Saudi Arabia's King Salman chaired the weekly cabinet meeting on Tuesday, according to state television, for the first time since Sept. 24.

The 88-year-old king of the world's biggest oil exporter, a major U.S. ally in the Middle East, recovered in October from lung inflammation after undergoing medical tests.

His last cabinet meeting in September came after a royal decree a month earlier allowing the cabinet to convene in the absence of both himself and the prime minister, his son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

He also received medical care for lung inflammation in May, but chaired a cabinet meeting a week later with state TV broadcasting footage of him leading the meeting via video conference.