Vice Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud chaired the Cabinet meeting held, at Al-Salam palace here today. At the beginning of the meeting, Vice Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud for the contacts he made with many leaders of the world, praising the reopening of Al-Aqsa mosque and the abolition of restrictions on entry to the mosque, a matter that contributed to the restoration of stability, reassurance for worshipers and preservation of their dignity and security, based on the Kingdom's keenness on the right of Muslims to pray in the Al-Aqsa Mosque and perform their worship with ease and reassurance and feel respect of the sanctity of the place. The Vice-Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques briefed the Council on the results of his meeting with the Commander of the US Central Command General Joseph Votel, during which they reviewed the fields of bilateral cooperation, especially on the military side, joint efforts in fighting terrorism, combating extremism and the latest developments in the region, such as meeting Moqtada Al-Sadr to review Saudi-Iraqi relations and a number of issues of common concern. The Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Awwad bin Saleh Al-Awwad said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency following the meeting that the Cabinet condemned the Houthi militias launching of a ballistic missile towards Makkah area, in a desperate attempt to disrupt the Hajj season. The Houthis also continued smuggling of rockets into Yemeni territory because of the lack of control over the port of Hodeida and the abuse of permits granted by the Alliance for relief shipments and goods, the Cabinet said. The cabinet welcomed the statement made by the foreign ministers of the anti-terrorism quartet, in Manama, on the crisis with Qatar, stressing the six principles declared at the Cairo meeting, which represent the international consensus on the fight against terrorism and extremism and financing them. Qatar should declare sincere and practical desire to stop supporting and funding for terrorism and extremism, as well as spreading the rhetoric of hatred and incitement, and commit itself to non-interference in the affairs of other countries and implement the 13 just demands that guarantee peace and stability in the region and the world. The four countries criticized deliberate intention of the Qatari authorities to obstruct the performance of pilgrimage to the Qatari citizens and commended continuous facilities provided by the Kingdom to receive the pilgrims. The Cabinet also welcomed the statement issued by the Council of the League of Arab States at the level of Foreign Ministers, at the end of its emergency meeting on Israeli attacks on the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Cabinet appreciated the efforts of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques to protect Al-Aqsa Mosque, rejecting all attempts to impose unilateral control and actions aimed at harming Al-Quds, the Haram Al-Sharif and to affirm that the only way to peace is to return to the Arab peace initiative and to establish an effective international mechanism that guarantees Palestinian people inalienable rights and to put an end to occupation, under a specific time frame and the establishment of a Palestinian state with Al-Quds as its capital. The Council noted the contents of the final communiqué of the meeting of the Committee of Permanent Delegates of the OIC Member States to discuss the recent Israeli escalation in Al-Quds, its condemnation of all punitive measures taken by the Israeli occupation authorities and rejection of all measures imposed by Israel on the Holy City and the mosque. The Council of Ministers renewed strong condemnation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia of the suicide bombing, in Kabul, and offered condolence to the families of the victims, to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and its people, wishing the injured speedy recovery. Dr. Al-Awwad said that the Cabinet reviewed the topics on the agenda of the meeting, including subjects co-studied by Majlis Al-Shura. The Cabinet concluded the following: First: The Cabinet approved a memorandum of cooperation in the field of countering reproducing of commercial products between the Ministry of Commerce and Investment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, co-signed in Tokyo on 29/11/1437 H. Second: The Cabinet approved a cooperation agreement in the field of peaceful using of atomic energy between the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, co-signed in Riyadh on 24/1/1438. Third: The Cabinet authorized the President of the General Auditing Bureau, or his deputy, to discuss with the United Arab Emirates' Auditing Bureau, the Arab Republic of Egypt's Central Accounting Apparatus, and the Russian Federation's Chamber of Accounts issues of cooperation in the field of accounting, auditing and professional work, sign them and submit the finally co-signed version to complete formal procedures. Fourth: The Cabinet approved rules of the supervisory committees for the sectors earmarked for privatization and their tasks. Fifth: The Cabinet amended the name of the National Program for Support of Projects at Public Departments to become the National Program to Support Projects management, operation and maintenance in the public bodies and to transfer to the national program tasks stipulated, in the organization of the National Committee for Standardization and Specification. Sixth: The Cabinet approved the participation of the Kingdom in Expo Dubai 2020. Seventh: The Cabinet approved the Statute of the Economic Judiciary Commission of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
