Saudi cabinet considers King Abdullah speech before Shoura Council strategic message

Council refers to outcome of Crown Prince's visit to Qatar

Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz issues directives to remit SR33,778,946 to Tsunami victims in Indonesia

Governor of Riyadh region chairs Prince Salman Charity Housing Association meeting

The Custodian of the two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz opened in Riyadh the activities of the Shoura's fourth year for the fourth session.

The inaugural ceremony was attended by Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, the Deputy Premier, Defense and Aviation Minister and Inspector General.

The Monarch was welcomed by Chairman of the Shoura Dr. Saleh bin Humeid and members of the Shoura.

The inaugural ceremony was attended by Prince Miteb bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs; Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, the Interior Minister; Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Riyadh region; Prince Khalid bin Abdullah bin Abdurrahman; Prince Abdulilah bin Abdulaziz; Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Governor of Riyadh region; Prince Mohammed bin Saad bin Abdulaziz, adviser to the Interior Minister; Prince Miqren bin Abdulaziz, Chief of General Intelligence; the Grand Mufti of the Kingdom; a number of Muslim scholars, ministers; senior officials and members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Kingdom.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet's session at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh.

At the outset of the session, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Cabinet on the consultations, communications and meetings he held over the previous days with a number of leaders, officials and state envoys of brotherly and friendly countries on the latest developments in the region and the world, particularly the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories.

In a statement to Saudi Press Agency (SPA) following the session, the Minister of Culture and Information Iyad bin Amin Madani said that the Cabinet valued the contents of the address of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques at the inauguration of the fourth year of the fourth session of the Shoura Council on Saturday. The Cabinet considered the address's contents, visions, message, and major objectives as a working strategy to be upheld by the Shoura Council in its work and performance at various levels.

Then the Cabinet was briefed by Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General on his visit to the State of Qatar last week. The Cabinet commended the outcomes of the visit.

The Cabinet also reviewed the outcomes of the Islamic Summit Conference, at its 11th session concluded in Senegal last weekend including the endorsement of the Charter of the Organization of Islamic Conference and the reaffirmation of the commitment of its member states to the Organization's ten-year program of work which was approved by the Extraordinary Islamic Summit in Makkah aiming to confront the challenges of this century within the framework of solidarity and earnest work.

The Minister noted that the Cabinet reviewed a number of items on its agenda and issued the following decisions:

The Cabinet approved an agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Poland on cooperation in the field of combating crime signed in Warsaw on 25/06/2007.

The Cabinet authorized the Minister of Interior (or his deputy) to discuss with the Brazilian side a draft agreement on security cooperation between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Federative Republic of Brazil and sign it.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who is also Chairman of Military Service Council, chaired the Council's 6th meeting at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace.

The meeting was attended by Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Deputy Chairman of Military Service Council, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General and members of the Council comprising Prince Badr bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Commander of the National Guard; Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior; Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Foreign Minister; Prince Miqren bin Abdulaziz, Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Secretary General of National Security Council; Minister of Civil Service Mohammed Al-Fayiz; Minister of State and Cabinet's Member Mutlab Al-Nafeesah, Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assaf and the Council's Secretary General Lieutenant General Dr. Nasser Al-Arfaj.

The Council reviewed topics on its agenda previously discussed by the Subcommittees and the Preparatory Committee which represents the military sectors (National Guard, Ministry of Defense and Aviation, Ministry of Interior, General Intelligence Presidency and Royal Guard); Ministry of Civil Service; Ministry of Finance and Secretariat General of Military Service Council.

At the end of the meeting, the Council issued decisions pertaining to the submitted topics.

The Council's Secretariat General was directed by The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Council's Chairman to be keen on all matters relating to servicemen's affairs and paying attention to these affairs and achieving them, first things first, without delay.

This directive is a reflection of the King's fatherly care for his sons, the servicemen in all five military sectors.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received at his office at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah Palace Prime Minister of Bavaria Dr. Günther Beckstein and the accompanying delegation.

The Monarch welcomed Dr. Beckstein to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

On his part, Dr. Beckstein thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for receiving him and the accompanying delegation. He praised friendly relations between the two countries, describing them as solid and long-standing.

