Riyadh, Saudi Arabia ? The Saudi king on Saturday dismissed the chief of the religious police and a cleric who condoned killing the owners of TV networks that broadcast “immoral” content, signaling an effort to weaken the country’s hard-line Sunni establishment.

The shake-up — King Abdullah’s first since coming to power in August 2005 — included the appointment of a female deputy minister, the highest government position a Saudi woman has attained.

The king also changed the makeup of an influential body of religious scholars, for the first time giving more moderate Sunnis representation to the group whose duties include issuing the religious edicts known as fatwas.

Saudi Arabia’s king does not have unlimited power. He has to take into account the sentiments of the sprawling ruling family as well as that of the powerful religious establishment, which helped found the state nearly a century ago.

Abdullah’s changes indicate that he has built the necessary support and consensus in the religious elite and in the ruling family.

The religious establishment has come under persistent criticism, in particular because of the actions of the judiciary and the religious police. Agents of the moral police are responsible for ensuring women are covered and men go to mosques for prayer, among other things, but many Saudis say they exploit their broad mandate to interfere in people’s lives.

The changes help to dilute the influence that hard-liners have had for decades. The king, who has promoted moderation and interfaith dialogue, has brought in a group of relatively young officials and scholars.

“This is the true start of the promises of reform,” said Jamal Khashoggi, editor of Al-Watan newspaper and an experienced observer of the kingdom’s politics. “They bring not only new blood, but also new ideas,”

“They are more moderate and many are also close to the reform agenda of the king, having worked closely with him.”

The delay in making these changes could also be in part because the necessary officials and scholars had to be trained for the job.

“The people now in charge are not being ordered to implement reform,” Khashoggi added. “They believe in reform.”

New judges were also named and the Consultative Council — the closest thing the kingdom has to a parliament — was reshuffled.