Veteran Saudi FM undergoes surgery

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal has undergone a successful operation to remove an obstruction in his intestines and the 72-year-old is in stable condition, the royal court said on Saturday. In a statement carried by the official SPA news agency, the royal court said Prince Saud was suffering from "intestinal obstruction" triggered by a previous surgery. "He underwent successful surgery" to remove the obstruction and "his health is stable," the statement added. It did not say when the operation was carried out. Prince Saud is one of the world's longest-serving foreign ministers, having been appointed to the post in 1975, seven months after the assassination of his father, the late King Faisal. He has suffered from back problems and undergone surgery in the United States. It was not immediately clear if he would chair a meeting on Sunday of Arab foreign ministers in the Red Sea city of Jeddah to discuss the Syrian conflict following the resignation of UN-Arab League peace envoy Kofi Annan.