Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz today chaired the regular weekly meeting of the Council of Ministers, and thanked kings and heads of state, as well as princes, senior officials, and citizens in the Kingdom and overseas, for their congratulations to him and the warm feelings they expressed on the 20th anniversary of his accession to the throne. He also gave thanks to God Almighty for the abundant blessings He has bestowed on this country, thanks to its adherence to the Holy Qur'an and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, and gave credit for the progress witnessed by the Kingdom in all fields to first, the grace of God, and second, the solidarity of its people and their cooperation in furthering this progress. King Fahd went on to say that he takes pride in having been honored to offer his services to the Two Holy Mosques, to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and to its people. By the same token, all citizens who wholeheartedly devote their services and strenuously exert their efforts for the advancement of their country are proud of having provided the best examples of solidarity and cooperation for the good of all, demonstrating the sincere cohesion that exists between the country's leadership and its people, and expressing concern to implement Islamic Shariah [Law] in word and deed, as has been the case ever since the establishment of their country.

The cabinet then expressed profound sorrow, and extended the deep condolences of the Saudi leadership and people to President Abdulaziz Bouteflika of Algeria and the families and relatives of the victims of the flooding that has recently hit the capital, Algiers. In this context, King Fahd has ordered the dispatch of relief aid to Algeria to help alleviate the sufferings of those affected by the disaster.
Reviewing the latest developments at regional and international levels, particularly the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, the cabinet called for greater efforts to reach a peaceful settlement of the conflict in the region. King Fahd recalled the efforts being exerted by the Kingdom to revive the peace process in order to reach a comprehensive and fair peace that preserves the rights of the Palestinians in accordance with United Nations resolutions, namely the establishment of a Palestinian State on national Palestinian territory with Al-Quds [Jerusalem] as its capital. He stressed the importance of the role of the United States of America in pushing forward the peace process and mounting enough pressure on Israel to halt its aggressive practices against the Palestinian people and their property.
Turning to domestic matters, the cabinet passed a number of resolutions, including endorsement of a recommendation submitted by the Minister of Industry and Electricity to form two panels, one to supervise the Saudi industrial and technological sectors, and the other to manage the distribution of electricity; the imposition of a 12 percent customs tariff on a number of imported goods to protect similar domestic products from unfair competition; and endorsement of a draft agreement on cooperation in youth and sports with the Republic of Azerbaijan.

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