Saudi king to seek medical treatment in US

Saudi Arabia's elderly King Abdullah will leave for the United States on Monday for medical checks for a back ailment, and Crown Prince Sultan is returning from holiday abroad, state media said on Sunday. Western diplomats in Riyadh said the prince's return indicate that kingdom, the which has no political parties or elected parliament, is trying to prevent a power vacuum and reassure Washington and other allies.

A day before his departure, the king reappointed several officials close to his reform course, including Saudi Arabia's relatively moderate top Islamic scholar and the ambassador to Washington. In a rare move, Saudi Health Minister Abdullah al-Rabeeah appeared late on Sunday on state television to assure the public that the king was healthy and would return to lead the country.