Bahrain Mirror: King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa for the first time entrusted his son the Crown Prince, Salman bin Hamad, with direct executive powers, a sign of the growing role of the Crown Prince since Bahrain received $10 billion worth of Gulf aid.

King Hamad issued Royal Order (50) of 2018, entrusting the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier with developing the executive branch of the government.

According to Bahrain News Agency (BNA), the Royal Order stipulates that "the Crown Prince is entrusted with developing the executive branch of government and issuing all necessary edicts, particularly the appointment of directors, as well as those with similar ranks, and transferring them to ministries and government entities."

The Order also states that the Crown Prince is assigned to chair and form the Civil Service Council, adding that the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) shall be affiliated with the Civil Service Council.

The Royal Order further stipulates that Decree 22 of 2011 on transferring the affiliation of the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) to the Council of Ministers is abrogated and that any text inconsistent with the provisions of this Order shall be repealed.

A number of Gulf states have granted Bahrain 10 billion dollars to implement austerity measures proposed by a team headed by the Crown Prince and endorsed by a Gulf team for the purpose of rebalancing Bahrain's financial state by 2022.

Arabic Version