short answers
Is Al Arabiya biased?
The rating organisations do not give Al Arabiya one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans right. An outlet rating describes a broad pattern in its output, not every article it publishes.
Is Al Arabiya left or right?
The rating organisations do not give Al Arabiya one shared verdict in the records we hold. Their published ratings are Ad Fontes Media: Centre; Media Bias/Fact Check: Leans right. In the three-way grouping used on story pages, that puts it under Right.
Is Al Arabiya reliable?
The factual-reliability assessments we hold for Al Arabiya are Ad Fontes Media: Very low factuality; Media Bias/Fact Check: Mixed factuality. These are outlet-level assessments, not a guarantee that every report is correct.
What Al Arabiya has been covering
Our account of each story, written from every outlet that ran it, with Al Arabiya’s own report linked underneath.
Venezuela's government and opposition are reportedly close to an agreement to transfer approximately $4 billion in gold reserves from the Bank of England to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The gold has been held in London since 2019.
Al Arabiya reported it asVenezuela nears deal to move $4 billion in gold reserves to New York: Report (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have extended the mandate of experts monitoring sanctions on Iran. The vote creates a gap in oversight as the sanctions themselves remain in effect.
Al Arabiya reported it asRussia, China end mandate for independent monitoring of UN sanctions on Iran (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
The U.S. Federal Reserve has raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points, marking the first such increase in over three years. The unanimous decision aims to combat inflation, and was followed by a significant drop in gold prices.
Al Arabiya reported it asFed hikes rates in search of ‘timelier’ drop in inflation, sees more tightening ahead (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Sweden has expelled an official from Iran's embassy in Stockholm and summoned the country's ambassador. The Swedish foreign ministry cited activities incompatible with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations as the reason for the expulsion.
Al Arabiya reported it asSweden expels Iran embassy employee, summons ambassador: Govt. (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
The US Space Force has confirmed the deployment of weapons in Earth orbit, marking the first public acknowledgement of such capabilities. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink stated the weapons are intended for defence against hostile actions, though specific details remain undisclosed.
Al Arabiya reported it asUS orbital weapons acknowledgement a ‘landmark’ move, US Space Command official says (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
The United States has confirmed for the first time that it has deployed weapons in orbit. Air Force Secretary Troy Meink said the Space Force placed "space control weapons" to deter adversaries, drawing accusations from China and Russia.
Al Arabiya reported it asUS orbital weapons acknowledgement a ‘landmark’ move, US Space Command official says (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Qatar has warned that closing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait would be catastrophic for global trade and energy markets. The warning comes as Houthi forces control Red Sea islands and the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, intensifying regional tensions.
Al Arabiya reported it asQatar warns against ‘catastrophic’ Bab al-Mandeb closure (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
President Donald Trump has nominated Kimberly Greenwood, wife of singer Lee Greenwood, to be the U.S. ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean. The nomination requires Senate confirmation. Trump also nominated Wesley Hunt for a role in Riyadh.
Al Arabiya reported it asTrump taps Wesley Hunt to be next US ambassador to Saudi Arabia (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Mohammad Eslami, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, was prevented from attending an IAEA meeting in Vienna. Austria cited a UN travel ban, while Iran accused the US of pressuring Vienna to deny the visa.
Al Arabiya reported it asUS blocks Iran nuclear chief from Vienna meeting (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Foreign ministers from Gulf states are planning to meet with their Iranian counterpart in Salalah, Oman, on Monday. The meeting's objective is to exert pressure on Oman and Iran to reach a temporary agreement concerning shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Al Arabiya reported it asGulf-Iran meeting on Strait of Hormuz postponed, Oman says (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
A Russian drone struck a train near the Ukrainian-Polish border. Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other European officials had travelled on a train that passed through the area shortly before the attack, according to reports. Poland's Prime Minister warned of intensified Russian attacks.
Al Arabiya reported it asRussia says hit Ukraine rail site ‘used to transport military cargo’ from Europe (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
The BRICS New Delhi Declaration condemned the April 22, 2025, terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. The statement called for zero tolerance towards state-sponsored cross-border terrorism and reaffirmed the commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms.
Al Arabiya reported it asPakistan PM condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia in call with MBS (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Israel of seeking to destabilize Syria during a visit to Damascus. Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani stated Damascus remains committed to a diplomatic solution. The comments followed Israeli strikes on Abu al-Duhur Air Base.
