RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA (AP) – Saudi Arabia’s octogenarian monarch underwent medical tests and had the battery of his pacemaker changed, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.
King Salman will rest for several days following the procedure and “successful medical tests”, the news agency said.
Government-produced images showed the king leaving the King Faisal Specialist Hospital in the capital, Riyadh, using a cane but otherwise walking unassisted.
King Salman was accompanied by an entourage that included his son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as he left the hospital.
The monarch’s health is closely watched because he holds absolute power in the kingdom.
King Salman has appointed his 36-year-old son Prince Mohammed, as his successor, though he’s also already empowered him to lead day-to-day affairs. In July 2020, the king was admitted to a hospital in Saudi Arabia for medical tests due to inflammation of the gall bladder. He spent 10 days in the hospital, during which the gall bladder was removed.
