| Chairman of the General Staff | |
|---|---|
| رئاسة هيئة الأركان العامة للقوات المسلحة | |
| | |
| Type | Chief of defence |
| Status | Highest-ranking (within MoD) |
| Abbreviation | COGS |
| Member of | General Staff Presidency Council of Military Service |
| Nominator | Minister of Defence |
| Appointer | King of Saudi Arabia |
| Term length | No fixed length |
| Precursor | Military Affairs Director |
| Formation | 29 September 1939 |
| First holder | Mohammad Tarek Abdelkader |
The Chairman of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (abbreviated COGS) also known as the "Chief of the General Staff" is the chief and highest ranking officer of the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces.
He usually holds the highest military rank within the Ministry of Defense. The current Chairman is Air Chief Marshal Fayyadh al-Ruwaili, who succeeded General Abdulrahman al-Bunian in February 2018. [1]
| No. | Portrait | Chairman | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Major General Muhammad Tariq Abd al-Qadir al-Afriqi (c. 1886–1965) | 1939 | 1941 | 1–2 years | Land Forces | |
| 2 | Brigadier general Ja'far Al Tayyar (18??–1944) | 1941 | 1944 | 2–3 years | Land Forces | |
| 3 | Brigadier general Al-Sheriff Mohsen al-Hussein (1908–1968) | 1944 | 1949 | 4 years | Land Forces | |
| 4 | Brigadier general Said al-Kurdi (1896–1964) | 1949 | 1957 | 7 years | Land Forces | |
| 5 | Major General Abdullah al-Issa (1924–1975) | 1957 | 1959 | 1–2 years | Land Forces | |
| 6 | Lieutenant General Ibrahim al-Tassan (1???–1963) | 1959 | 1962 | 2–3 years | Land Forces | |
| 7 | General Abdullah al-Mutlaq (19??–2015) | 1962 | 1971 | 8–9 years | Land Forces | |
| 8 | General Hamad Shammemry (1919–2016) | 1971 | 1975 | 3–4 years | Land Forces | |
| 9 | General Othman Al Hamid (c. 1923–2004) | 1975 | 1980 | 4–5 years | Land Forces | |
| 10 | General Mohammed al-Hamad (19??–2010) | 1980 | 1996 | 16–17 years | Land Forces | |
| 11 | General Saleh al-Mahaya (born 1939) | 1996 | 2011 | 14–15 years | Land Forces | |
| 12 | General Hussein al-Qabil (born 1942) | 2011 | 2014 | 2–3 years | Land Forces | |
| 13 | General Abdulrahman al-Bunyan | 2014 | 2018 | 3–4 years | Land Forces | |
| 14 | Air Chief Marshal Fayyadh al-Ruwaili (born 1958) | 26 February 2018 | Incumbent | 7 years, 60 days | Air Force |