Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz, 84, was taken to the hospital and is undergoing medical tests, state-run media announced.
King Salman, who has ruled the kingdom since 2015, was suffering from an inflamed gallbladder, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Monday. He is being treated at King Faisal Specialist Hospital in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. No further details about his health were released.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan al Saud said that Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi postponed a planned visit to the kingdom after news broke of King Salman’s hospitalization.
The king served as crown prince for more than two years before the 2015 death of King Abdullah. In addition to ruling the kingdom, King Salman oversees some of Islam’s holiest sites in Mecca and Medina. The next in line for the throne is his son, 34-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The crown prince is a popular figure domestically but a controversial figure internationally. Known by the acronym MBS, he has been praised for reforms in Saudi Arabia, including allowing more rights for women. However, he has also been vilified for the ongoing war in Yemen and for the 2018 death of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
