Government | Tuesday 2 June, 2015 12:46 am |

The Council of Ministers on Monday commended Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman for measures to improve services for millions of Haj and Umrah pilgrims.
The Cabinet also decided to set up a fund for people injured, killed or who have gone missing in conflicts. This includes their families and legal dependents. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy premier and minister of interior, will be the fund’s chairman.

The Cabinet meeting, which was chaired by King Salman, also praised the king for inspecting the ongoing expansion of the Grand Mosque in Makkah that will eventually accommodate more than 1.8 million worshippers.

Culture and Information Minister Adel Al-Toraifi said the expansion of the mataf, the circumambulation area around the Holy Kaaba, would create space for 107,000 pilgrims every hour.

He said the Cabinet meeting condemned the terrorist attack on worshippers at Al-Anoud Mosque in Dammam. “It’s a heinous crime committed by a deviant group that has defamed Islam through its terrorist activities.”

The Cabinet praised the security forces for preventing the suicide bomber from entering the mosque. It also lauded the cooperation between citizens and security authorities. “Citizens are the country’s first line of defense.”