Major reshuffle in Saudi Arabia

any thoughts from our friends in the kingdom?  was this a surprise?

Major reshuffle in Saudi Arabia

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has sacked two powerful religious officials in a wide ranging shake-up of the cabinet and other government posts.

One of the dismissed men was the head of the controversial religious police force. The other was the country's most senior judge.

The king also appointed the country's first-ever female minister and replaced the head of the central bank.

Correspondents say such government reshuffles are rare in Saudi Arabia. <!- E SF ->

King Abdullah, who came to power in 2005, has for a long time had the reputation of a reformer – and the latest appointments have the makings of one of the biggest shake-ups in Saudi public life for many years.

The BBC's Arab affairs analyst Bob Trevelyan says the pace of change has been slow in the four years of the king's reign.

Despite the shake-up, our correspondent says the kingdom remains an absolute monarchy and real political change is not on the agenda.

Feared organisation

The sacked head judge, Sheikh Salih Ibn al-Luhaydan, caused controversy last September when he said it was permissible to kill the owners of satellite TV channels which broadcast immoral programmes.

Sheikh Salih Ibn al-Luhaydan said some "evil" entertainment programmes aired by the channels promoted debauchery.

Our correspondent says the sheikh may well be paying the price for airing his opinions.

The shake-up also affected the feared religious police organisation, known as the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.

Sheikh Ibrahim al-Ghaith has lost his job as head of the commssion, which enforces Saudi Arabia's conservative brand of Islam, Wahhabism.

The commission has wide powers to search for alcohol and drugs, to crack down on prostitution and ensure shops are closed during prayer times.

But our correspondent says the religious police have been widely criticised recently over allegations of brutality – the kind of comments that could never have been made publicly a few years ago.

I dont like King Abdullah..

:P

I dont know how many women (wifes) he has :D but i am sure they are both lucky and unlucky..

Lucky becoz > to urination in a golden toilet seems to funny and comfortable :)) ı would like to try one day :P

But he never allows me being his wife :P

Unlucky > For .. hmmm for all things abour his character :D

Btw He look like Gargamal :P

:)

he he Can I cry,you seem to like this guy!! Golden toilet??

:P He is soo rich :P

N have golden tolilet ( i heard it in news)

:P ahaa i love his money :)

His soul is money…So i can say that ı like him :P

Ohooo..Abdullah's money, find me plss :)

Maybe he wants to change the image of Saudi Arabia in the world.

every topic u wrote about SAUDIA….SAUDIA….....

HAHAHA just kidding try to resemble ppl who say every thing islam ..islam…

CIC, u r a materialist girl :)

Matrix, the article said THE central bank, so I assumed there is only one. 

Matrix, yes, I assumed that since the author of the piece used the definite article THE, he meant the one and only central bank. If there is more than one, he should have used the indefinite article A.

I think it was a safe assumption: 

from the Wall Street Journal yesterday, Feb 14

RIYADH—Saudi Arabia named Muhammad al-Jasser as its new central-bank governor on Saturday in a government reshuffle that saw the appointment of the first woman to a cabinet-level position in the kingdom.

Mr. al-Jasser replaces Hamad Al Sayyari, the longest serving central banker in the Gulf, to head the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, an authority that controls monetary policy in the kingdom and oversees its vast foreign assets estimated to be worth in excess of $500 billion.

Muhammad Al-Jasser

"Al-Jasser is an excellent choice to run the most important central bank in the region and one of the most important in the G-20," said John Sfakianakis, the chief economist at SABB, HSBC Holdings PLC's Saudi affiliate.

King Abdullah, Saudi Arabia's ruler, has decided to introduce new leadership at SAMA as the kingdom prepares to adjust to the twin challenges of lower oil prices and the global economic crisis.

Mr. al-Jasser attended San Diego State University, according to a profile on the CEO World magazine Web site. Prior to joining SAMA in 1995 as deputy governor, Mr. al-Jasser held a number of positions in the Saudi Ministry of Finance and the IMF, according to the Web site.

He didn't return calls Saturday seeking comment.

Investors on the Saudi Arabian Stock Exchange, or Tadawul, were optimistic about the change in management at the top of SAMA.

"There is some positive reaction in the market to the appointment of the new central-bank governor but investors will eventually want to see some real policy changes to sustain the sentiment," says Rashid Al Fowzan, a Saudi market analyst.

Saudi shares closed up 2% at 4944.18 Saturday.

Mr. al-Jasser will have to contend with a worsening economic climate as the kingdom's oil earnings shrink. Saudi, the world's largest oil exporter, expects revenue this year to fall to 410 billion Saudi riyals ($109.31 billion), from 1.1 trillion riyals expected in 2008.

At the same time as announcing a new SAMA chief, Noura Al Fayez was appointed as the deputy education minister, becoming the first woman to enter the upper levels of the kingdom's government, according to Al Arabiya television Saturday.

"It's an excellent step forward and is part of the ongoing modernization of the country, where women are included in business and government," Mr. Sfakianakis said.

MATRIX_07 

Lucky becoz > to urination in a golden toilet seems to funny and comfortable :)) ı would like to try one day..

 does it seem funny?

_

I have never tried it..but it seems so funny  to me :)) ahaa dont worry if it is not funny :P Dont u know i am still a kid :D

osesame

Egypt

every topic u wrote about SAUDIA….SAUDIA….....

HAHAHA just kidding try to resemble ppl who say every thing islam ..islam…

CIC, u r a materialist girl :)

_____

Ahann… But i sometimes critise Suadis or wronge islamic understandings (they make a bad thing then show İSlam to prove that they are right)

they have to give up showing my beautiful religion about something they want to do..

Ok..Kur'an is in Arabic! But we have our own mind to understand it. or interpret it..

only Arabs dont own ISLAM.. it is mine too.

and i can do everything, say everything to something i have!

:)))

Anyway..my sentences aren't for u..dont get me wronge :)

this article is wrote by a big liar …

king AbduAllah is not just a king but also a father ..

do not talk about smth u do not know!..