Jeddah, SPA:
The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah on Tuesday afternoon.
At the outset of the session, the King said, "We praise and thank Allah that pilgrims have performed Hajj rituals and visited the Prophet's Holy Mosque comfortably and easily in an atmosphere full of spirituality, security and faith which is the fruit of sincere efforts exerted by various government and private parties participating in the service of pilgrims. We pray to Allah Almighty to accept from all pilgrims their Hajj, return them to their countries safely, guide us to more sincerity in sayings and deeds to achieve successes after successes in the service of Islam and Muslims, and make our work purely for Allah. On this occasion, we extend our thanks and appreciation to princes and ministers, the chairman and members of Supreme Hajj Committee, Governors of Regions, security men, all employees of government and private bodies, and all those who participated in the service of the guests of Allah''.
The princes and ministers, members of the Cabinet congratulated the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, on the success of the Hajj season, performance of 2,489,406 pilgrims their rituals in a healthy environment free from diseases and epidemics, the provision of all services, facilities, care, integrated plans and distinguished efforts that enabled them to perform their rituals in one time and one place as an extension of the Kingdom's keenness on the safety, care and service of the visitors of the Two Holy Mosques, which we are proud of since the founder late King Abdulaziz.
Then the King briefed the Cabinet on the results of his meetings with President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi of the Republic of Yemen and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of Armed Forces of the United Arab Emirates, and his talks with President Mohamed Ashraf Ghani of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.
Minister of Commerce and Investment and Acting Minister of Media Dr. Majed bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi said in a statement to Saudi Press Agency following the session that the Cabinet reviewed latest developments on Arab and international arenas, stressing that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's call to the Yemeni government and all parties of the conflict in Aden to hold a meeting in the Kingdom to discuss disagreements reflects the Kingdom's keenness on having wisdom and dialogue, renouncing division, stopping strife and uniting to confront the Iranian-backed terrorist Houthi militia and other terrorist organizations, to restore the state and return Yemen to a stable and secure country.
The Cabinet stressed the contents of the joint statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates, citing the keenness and efforts of the two countries to preserve Yemen and the interests of the Yemeni people, security, stability, independence, unity and territorial integrity under the leadership of the legitimate Yemeni President, confronting the coup of the terrorist Houthi militia and other terrorist organizations, calling on engaging in the Jeddah dialogue, which the Kingdom called for to address causes and repercussions of events in some southern governorates, and rejecting and denouncing accusations and defamation campaigns targeting the United Arab Emirates following these events.
The Minister said that the Cabinet reiterated the Kingdom's condemnation of Israeli forces storming Al-Aqsa Mosque and attacking worshipers on the first day of Eid Al-Adha, rejection of continuous Israeli violations against the Palestinian people, calling on the international community to join forces to protect the Palestinian people from various Israeli aggressive practices, which are a provocation to the feelings of Muslims and a violation of the rights of the Palestinian people.
The Cabinet congratulated the Republic of the Sudan on the historic agreement reached by all Sudanese parties, affirming the Kingdom's blessing for the agreement aimed at achieving the interest of Sudan, preserving its security, safety and stability and realizing the aspirations of the Sudanese people. It also stressed the Kingdom's keenness on everything that guarantees Sudan's security, stability and standing with all parties, deriving from the historical and fraternal relations between the two countries and the appreciation of the role being played by Sudan in achieving security and stability at regional and international levels.
The Cabinet issued the following decisions:
First:
The Cabinet approved a memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the Ministry of Justice of The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
A royal decree has been prepared in this regard.
Second:
The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Communications and Information Technology, or his deputy, to discuss with the Egyptian side a draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of communications and information technology between the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology of the Arab Republic of Egypt, sign it, and submit the final version to complete formal procedures.
Third:
The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Media, or his deputy, to discuss with the Russian side a draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the field of media between the Ministry of Media of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation, sign it, and submit the final version to complete formal procedures.
Fourth:
The Cabinet approved a memorandum of understanding between the Presidency of State Security of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Department of Financial Investigations) and the General Inspectorate of Financial Information of the Republic of Poland for cooperation in the field of financial investigations related to money laundering and financing terrorism.
A royal decree has been prepared in this regard.
Fifth :
The Cabinet approved the Saudi Classification of Educational levels and Specializations based on the International Classification (ISCED11.13) Until adoption of a unified Saudi classification of educational levels and specializations.
Sixth :
The Cabinet approved an agreement establishing the Saudi-Indian Strategic Partnership Council to replace the agreement establishing the Saudi-Indian Higher Coordination Council approved by the Council of Ministers Resolution No. (295) dated 7/6/1440 AH.
Seventh :
The Cabinet decided to approve the Information Technology and Communications ITC strategy.
Eighth :
The Cabinet approved adoption of final accounts of the University of Tabuk and the General Authority of Ports for a previous fiscal year.
Ninth:
The Cabinet named the government's bodies that shall be represented in the Board of Directors of the Local Content and Government Purchasing Authority, namely : Ministries of Finance, Economy and Planning, Trade and Investment, Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources and the General Authority for Military Industries, and to appoint the following as members of the board of directors of the Authority :
1 - Mohammed bin Abdullah Abu Nayan.
2 - Mazen bin Abdulrazzaq Al-Rumaih.
3 - Dr. Abdulrahman bin Saleh Al Obaid.
Tenth:
The Cabinet approved promotions and a job of ambassador as follows:
1- Abdulkhaleq bin Rashid bin Abdulkhaleq bin Rafaa is promoted to the post of ambassador at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
2- Abdulellah bin Abdulaziz bin Mohammed Al-Madi is promoted to the post of Undersecretary of Mayor for Services (15th Rank) at Eastern Region Principality.
3- Muteb bin Saeed bin Mubarak Al-Qahtani is promoted to the post of Director General of Water (15th rank) at the Directorate General of Water in Makkah Region.
4- Eng. Abdullah bin Suleiman bin Ali Al-Tayyar is promoted to the post of Civil Consultant Engineer (14th rank) at Riyadh Municipality.
5- Eng. Saud bin Hreisan bin Musleh Al-Enezi is promoted to the post of Mayor of Yanbu (14th rank) at the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs.
6- Eng. Hamad bin Hussein bin Hamad Balharith is promoted to the post of Mayor of Najran Region (14th rank) at Najran Region Municipality.
7. Eng. Mohammed bin Ibrahim bin Saad Alkhorayef is promoted to the post of Architectural Consultant Engineer (14th rank) at Riyadh Region Municipality.
8- Eng. Ibrahim bin Siddiq bin Ali Tubaiqi is promoted to the post of Undersecretary of Mayor for Construction and Projects(14th rank) at Jazan Region Municipality.
9- Eng. Ali bin Saad bin Abdulaziz Al-Omar is promoted to the post of Architectural Consultant Engineer(14th rank) at Tabuk Region Municipality.
10- Abdulaziz bin Mohammed bin Faleh Aljathalin is promoted to the post of Director General of Legal Affairs (14th rank) at Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources.
The Cabinet also reviewed a number of issues on its agenda, including annual report of the Ministry of Justice, for a previous fiscal year. The Cabinet made appropriate recommendations, in their respect.