Saudiya, UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain advise citizens to leave Lebanon

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have advised their citizens not to travel to Lebanon and urged those who are in the country to leave as soon as possible. Saudi Arabia's official news agency SPA quoted a source in the foreign ministry on Thursday as saying: "Due to the situations in the Republic of Lebanon, the official source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the Saudi nationals visiting or residing in Lebanon are asked to leave the country as soon as possible. "The Kingdom advised all citizens not to travel to Lebanon from any other international destinations."
Only hours later, Kuwait and the UAE also urged its nationals to leave Lebanon immediately. Bahrain - an ally of Saudi Arabia - had already ordered its citizens to leave Lebanon on Sunday, with the Bahraini foreign ministry issuing a travel advisory that cited "safety considerations".

Kuwait executes seven people, including a prince

Kuwait has hanged seven prisoners, including a royal family member, according to a statement carried by the state-run KUNA news agency.The hangings on Wednesday were the first executions in the Gulf state since mid-2013. Its neighbour state, Bahrain, also executed three people recently.
Those executed in Kuwait included two Kuwaitis, two Egyptians, a Bangladeshi,a Filipina and an Ethiopian. They were convicted of offences ranging from murder, attempted murder, kidnapping and rape.The Kuwaiti government identified the royal as Sheikh Faisal Abdullah Al Jaber Al Sabah. He was convicted of shooting to death his nephew, another prince, in 2010 in what was a premeditated murder. He was also convicted of illegal possession of a firearm.
Nusra al-Enezi, a Kuwaiti woman found guilty of setting fire to a tent at her husband's wedding in 2009 as he married a second wife, was also executed. During the process she confessed that the fire, that killed 57 people, most women and children, was an act of revenge.

Attacks on hotel in Sousse and Shi'íte mosque in Kuwait

The scene after the blast in the Imam al-Sadeq mosque in Kuwait City (Photo Kuwaitna/AP)

 At least 27 people, including foreign tourists, were killed when at least one gunman opened fire on a Tunisian beachside hotel in the popular resort of Sousse on Friday, an interior ministry spokesman said.
Police were still clearing the area around the Imperial Marhaba hotel and the body of one gunman lay at the scene with a Kalashnikov assault rifle after he was shot in an exchange of gunfire, a security source at the scene said.
It was the second major attack in the North African country this year, and took place during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.
"One attacker opened fire with a Kalashnikov on tourists and Tunisians on the beach of the hotel," said a hotel worker at the site. "It was just one attacker. He was a young guy dressed in shorts like he was a tourist himself."
Tunisia has been on high alert since March, when Islamist militant gunmen attacked the Bardo museum in Tunis, killing a group of foreign tourists in one of the worst attacks in a decade in the North African country.

Fifth day of protests in Kuwait against arrest of oppostion leader

Photo of an earlier day of protest in Kuwait City against the arrest of Al-Barrak (AFP/The National)

Kuwait riot police on Sunday fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse hundreds of opposition protesters who were demanding the release of a detained opposition leader.Witnesses said riot police in armoured vehicles fired tear gas and stun grenades at the protesters as soon as they marched toward a courts complex in the capital Kuwait City, forcing them to flee.

Police chased them into narrow streets of Kuwait City markets to ensure they do not reach the courts complex, where opposition leader Musallam Al Barrak is scheduled to face trial on Monday.

The interior ministry said a number of protesters had been held while rights activist Mohammad Al Humaidi said around 30 people were arrested. Activists said a number of protesters were wounded with at least one of them hospitalised. It was the fifth night of violence in Kuwait sparked by the arrest of Al Barrak, a former MP.

Kuwait executes three men

Reuters reports that Kuwait executed three men on Monday who had been convicted of murder. They were the first to be executed in this state since 2007, the Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported.
The daily Al-Qabas (Arabic) reported on Sunday that the three were a Pakistani, a Saudi and a stateless man, a so called 'bidun'. The three were executed by hanging at the Central Prison, KUNA said. Authorities had invited journalists from Kuwaiti publications to witness the executions.
The last recorded case of the death penalty being carried out in Kuwait was six years ago when a Pakistani man was executed for drug trafficking, according to Amnesty International.

