Saudi Cabinet appreciates UN condemnation of Houthi attacks

King Salman. (SPA)
Updated 04 September 2019
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Saudi Cabinet appreciates UN condemnation of Houthi attacks

  • Flood aid to Khartoum displays Saudi-Sudan friendship

RIYADH: Recent royal decrees reflect the Kingdom’s keenness to develop various sectors in line with the Vision 2030 reform plan, the Saudi Cabinet said on Tuesday at a meeting chaired by King Salman at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah. The creation of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, and of the National Center for Artificial Intelligence, are among the most important of the decrees. The Cabinet decided to include Nabil bin Mohammed Al-Amoudi on Saudi Aramco’s board of directors.
Trade and Investment Minister Dr. Majid Al-Qassabi told the Saudi Press Agency that the Cabinet appreciates the UN Security Council’s condemnation of the repeated targeting of civilians in Saudi Arabia by Houthi militias in Yemen.
The urgent relief campaign ordered by King Salman for Sudan stems from Saudi concern for the Sudanese people, and is part of the Kingdom’s pivotal role in providing assistance to people in need wherever they are, the Cabinet said.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The creation of the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, and of the National Center for Artificial Intelligence, are among the most important of the decrees.   

• The Cabinet decided to include Nabil bin Mohammed Al-Amoudi on Saudi Aramco’s board of directors.

• Saudi and Afghan governments to jointly combat drug trafficking, Cabinet told.  

• Cabinet welcomes Umrah pilgrims to the Kingdom.

It added that the Saudi government provided $2 million in financial support to the Islamic Food Security Organization to contribute to the implementation of its programs, and to fulfil its commitments to member states.
The Cabinet welcomed Umrah pilgrims to the Kingdom, who are expected to number 10 million this year.
It authorized a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Saudi and Afghan governments to combat drug trafficking.  
The Cabinet also authorized an MoU between the Saudi National Anti-Corruption Commission and the UN Development Program in the field of corruption prevention.


Saudi Arabia launches initiative to reroute Gulf cargo to Red Sea ports

Updated 13 March 2026
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Saudi Arabia launches initiative to reroute Gulf cargo to Red Sea ports

  • The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region
  • Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway

 

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has launched an initiative to redirect shipping from ports in the Arabian Gulf to its Red Sea ports amid the ongoing US-Israel-Iran war.

Transport Minister Saleh Al-Jasser, who also chairs the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), launched the Logistics Corridors Initiative alongside Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority Governor Suhail Abanmi, Mawani President Suliman Al-Mazroua, and other officials, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The initiative will establish dedicated operational corridors to receive containers and cargo redirected from ports in the Kingdom's Eastern Region and other Gulf Cooperation Council states to Jeddah Islamic Port and other Red Sea coast ports.

Al-Jasser said the Kingdom was committed to ensuring supply-chain stability and the smooth flow of goods through global trade routes. Jeddah Islamic Port and other west coast ports, he added, were already playing a key role in accommodating shipments redirected from the east, while also linking Gulf cargo to regional and international markets.

The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region. Iran has long threatened to close the strait — the world's most critical oil and gas chokepoint, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supplies pass — in the event of a war.

Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway, sending freight rates soaring and forcing shipping companies to seek alternative routes.

Saudi Arabia's Red Sea ports offer a viable bypass, connecting Gulf cargo to global markets without passing through the strait.