After a royal decree dismissed Lieutenant General Fahd bin Turki bin Abdulaziz from the Joint Forces Command, Deputy Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen. Mutlaq Bin Salem Al-Azaima, has been assigned to carry out the duty of the Commander of the Joint Forces operating against the Houthi militias in Yemen.
Al-Azaima was the commander of the Peninsula Shield forces of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, which were able to foil the Iranian plot to trigger riots in Bahrain.
In February 2018, he was appointed Deputy Chief of the Saudi General Staff, as part of the royal orders which were issued following the adoption of the Ministry of Defense development document.
The document outlined the ministry’s development vision and strategy. He also took over the Command of the Southern Region and supervised the “South Shield” plan. He was appointed as Commander of the Eastern Region and tasked with preparing plans and supervising military exercises.
Al-Azaima holds bachelor degrees in military science from King Abdulaziz Military College and the Nasser Higher Military Academy.
Based on the royal order issued on Monday, Al-Azaima was appointed as the Commander of the Joint Forces, which among others has the task to confront emerging threats and enhance the combat readiness of Saudi forces.