Kuwait: Shiites winners in election that was boycotted by opposition

The general elections in Kuwait have seen en remarkable low turnout of only 26.7%, because of a boycott called for by the opposition. Speaking after an emergency meeting of the opposition, former Islamist MP Khaled Al-Sultan said that “based on information available to the opposition, the turnout of voters was very low at 26.7 percent”. The figure was confirmed by the website of the Information Ministry which was carrying the latest results of the counting of the ballots. There has so far been no official figures on the turnout by the National Election Commission.
Other remarkable fact: Candidates of the Shiite minority in the country won as many as 15 seats in the 50-member National Assembly. It was the first time Shiites got that many seats. In the 2012 majlis which was disbanded they had only nine seats.
The opposition wants the results to be nullified. Former Assembly speaker Ahmad Al-Saadoun described the election as “unconstitutional”, while former MP Faisal Al-Mislem called on elected MPs to resign after the 'clear popular verdict' in the election brought about by the massive boycott.

Kuwait votes amidst big protests

 (Photo Kuwait Times)

Kuwait is holding elections on Saturday amidst wide spread protests over changes made to the voting rules last month. In one of the biggest rallies in Kuwait's history tens of thousands took to the streets on Friday to call for a boycot.
“The people want the downfall of the decree,” chanted the massive crowds in reference to the Amiri decree that amended the electoral law cutting the number of candidates a voter can choose from a maximum of four to just one. The opposition has maintained the decree is unconstitutional and will only lead to the election of a pro-government National Assembly by encouraging vote-buying and other corrupt practices.
Kuwait has had months of confrontations between the opposition and government. The crisis was sparked in June, when the Constitutional Court annulled parliamentary elections held in February, in which the Islamist-led opposition made significant gains. The court also reinstated the previous assembly, allied to the ruling family.
After months of protests, Kuwait's emir ordered the dissolution of that parliament and announced new elections. The disputed decree was ordered by the emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Sabah, on 19 Octobert.
 The Kuwait Times reports that about 306 candidates are running for the 50 seats in the Assembly, after a last-minute drama over about 30 candidates who were disqualified by the National Election Commission but then reinstated by the administrative court. Around 23 former MPs and 13 female candidates are among the hopefuls. According to the paper it is the lowest number of former MPs bidding for reelection in any Kuwaiti polls in more than 30 years because all opposition former MPs have boycotted the elections.

Kuwaiti's protest against changes in electoral law

More than 100 protesters and 11 police have been injured in Kuwait after tens of thousands took to the streets against changes to the electoral law. 'The number of wounded protesters in hospital has exceeded 100 after riot police attacked them,' director of the Kuwait Society for Human Rights Mohammad al-Humaidi said on Twitter on Sunday. 
The opposition called the demonstration to protest against a decision by Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah to amend the electoral law. The Kuwaiti cabinet on Saturday amended a controversial electoral law and set a December 1 date for snap polls, sparking angry opposition calls for demonstrations.The cabinet acted on orders from the emir who on Friday said the voting system must be amended immediately to deal with shortcomings in the law and to safeguard national unity against sectarian, tribal and factional tensions.
The electoral constituency law, issued in 2006 after opposition-led protests, divides the country into five electoral districts, each electing 10 MPs to the 50-member parliament. Under that legislation, each eligible voter was allowed to elect a maximum of four candidates. The government's amendment reduces this number to one, the cabinet statement said.

The decision came despite a ruling by the emirate's constitutional court last month that the legislation was in line with the constitution, turning down an appeal by the government.
 The opposition claims the change is aimed at electing a rubber-stamp parliament. It has decided to boycott polls called for December 1.'The people want to abolish the decree,' chanted the protesters marching in the street.
The demonstrators were due to march on the Seif Palace which houses offices for the emir, crown prince and prime minister, but were prevented by police.

As the clashes took place, the emir (second from right in the picture) received members of the Al-Sabah ruling family, in power for more than 250 years, who reiterated their loyalty to him, TheKuwait Times reported. 

