TAIF, 29 July — Prince Abdullah, the regent, held talks with Gareth Evans, former Australian foreign minister and president of the International Crisis Group (ICG). The meeting was attended by Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, Prince Miteb, minister of public works and housing, Prince Nawaf, director of intelligence, and Prince Saud Al-Faisal, foreign minister. Prince Abdullah also received a message from Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The message was handed over by M.H. Mohamed, minister of western region development in the Indian Ocean island. Prince Abdullah is scheduled to open the Islamic Museum at the historic Shabra Palace here today. Education Minister Dr. Muhammad Al-Rasheed thanked Prince Sultan for his order to renovate the historical palace at a cost of SR6 million. Dr. Saad Al-Rashid, undersecretary at the Ministry of Education for antiquities and museums, said plans were under way to convert the palace into a cultural center which will include in addition to the museum, a library, halls for folklore shows, handcrafts and as well as a lectures hall. (SPA)