RIYADH: King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, briefed the Cabinet Monday on the decision by GCC foreign ministers to suspend the Yemen initiative “due to the lack of proper circumstances for its approval”. Chairing the weekly session, King Abdullah briefed ministers on the GCC extraordinary meeting in Riyadh Sunday to solve the Yemeni crisis. The Cabinet expressed the hope that the Gulf agreement is signed as soon as possible to “put an end to the crisis in Yemen” and “reach comprehensive reconciliation that will maintain the country's security, stability and unity”. In a statement to SPA, Abdul Aziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, said the Cabinet denounced the Israeli government's decision to build 1,500 settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem. Ministers described the move as “a continuation of the Israeli policy of blocking all paths to the resumption of the faltering peace talks with the Palestinians and rapid progress for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 territory, with Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with international accords, notably the Arab peace initiative”. Khoja said the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques informed the Cabinet of his recent conversations with King Juan Carlos of Spain and Field Marshal Muhammad Hussein Tantawi, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces in Egypt. In domestic business, the Cabinet reviewed progress in the ongoing developmental projects throughout the Kingdom. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques directed to have these projects finished on time without any delay, Khoja said. The Cabinet approved a recommendation by Prince Sultan Bin Salman Bin Abdul Aziz, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, for the appointment of seven members to the commission's board, and a recommendation by the minister of finance to halt dual taxation and tax evasion between the Kingdom and Morocco. The Cabinet also authorized the president of King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology to draft an agreement with the National Space Agency in Kazakhstan for cooperation in space exploration and the use of outer space for peaceful purposes. The Cabinet approved the renewal of the membership to the Board of Directors of the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) of both Abdulrahman Bin Rashid Al-Rashid as a representative of employers and Dr. Samir Bin Abdulaziz Al-Tubayyeb as a representative of contributors for a period of three years.