(Islamist) opposition wins big in Kuwait

 

Checking the boxes. (AFP)

Kuwait's Islamist-led opposition has made significant gains in the Gulf state's fourth parliamentary election in six years. Opposition candidates won 34 of the 50 seats in the National Assembly, with 23 of them going to Sunni Islamists.Liberals won nine seats. Women did not win any. There were four women in the last parliament, but Ayesh al-Rasheed, a journalist and 2009 candidate, felt “women wouldn’t have won the four seats in the last election had they not had government support.”

Friday's results showed Islamist candidates, including ultra-conservative Salafists, winning 14 seats, while independent Islamists representing tribes took nine. Tribal-based candidates took 20 seats overall.Another seven seats went to candidates from the Shia minority community, which generally sides with the Sabah family.

Kuwait's Emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah, called the snap election amid a crisis over corruption allegations.He said in December that "deteriorating conditions" had led to "difficulties in achieving progress and threatened the country's higher interests". In November, the cabinet resigned shortly before former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammed al-Sabah was to be asked about the alleged payment of bribes to pro-government MPs. Protesters had stormed the parliament building the previous month when the government tried to prevent Sheikh Nasser facing questions.

Sixty-two percent of Kuwaitis cast their vote on Thursday, this is up slightly from the 2009 election with 58 percent casting ballots. Kuwait’s rulers still retain full control over the country, but the parliament can challenge policies, initiate legislation, and bring no-confidence motions against officials. ”Meaningful constitutional reform is unlikely under the leadership of the current emir.

Emir of Kuwait dissolves parliament

 The emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, has decided to dissolve parliament, less than a week after he named a new prime minister and parliamentary sessions were put on hold. The decree dissolving the National Assembly was read out on state television.on Tuesday. 
 Last week, the cabinet resigned shortly before former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammed al-Sabah was to be questioned about the alleged payment of bribes to pro-government MPs. Protesters stormed parliament late last month after the government tried to prevent him facing questions. The emir replaced Sheikh Nasser with Sheikh Jaber Al Hamad Al Sabah, the defence minister.
The emir said he disbanded parliament "due to the deteriorating conditions that led to difficulties in achieving progress and threatened the country's higher interests''. His decree said there would be elections but gave no date. According to the constitution, elections must now be held within 60 days.

Government in Kuwait resigns

Sheikh Nasser

The government of Kuwait has resigned after its Prime Minister, Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah, had been increasingly under pressure over allegations that 15 MPs were paid bribes to support the government.
Opposition lawmakers and protesters stormed parliament earlier this month to demand sheikh Nasser's resignation.At least 45 people were later arrested.
  The government will remain in charge until a new government is formed. Opposition MPs have welcomed Sheikh Nasser's resignation and have called for the formation of a transitional government.

"We are waiting for the appointment of a new prime minister before parliament is dissolved in order to be assured of fair elections," opposition MP Khaled al-Sultan told the AFP news agency.

Sheikh Nasser has been in office for five years and has presided over seven different governments during that period

Angry Kuwaitis storm parliament

 

 (Photo AP)


Anti-government protesters forced their way into Kuwait's parliament during a debate over efforts to question the prime minister about corruption allegations yesterday, sang the national anthem and aftter that left, while housands protested outside the building. Oppostion surces warn that the country is threatened by a growing political crisis.

The intrusion took place after pro-government members of parliament succeeded in voting down a motion by the opposition in which it requested to summon Prime Minister Sheik Nasser Al Mohammad Al Sabah in order to question him over claims that government officials illegally transferred money to accounts outside the country. Last month, Kuwait's foreign minister resigned over the same scandal.

Kuwait's affairas are run by the ruling Al-Sabah family, but it has a much more powerful parliament than any of the other Gulf states. So far the country  not been hit by major pro-reform demonstrations inspired by Arab uprisings, but last months, it was hit by a wave of strikes that grounded the state airline and threatened to disrupt oil  shipments. 

In January, its emir, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, ordered 1,000 dinar ($3,559) grants and free food coupons for every Kuwaiti in order to buy off unrest. Those handouts have been since dwarfed by other Gulf rulers trying to use their riches to dampen calls for political reform, AP reports. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has pledged about $93 billion for more government sector jobs and services. Last month, Qatar announced pay and benefit hikes of 60 percent for public employees and up to 120 percent for some military officers.