Then, prospects of cooperation between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Germany were reviewed.

The audience was attended by Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier, Minister of Defense and Aviation and Inspector General; Prince Badr bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Commander of the National Guard; Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior; Prince Miqren bin Abdulaziz, Chief of the General Intelligence; Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Adviser to the King; Prince Mansour bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz, Adviser to the King; Prince Dr. Bandar bin Salman bin Mohammed Al Saud, Adviser to the King; Minister of Commerce and Industry, Abdullah bin Ahmad Zainel; Abdulmohsen bin Abdulaziz Al-Tuwaijri, Adviser to the King; and German Ambassador to the Kingdom Jurgen Krieghoff.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received at his office at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah Palace Former US Ambassador to the Kingdom Robert Jordan and the accompanying delegation.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques received also at his office at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah Palace Terje Roed-Larsen, the Special Envoy of the United Nations (UN) Secretary General.

The Special Envoy conveyed the greetings of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. In turn, the King sent his greetings to the Secretary General.

During the audience, developments in the region were reviewed.

The two audiences were attended by Prince Badr bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Commander of the National Guard; Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior; Prince Miqren bin Abdulaziz, Chief of the General Intelligence; Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Adviser to the King; Prince Mansour bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz, Adviser to the King; Prince Dr. Bandar bin Salman bin Mohammed Al Saud, Adviser to the King; Minister of Commerce and Industry, Abdullah bin Ahmad Zainel; and Abdulmohsen bin Abdulaziz Al-Tuwaijri, Adviser to the King.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud patronized the Saudi Ardha (folk men-dance) party, organized by the National Guard within the activities of the National Festival for Heritage and Culture.

At the venue, the monarch was received by Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Riyadh Region; Prince Abdul-Ilah bin Abdulaziz; Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Governor of Riyadh Region; Prince Miqren bin Abdulaziz, Chief of General Intelligence; Prince General Mit'eb bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Assistant Deputy Commander of the National Guard for Military Affairs; Prince Sultan bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, General President of Youth Welfare; Prince Abdulaziz bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Assistant Chief of General Intelligence; Prince Nawaf bin Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, Deputy General President of Youth Welfare, other princes and senior officials.

Then the king took part in the Saudi Ardha. Other princes also participated in the folkloric performance.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud then graced a dinner party held by the Higher Steering Committee of the National Festival for Heritage and Culture.

The dance and dinner parties were attended by Prince Mit'eb bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Municipal and Rural Affairs; Prince Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud; Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior, other princes, senior officials and the guests of the festival.

Prince Naif also praised the efforts of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah in the service of Islam and Muslims. He also applauded the king’s winning of the King Faisal International Prize for Service to Islam.

The interior minister said the prize for the memorization of Hadith was introduced to promote the life and teachings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). “King Abdulaziz established the Kingdom on the basis of the Qur’an and Sunnah.”

As many as 30 winners, including girls, received prizes during the ceremony, which was attend by Shoura Council Chairman Dr. Saleh Bin-Humaid and Education Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Obaid. Their guardians received the prizes on behalf of the girls.

Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Asheikh commended Prince Naif’s efforts to promote the Hadith, which is the second-most important source of information about Islam after the Qur’an.

Bin-Humaid also noted the efforts of Saudi rulers in the service of Islam and the encouragement they give to memorizers of the Qur’an and Sunnah as well as Islamic researchers.

The prize for Hadith memorization is a branch of Prince Naif International Prize for Sunnah and Islamic Studies.

The Naif Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Sunnah and Contemporary Islamic Studies was instituted in 2002 to encourage scientific research in the Sunnah of the Prophet and Islamic studies and promote a spirit of competition among Muslim researchers around the world.

The commission for the prize is chaired by Prince Naif and its members include Prince Saud ibn Naif, Prince Mohamed ibn Naif, Prince Nawaf ibn Naif, the minister of Islamic affairs, secretary general of the Muslim World League, the head of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi, and the rectors of the Islamic University of Islamabad, Imam Mohamed ibn Saud Islamic University in Riyadh and Umm Al-Qura University in Makkah.

Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, the Interior Minister, has issued his directives to remit SR33,778,946 to the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) for implementing a number of humanitarian projects in Indonesia.

This was announced by Dr. Saed al-Orabi al-Harethi, the advisor of Prince Naif and Head of the Saudi Charitable Campaign for the Relief of Victims of Tsunami in East Asia.

He noted that this assistance comes in line with the Kingdom's efforts to assist victims of natural disasters in the various parts of the world.

Dr al-Harethi pointed out that the projects due to be implemented in Indonesia include 1000 housing units.

It is worth mentioning that Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz is the Supervisor General of the Saudi Charitable Campaign for the Relief of Victims of Tsunami in East Asia.

Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, the Governor of Riyadh Region received Saudi Ambassadors designate to a number of foreign countries.

He received Saudi Ambassadors designate to Sri Lanka, Albania, China and Denmark, Abdulaziz Al-Jammaz; Abdullah Abdulaziz Al-Abdulkareem, Yahya Abdulkareem Azzaid, and Abdulrahman Saad Al-Hadlaq, respectively.

During the meeting, Prince Salman urged the Ambassadors to do their utmost to be the best representative of Saudi Arabia and contribute to enhancing relations with these countries.

The Grand Mufti of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Al-Sheikh, who is also the Chairman of Senior Ulema Commission and Religious Research and Ifta Department, met in Madinah with students and faculty members of the Islamic University in Madinah during a lecture titled "Terrorism Effects on Individual and Society".

The lecture came in the framework of the university's cultural activity. The Director of the Islamic University in Madinah Dr. Mohammed bin Ali Al-Ugla delivered a speech welcoming the Mufti, stressing the importance of the lecture's subject.

Following that, the Grand Mufti delivered a speech in which he said that Islam does not accept division nor partisanship. Islam calls for constructive dialogue that aims at reunification. Islam is a religion of mercy and reconciliation.

He also said that the misfortune faced by Muslims is a result of expediting to accuse people of unbelief. Our religion warned us of such act. He urged universities to fight terrorism.

In Cairo, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak urged Islamic countries to work together to stand up to terrorism and extremism.

Mubarak made the appeal in his inaugural speech that was read out on his behalf by Prime Minister Ahmed Nazef at the 20th international conference of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs.

Several factors, including shallow understanding of the Islamic tenets by some extremists, impede the development of the Islamic countries, Mubarak was quoted as saying.

Mubarak said Islamic countries should establish security first in order to realize comprehensive development at all levels.

Islamic countries should join hands in a bid to fight extremism and terrorism, spread the true values of Islam such as tolerance and solidarity, said Mubarak.

On Sunday morning, Nazef opened the four-day conference under the title "Societal Security elements in Islam" on behalf of Mubarak.

With the participation of representatives and intellectuals from some 80 countries and 200 international organizations, the conference focuses on four themes on social rights, social justice, faith concepts and the role of institutions in achieving social security and rights of citizens.

The Saudi delegation to the conference was led by Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance Sheikh Salih bin Abdulaziz Al Alsheikh.

The statement discussed the issue of security in the world and the vital importance of security for people.

The statement highlighted Islam's concern for security of all people living in Islamic countries.

The statement said that ensuring security for Muslims in the world requires cooperation to achieve a number of goals including confronting the phenomena of extremism, fanaticism and terrorism which harmed the image of Islam.

The Sheikh of Alazhar Dr. Mohammad Sayed Tantawi met with Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance Sheikh Salih bin Abdulaziz Al Alsheikh.

During the meeting, cordial talks were exchanged. Dr. Tantawi praised Saudi efforts to serve Islam and Muslims including expansion of the two holy mosques and development of the holy sites.

In cooperation with Pakistan, three Saudis, who were earlier residing irregularly in unstable regions, were extradited to the Kingdom, said an official source at the interior ministry.

The source noted that two of them had earlier contacted the Saudi embassy expressing desire to return home and surrender.

The official source pointed out that these returnees will be subject to the systems applied in the Kingdom, and they will be enabled to meet their relatives.