Buraidah

Buraydah بريدة
Buraydah Location in Saudi Arabia
Coordinates: 26°20′N 43°58′E / 26.333°N 43.967°E / 26.333; 43.967
Country	Saudi Arabia
Region	Al-Qassim Region
Area
• City	1,291 km2 (498.3 sq mi)
• Metro	1,290.6 km2 (498.3 sq mi)
Population (2010)
• City	614,093
• Density	480/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
Time zone	EAT (UTC+3)
Website	www.buraydahcity.net

Buraydah (Arabic: بريدة‎‎ Burayda) is the capital of Al-Qassim Region in northcentral Saudi Arabia in the heart of the Arabian Peninsula. Buraydah lies equidistant from the Red Sea to the west and the Persian Gulf to the east. It has a population of 614,093 (2010 census).

Buraydah, the regional capital of Al-Qassim Region, is located on the edge of the Wadi Al-Rummah. Buraydah has a typical desert climate, with hot summers, cold winters and low humidity.

In Buraydah, agriculture is still the cornerstone of the economy. The traditional oasis products of dates, lemon, orange and other fruits are still important. Modern introduction of wheat production has become so successful that Buraydah is one of the largest producers in the kingdom, important in making Saudi Arabia a net exporter of cereal.

In 1987 Sandra Mackey, author of The Saudis: Inside the Desert Kingdom, said that Buraydah was "a hotbed of fundamentalism even in the most normal of circumstances."

Highways link Buraydah to the major cities surrounding it. It is 317 kilometers by highway to get to Riyadh, 450 km to get to Medina, and 250 kilometers to get to Hail. One can travel up to the border of Jordan, through a single region of Mecca, in a dual network of roads linking it with the rest of the provinces of Qassim. Buraydah is historically one of the old pilgrim routes coming from Iraq through Zubaydh. There is now a proposed railway line that would go through the city and greatly increase mobility for its citizens.

Qassim Regional Airport is the city's principal airport, connecting the city to several domestic and international cities such as Dubai and Cairo.

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Wikipedia