Prince Khaled bin Salman, was given Saudi Arabia's top diplomatic post as ambassador to the US.



Meanwhile, another of the king's sons, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, was given one of Saudi Arabia's most important positions, becoming state minister for energy affairs on Sunday.



Eight princes were also given deputy governor posts for cities or regions in Saudi Arabia including Mecca, Medina and Riyadh.



Young blood



Saudi Arabia's ruling al-Saud family have dominated the country's political system since the establishment of the third al-Saud state, with only a few senior roles given to non-royals.





Saudi Arabia has announced that benefits for military personnel and civil servants will be reinstated, as King Salman unveiled a series of royal decree on Sunday.The measures came after Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reviewed the cuts, part of government efforts to curb spending when oil prices tanked in 2014.Mohammed bin Salman reasoned that the overall fiscal situation for Saudi Arabia looks better after two years of austerity and that Riyadh can ease off on some of its austerity measures."The royal order returns all allowances, financial benefits, and bonuses to civil servants and military staff," said the decree, according to Reuters.Riyadh's experiment with austerity saw economic growth slow, after the price of oil went below the $30 a barrel mark early last year.Since then, the price of a barrel has stabilised to around $50 but economists argue that the days of plenty could be over for Saudi Arabia with oil will unlikely to rise significantly in the coming years.Saudi Arabia has unveiled an ambitious diversification programme called Saudi Vision 2030, which Riyadh hopes will see growth in other non-oil sectors.Part of this mission is to see Saudi youth take a bigger role in government and running the economy, while the puritanical vigor of the ulama will be kept in check.This was seen with the announcement of a cabinet shake-up and new roles for young princes in diplomacy and government.One of King Salman's sons, fighter pilot