Bahrain Mirror: Bahrain's king Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa said that the rapidly-unfolding political developments and extraordinary economic conditions the region is going through "required us to issue directives to merge some ministries and government departments to support the public state budget and address the economic situation in the country."

Hamad bin Isa, who was opening a session for the Parliament and Shura Council, stressed that the authorities discovered and superseded conspiracies orchestrated against it during the past years, praising what he called "the vigilant social awareness that rejects all acts of destruction, vandalism, narrow-mindedness and fanaticism".

Mentioning the participation of Bahraini army in the Saudi-led war on Yemen, the king said: "The Kingdom of Bahrain had a firm stance in this regard. "It engaged brave servicemen of Bahrain Defence Force in military operation of the campaign in line with its commitment to assuming the duty and honour of defending the region, restoring the legitimacy of Yemen, as well as protecting its people and restoring its security."

He said that a National Martyrs Day will be marked on December 17 to commemorate the martyrs of the armed forces.

Arabic Issue