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Saudi king replaces military chiefs in shake-up
[bbc] Saudi Arabia has sacked its top military commanders, including the chief of staff, in a series of late-night royal decrees. Saudi King Salman also replaced the heads of the ground forces and air defenses. The news was published by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA), but no reason for the sackings was given. They come as the war in Yemen, where a Saudi-led coalition is fighting rebels, is nearing the end of its third year. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also the defense minister, is believed to be behind various recent shake-ups in the country. The service of the chief of staff, General Abdul Rahman bin Saleh al-Bunyan, is among those "terminated", said the SPA. Various military figures have already been promoted to replace those sacked. A series of political appointments were announced at the same time, including the rare appointment of a female deputy minister of labor and social development, Tamadar bint Yousef al-Ramah. Prince Turki bin Talal  was appointed new deputy governor of the south-west Asir province. He is the brother of billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who was detained in the anti-corruption drive and released two months later.Times of Israel has more detailed info “Termination of the services of General Abdul Rahman bin Saleh al-Bunyan, Chief of Staff,” the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) announced, adding that Fayyad al-Ruwaili had been appointed as his replacement.  Al-Bunyan was retired after he inaugurated an arms exhibition this week in Riyadh by the Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI), the state-owned defense company, which has drawn several global defense firms. “A military transformation is underway in Saudi Arabia,” Theodore Karasik, a senior adviser at the consultancy Gulf States Analytics, told AFP. Saudi Gazette RIYADH – Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman appointed Prince Badr Bin Sultan as new emir of Al-Jouf, replacing Prince Fahd Bin Badr. In a series of royal decrees issued on Monday evening, the King made several key appointments of civil and military officials. Prince Fahd Bin Badr was appointed adviser to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques in the rank of minister. Prince Turki Bin Talal was named deputy emir of Asir and Prince Faisal Bin Fahd Bin Muqrin deputy emir of Hail. Dr. Tamader Bint Yousef Al-Rammah has been appointed deputy minister of labor and social development. Lt. Gen. Fayad Al-Ruwaili, deputy chief of staff, has been promoted to general and appointed new chief of staff. The service of the Chief of Staff Gen. Abdurahman Al-Bunyan was ended on retirement and he was appointed as adviser at the Royal Court. Prince Faisal Bin Turki has been appointed as adviser at the Royal Court in the rank of minister and Prince Sultan Bin Ahmad as adviser at the Royal Court. New ministers Khaled Bayari -assistant minister of defense for executive affairs Dr. Bandar Al-Mushari -assistant minister of interior for technical affairs Ahmad Qattan -minister of state for the affairs of African states Sheikh Saad Al-Saif -deputy minister of justice Abdullah Abu Thunain -deputy minister of labor and social development Faisal Al-Ibrahim, deputy minister of economy and planning Khaled Al-Shunaifi –assistant minister of economy and planning Muhammad Al-Mohanna new undersecretary at the Ministry of Interior for security affairs, replacing Hamad Al-Khalaf Deputy Minister of Labor Ahmad Al-Humaidan was relieved Deputy Minister of Interior and Member of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs Ahmad Bin Muhammad Al-Salem was relieved of his duties. Muhammad Al-Mutairi – new secretary general of the Shoura Council Adnan Al-Humaidan -new president of Jeddah University Shalaan Bin Rajih Shalaan, deputy public prosecutor Abdul Aziz Al-Zoum – governor of General Authority for Competition Mayors Tariq Al-Faris -Riyadh region Muhammad Al-Quwaihes –Makkah, replacing Osama Al-Bar Reshuffle of defense forces command The King made major reshuffles at the command of the defense forces. These include the following: Lt. Gen. Muhammad Suhaim, commander of the Air Defense Forces, ordered to retire. Lt. Gen. Fahd Bin Turki, commander of the Land Forces, relieved of the post and was appointed as commander of the Joint Forces. Maj. Gen. Mutlaq Al-Azaimie promoted to Lt. Gen. and appointed as deputy chief of staff. Maj. Gen. Jarallah Al-Olwait promoted to Lt. Gen. and appointed as commander of the Strategic Missiles Force. Maj. Gen. Fahd Al-Mutair promoted to Lt. Gen. and appointed as commander of the Land Forces. Maj. Gen. Muzaid Al-Amr promoted to Lt. Gen. and appointed as commander of Air Defense Forces. Maj. Gen. Turki Bin Bandar promoted to Lt. Gen. and appointed as commander of the Air Forces. Posted by: 3dc 2018-02-27 |
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