Saudi Arabia’s King Salman appointed a new foreign minister on Wednesday, according to a royal decree issued less than a year after his predecessor took office.
Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud, who has been serving as ambassador to Germany, will replace Ibrahim al-Assaf, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) cited the decree as saying.
#Saudi 🇸🇦 King Salman @KingSalman appoints Saudi ambassador to Germany Faisal Bin Farhan @FaisalbinFarhan as the new foreign minister, replacing Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf @IbAlassaf who was appointed on Dec. 27, 2018. https://t.co/jW9jCOD6O8
— Saad Abedine (@SaadAbedine) October 23, 2019
Assaf will be demoted to minister of state, the SPA reported, having replaced Adel al-Jubeir in December 2018, two months after the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at Saudi’s Istanbul consulate.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed responsibility, but US officials blamed Tehran, charging that the rebels did not have the range or sophistication to target the facilities.
Assaf had been detained in 2017 in an anti-corruption sweep.
#تصريح | الأمير فيصل بن فرحان آل سعود يرفع الشكر للقيادة بمناسبة صدور الأمر الملكي الكريم بتعيينه وزيراً للخارجية pic.twitter.com/EAuuTs0Olr
— وزارة الخارجية 🇸🇦 (@KSAMOFA) October 23, 2019
Saud will take office as the kingdom continues to deal with the aftermath of Khashoggi’s killing, widely seen as the kingdom’s worst diplomatic crisis since the September 11 attacks, in which most of the hijackers were identified as Saudi nationals.
The kingdom has also been navigating a spike in tensions with its regional arch-rival Iran, with attacks on Saudi oil facilities last month that halved the kingdom’s crude output and sent prices soaring.
Read more: Will Saudi Arabia allow women to perform Hajj without male guardian?
Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels claimed responsibility, but US officials blamed Tehran, charging that the rebels did not have the range or sophistication to target the facilities.
@FaisalbinFarhan is an inspired — and inspiring — choice as FM for #SaudiArabia. Those who have had the pleasure of working with/him know him to be a man of enormous talent, charm and probity. He is and will be masterful. https://t.co/Nr74InbZYh
— Amb. Adam Ereli (@erelija) October 24, 2019
Tehran has denied involvement and warned of “total war” in the event of any attack on its territory.
Last week, an Iranian tanker was hit in suspected missile strikes off the coast of Saudi Arabia, sparking new fears of war.
AFP with additional input by GVS News Desk.