Riyadh: ministerial reshuffle includes the ministries of information, al-Haj education and social affairs

The Saudi king Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz yesterday made a ministerial reshuffle according to which he exempted the two ministers of education and social affairs from their posts and changed the two ministers of al-Haj and information.

The Saudi official news agency said that King Fahd "exempted" the minister of education Muhammad Bin Ahmad al-Rasheed from his post and appointed chairman of the Saudi society for human rights Abdullah Bin Saleh Bin Obeid as his successor.

Obeid who has a university degree from an American university, is a member since more than three years in the Shoura council which Saudi Arabia wants to expand its authorities.

King Fahd also exempted the minister of social affairs Ali Bin Ibrahim al-Namla from his post and appointed as his successor the member in the Shoura council and deputy chairman of the Saudi group for research and marketing which publishes the "al-Sharqa al-Awsat" London based daily, Abdul Mohsen Bin Abdul Aziz al-Makkas ( 58 year old). The royal decision read that al-Rasheed and al-Namlah asked for the exemption, but gave no details on that.

According to the decree the Saudi King appointed the current minister of culture and information Foaud Bin Abdul salaam al-Farisis as a minister for al-Haj affairs and the minister of al-Haj Eyad Bin Amin Madani as a minister of culture and information.