Saudi king stamps authority with cabinet shake-up

Saudi Arabia's new king, Salman, has fired the heads of the country's security agencies and sacked two sons of the late King Abdullah in a sweeping government shake-up as he seeks to stamp his authority.

A statement on Friday said Bandar bin Sultan, a prince and nephew of the late monarch Abdullah, was removed from his posts as secretary general of the national security council and adviser to the king. Bandar had been a high-profile member of the Saudi government for decades, and served as ambassador to the US for 22 years.

The statement also said Khalid bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud, another prince, had been removed as chief of intelligence.

Top officials from the ports authority, the country's anti-corruption commission and the religious police were among those fired.

Two sons of the late monarch were also fired: Mishaal, governor of the Mecca region, and Turki, who governed the capital Riyadh, according to royal decrees broadcast on Saudi television.

Bandar had been a high-profile member of the Saudi government for decades, and served as ambassador to the US for 22 years.

General Khalid bin Ali bin Abdullah al-Humaidan became the new intelligence chief.

Salman, 79, a half-brother of Abdullah, named a 31-member cabinet whose new faces include the ministers for culture and information, social affairs, civil service, and communications and information technology, among others.

National pay day

Salman also ordered two months' basic salary to all Saudi government civil and military employees. Students and pensioners got similar bonuses.

"Dear people: You deserve more and whatever I do will not be able to give you what you deserve," the king said later on his official Twitter account. He asked his citizens to "not forget me in your prayers".

The shake-up is the latest move by Salman to cement his new position. He appointed his son, Mohammed bin Salman, as defence minister hours after Abdullah died on January 23.

The powerful interior minister, Mohammed bin Nayef, became second in line to the throne while Moqren bin Abdul Aziz, 69, was elevated to king-in-waiting.

Moqren would reign as the last son of the kingdom's founder, Abdul Aziz bin Saud. Nayef would be the first of the "second generation", or grandsons of Abdul Aziz.

The appointment of Nayef helps to solidify control by the new king's Sudayri branch of the royal family. Their influence had waned under Abdullah.