Riyadh, SPA:

Crown Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, chaired the Cabinet's session which was held at Al-Yamamah palace in Riyadh yesterday.

On behalf of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Crown Prince expressed, at the outset of the meeting, his and the Saudi people's profound sorrow and grief for the death of Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz early last week, appealing to Allah Almighty to bless his soul.

'With the death of Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, the Islamic and Arab nations have, in fact, lost one of the most prominent leaders who put himself at the service of his religion, country, nation and the entire humanity and played a leading role in the service of Islam and Muslims and exerted blessed efforts towards the regional, Arab and international issues of righteousness and justice.'

In the name of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Crown Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz expressed thanks to and appreciation for the sincere feelings Kings, Emirs, Presidents and leaders of Arab, Islamic and friendly countries, all officials from different countries and international organizations as well as the Saudi loyal people they expressed towards the nation's great loss.

Then, the Crown Prince and members of the Cabinet thanked Allah Almighty for the success of the surgery the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King has recently undergone and congratulated him on his discharge from hospital. In turn, the Crown Prince expressed thanks to and appreciation of the feelings Kings, Emirs and Presidents of brotherly and friendly countries as well as the Saudi citizens inside and outside the Kingdom they expressed in their enquiries after the health of the monarch and the congratulations they sent him on the success of the surgery.

In a statement following the meeting, Dr. Abdulaziz bin Mohieddin Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, said the Cabinet members offered warm condolences and sincere sorrows to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, the Royal family, the sons and daughters of late Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz and the Saudi people on the sad demise of the deceased, appealing to Almighty Allah to bestow mercy upon his soul.

The Cabinet also congratulated Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on the invaluable royal trust choosing him as Crown Prince and appointing him Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, and on the pledge of allegiance offered to him by the Allegiance-Pledge Commission, wishing him every success, to become the best assistant to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and to the country’s security, stability and integral unity.

For his part, the Crown Prince expressed thanks to and appreciation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for the confidence bestowed on him, considering it a great task and honor at the same time. He also thanked the members of the Allegiance-Pledge Commission, appealing to Allah Almighty to assist him in fulfilling his job with all the needed sincerity and in a way that secures the aspirations of the monarch through accomplishing more prosperity, security and stability for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its people.

The Minister explained that the Cabinet, then, reviewed a report on the latest preparations set for receiving pilgrims. To this effect, Crown Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, who is also Chairman of the Hajj (pilgrimage) Supreme Committee, expressed in the name of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques the welcoming reception of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's government and people of the pilgrims to the Holy Kaaba. Those pilgrims have started to come through the country’s land, air and sea inlets to perform Islam's fifth pillar, and Prince Naif prayed to Almighty Allah to accept their endeavor.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques urged all sectors concerned with serving the pilgrims to redouble efforts in these blessed days and provide the best services to the pilgrims in a way that ensures their performance of the Hajj rituals in ease and comfort.

The Cabinet expressed deep condolences and sincere sympathy to the Turkish leadership, government and people on the victims of the earthquake that hit eastern Turkey. Moreover, the Cabinet appreciated the King's directives to provide Turkey with $50 million in assistance to the Turkish government to counter the effects of the earthquake. The King's directives embody the Kingdom's fixed and permanent stances towards helping the affected and alleviating their pain. The directives also reflect the feelings of brotherhood between the two countries.

Dr. Khoja said the Cabinet reviewed a number of issues on its agenda and issued the following decisions:

The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Higher Education -or his deputy- to discuss and sign with the Bosnian side a draft memorandum of scientific and educational cooperation between the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Finance, or his deputy, to discuss with the Turkish side a draft agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Turkey on cooperation and mutual assistance in customs-related issues, sign it, and forward the final version for authentication.

The Cabinet approved the enforcement of the decision issued by the Gulf Cooperation Council summit held in Abu Dhabi on December 2010 allowing Gulf companies the right to open branches in different member states, and that those companies shall be treated on an equal footing with the national companies on doing their businesses and transactions, provided that the respective company is legally-registered, its economic activity is among the permitted for the GCC nationals, fully-owned by member states' nationals, has been registered three years prior to applying for such a permission (a period the host State will have the right to reduce), its businesses are done within the permitted limits entertained by the nationals, its manager be a national of a GCC member state, a condition that could be nullified by the host country, and the State has the right to cancel the permission in case there is/are partner(s) of non-Gulf states nationalities in the parent company, or that the prescribed company has violated any of the aforementioned conditions.

The Cabinet approved the re-forming of the Board of Directors of the Grain Silos and Flour Mills Organization as follows:

I: Appointing the following as members of the Board of Directors of Grain Silos and Flour Mills Organization for three years as of 01/08/1432H:

1- Abdurrahman bin Abdullah Al-Abdulrazzaq, Representative of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Member.

2- Dr. Mohammed bin Saeed Al Ahmed Al-Qahtani, Representative of the Ministry of Finance, Member.

3- Eng. Abdullah bin Suleiman Al-Rubaiaan, Representative of Private Sector, Member.

4- Samir bin Ali Qabbani, Representative of the Private Sector, Member.

II: Renewing the membership of Dr. Abdullah bin Abdullah Al-Obaid, Representative of the Ministry of Agriculture, for three years as of 29/01/1433H.

The Cabinet approved a number of appointments as follows:

1- Ahmed bin Saleh bin Abdullah Al-Humaidan appointed to the post of Undersecretary of the Ministry for Labor Affairs (rank 15) at the Ministry of Labor.

2- Eng. Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Shulaywieh Al-Hagbani appointed to the post of Undersecretary of the Ministry of Planning and Development (rank 15) at the Ministry of Labor.

3- Dr. Mohammed bin Faisal bin Amin Al-Shaibi appointed to the post of Security Consultant (rank 14) at the Ministry of Interior.

4- Ayedh bin Awadh bin Attiyatullah Al-Hujaili appointed to the post of Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry for Planning Affairs (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Economy and Planning.

5- Abdulkarim bin Mohammed bin Suleiman Al-Amari appointed to the post of Director General of Administrative and Financial Affairs (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Economy and Planning.

6- Mishaan bin Mohammed bin Mishaan Al-Wuraiki appointed to the post of Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry for Social Development Affairs (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Social Affairs.

7- Othman bin Saleh bin Othman Al-Hugail appointed to the post of Director General of the Minister's Office (Rank 14) at the Ministry of Labor.