Monday's Cabinet meeting praised the UN Human Rights Council's endorsement of the Goldstone report by 25 votes condemning Israeli attacks on Gaza. In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency, the Minister of Culture and Information said the meeting described the UN approval as “reflecting wide international consensus condemning Israeli hostilities against the Palestinian people and Islamic holy sites”. Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja said the Cabinet, chaired by King Abdullah, was also briefed on recommendations from the 6th session of the Islamic Conference of the Islamic Ministers of Culture in Azerbaijan, with the occasion described as “emphasizing the importance of the stance of the Islamic World and its support for interfaith dialogue between cultures and religions to consolidate the Islamic principles of tolerance and mutual respect”. The Cabinet was also briefed on the recent official visit of Prince Naif Bin Abdul Aziz, Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, to Egypt, and his talks with President Hosni Mubarak, Prime Minister Ahmed Nazeef and the Egyptian Minister of Interior Habeeb Al-Adli. A report was also presented on the sixth meeting of the Interior Ministers of Countries Neighboring Iraq. In domestic affairs, Khoja said the Cabinet approved the Kingdom joining an agreement on UN staff safety which was signed in New York in 1994, and also endorsed a recommendation from the Permanent Committee of the Supreme Economic Council concerning industrial investment in Rass Al-Dhor. The Cabinet agreed to task the Yanbu and Jubail Royal Commission with the administration of the mining industries at Ras Al-Dhor following the examples of Yanbu and Jubail Industrial Cities. The Cabinet also authorized the Minister of Finance or his deputy to sign a draft agreement between the Kingdom and the Republic of Croatia to address dual taxation and tax evasion.