Al Arabiya reported it asTurkey FM says Israel wants to destabilize Syria as he visits Damascus (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
An Israeli strike on a vehicle in Gaza City on 13 September killed two Palestinians and injured 13, according to medical sources. The incident occurred in the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood.
Al Arabiya reported it asIsraeli strike kills two people in Gaza, medics say (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated that trilateral negotiations concerning Ukraine could potentially resume in October. He stated that Russia does not rule out this possibility, though no specific dates have been set.
Al Arabiya reported it asKremlin not ruling out return to Ukraine talks in October (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has indicated the company is open to slowing the pace of artificial intelligence development. This consideration comes amid increasing concerns about AI safety and the potential for advanced systems to escape human control.
Al Arabiya reported it asSam Altman says OpenAI could slow AI development as safety fears grow (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Iran has established a barter-like mechanism to circumvent US sanctions on its oil exports, allowing it to convert oil revenues into credits for purchasing goods from China. This system bypasses international banking transfers and has facilitated the import of various items, including military equipment.
Al Arabiya reported it asUS slaps new sanctions on networks aiding Iran’s proxies in Middle East (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Algeria has announced the severance of diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates and the closure of its airspace to UAE-registered civilian and military aircraft. Commercial flights will be exempt until 2026. The UAE expressed hope the decision is temporary.
Al Arabiya reported it asAlgeria cuts diplomatic ties with the UAE (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
The Trump administration has offered a muted response to planned sanctions by the UK, France, and Canada against Israeli settlements in the West Bank. This marks a departure from previous US policy, as officials suggest internal administration debate over the issue.
Al Arabiya reported it asTrump administration didn't oppose UK-led initiative to sanction ... (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Jordan's armed forces stated that 18 out of 20 ballistic missiles launched from Iran were intercepted and destroyed by air defence systems. Two missiles landed in unpopulated areas without causing casualties. Iran's IRGC claimed to have targeted a US military base in Jordan.
Al Arabiya reported it asJordan army says shot down missiles from Iran: Statement (opens Al Arabiya in a new tab)
Who says so
2 organisations have published a rating for this outlet, in their own words. Where they disagree, the disagreement is the useful part and it is left standing.
How reliably it reports fact
A rating of the newsroom in general, by others, and a different thing from the Trust score we publish on each story, which judges one piece of reporting.
Low factuality
Who owns it
- MBC GroupMedia Conglomeratedirect owner
Where it publishes from
- Publishes from
- Riyadh, Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia
- Official site
- alarabiya.net
- Seen publishing on
- english.alarabiya.net, alarabiya.net
- Access
- Free to read
- Wikipedia
- Entry
What we have seen ourselves
Counted across the stories this site has published, which is the only denominator a reader can check: every one of them has a page, and every page lists the reports it was written from.
- Stories
- 135
- Reports listed
- 139
- We could read
- 0
- First seen
- 3 August 2026
139 of those reports were paywalled or blocked to us. Our reading of this outlet is built on the 0 we could open, not on everything it published.
On 15 of those stories, outlets rated right were largely absent from the coverage and Al Arabiya ran the story anyway.
Across the 135 stories of ours where at least three of the reports we listed carried a time, we logged no report earlier than Al Arabiya’s on 1 of them. Overall it filed a median of 16 hours after the earliest report we logged.
Measured 18 September 2026. Last seen in a coverage list 18 September 2026. Ratings pulled 3 September 2026.
Other outlets rated the same way
Publishers carrying the same published leaning as Al Arabiya, also publishing from Saudi Arabia, ordered by how often we have seen them on a story. Sharing a rating is not the same as being alike.
Think this page is wrong?
The leanings above are published by AllSides, Ad Fontes Media and Media Bias/Fact Check, and we republish them rather than make them. If you think one is misapplied, the strongest place to say so is with the organisation that made it, and every verdict here links to their page.
What we are responsible for is everything else: the ownership chain, where Al Arabiya publishes from, which of our stories we have listed it on, and whether we have the right publisher at all. Tell us what is wrong and an editor reads it.
Report something wrong on this page
Anything we correct is written up in the public corrections log. We do not publish reader votes as a rating, because an unattributed rating is the thing this site exists to argue against.
Every rating on this page is a named third party’s published work, republished with its author and, where one exists, a link to it. Our own coverage record is the section we measure ourselves. Neither is a judgement of any individual report: those are scored story by story, and the reasoning is on our methodology page.