News from Kuwait

Kuwait

OCTOBER 24

Kuwait risks sliding into Arab Spring-style protests over a forthcoming election that has polarized opinion in the Gulf Arab state and posed an unprecedented challenge to the authority of the once revered emir, a close Western ally. | Reuters

OCTOBER 23

Kuwait banned gatherings of more than 20 people and gave police more powers to disperse protests, local media reported on Tuesday, in an escalating standoff with the opposition ahead of the December 1 election. | Chicago Tribune

OCTOBER 22

Police in Kuwait used tear gas, stun grenades, and baton charges on Sunday to disperse tens of thousands of demonstrators protesting against changes to the electoral law that the opposition has called a constitutional coup by the government. | MSNBC

OCTOBER 19

Kuwait's ruling al-Sabah family issued a rare statement on Thursday calling for obedience to the emir after a series of opposition gatherings and a large rally earlier this week. | Chicago Tribune

OCTOBER 18

Kuwaiti police on Thursday arrested two former opposition MPs for making statements at a public rally deemed critical of the Emir, an opposition leader said. | Gulf News

OCTOBER 17

Kuwait’s public prosecution said on Wednesday it had suspended investigations into highly publicized allegations of corruption against thirteen former MPs, saying it had found no evidence of any crime. | Gulf News

OCTOBER 16

Several protesters were hurt and others detained when protesters clashed with security forces outside Kuwait's parliament building, reports say. | BBC News

OCTOBER 10

Opposition groups warned on Tuesday that any attempt to amend the electoral law to impact poll results could destabilize Kuwait and undermine relations with the ruling family. | AFP

OCTOBER 9

Kuwait plans to increase spending by 9.3 percent in the current fiscal year, as the International Monetary Fund forecasts a slowdown in the economy of OPEC’s third-biggest oil producer. | Business Week

OCTOBER 4

Kuwait’s interior ministry on Thursday pledged a zero-tolerance policy towards rallies or demonstrations staged by bidoons in the country. | Gulf News

OCTOBER 3

Kuwait’s cabinet has asked the country’s ruler to consider dissolving parliament, state news agency KUNA reported on Wednesday, in a widely expected bid to clear the way for a new election and end months of political deadlock. | Reuters

OCTOBER 1

Kuwait’s public spending is still too high, according to Central Bank Governor Mohammad al-Hashel, after a series of strikes prompted the government to raise wages in the public sector. | Business Week

SEPTEMBER 27

Three global human rights organizations on Thursday urged the ruler of the Gulf state of Kuwait to end alleged abuse of more than 100,000 stateless people, locally known as bidoon. | Ahram

Kuwait’s sitting parliamentary speaker said that he would not run as a candidate in the next parliamentary elections. However, opposition members said that they were keen on the elections and called for the dissolution of the controversial parliament elected in 2009 and hold fresh votes to usher in a new legislative body. | Gulf News

SEPTEMBER 25

Kuwait's highest court declined to approve a government bid to amend electoral boundaries on Tuesday, leaving the cabinet without a clear option to break a parliamentary deadlock that has held up crucial economic bills. | Reuters

SEPTEMBER 24

Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber al-Mubarak met Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday to discuss Kuwait’s active role in the UN, as well as other regional and international issues. | Arab Times Online

SEPTEMBER 18

Kuwait's finance minister said on Tuesday that the Gulf state would not cut down on spending as a result of a plan to invest a greater percentage of its revenues in a rainy day fund, state news agency KUNA reported. | Reuters

SEPTEMBER 17

Kuwait will raise the amount of revenue set aside in its rainy day fund to 25 percent from ten percent in the 2012-2013 budget. A long-running political crisis has held up investment in the OPEC member, especially in large infrastructure projects, allowing the budget surplus to grow. | Reuters

SEPTEMBER 14

About 500 demonstrators gathered yesterday near the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait waving a black al-Qaeda flag in protest of a film mocking Islam. | AFP

SEPTEMBER 12

Algeria and Kuwait signed two agreements on trade and tourism on the second day of the seventh session of the Algeria-Kuwait Joint Committee, the official APS news agency reported.| Monitor

SEPTEMBER 11

Local inflation rates are most likely to remain under control for the current year, especially in view of the positive effect of last year's high prices, and the level is forecast below three percent, said the latest National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) report. | Mena FM

SEPTEMBER 6

The next parliamentary elections must be held under the five-constituency system to ensure justice for all, reports al-Anba, quoting MP Musallam al-Barrak. Al-Barrak made the statement in a seminar organized recently by the Progressive Movement at the diwaniya of Nasser Thalab al-Hajeri in Mubarak al-Kabeer. | Arab Times Online

SEPTEMBER 5

Kuwait's top court will announce on September 25 whether current electoral boundaries are constitutional, a ruling that could spark protests in the increasingly politically divided oil producer. | Reuters

SEPTEMBER 4

Kuwait’s Khaled al-Saad was appointed chief executive of the Gulf Cooperation Council monetary council, Saudi Press Agency reported. | Bloomberg

AUGUST 30

While Kuwait is once again witnessing demonstrations and protests, observers have noticed an increase in demands for substantial political change by Kuwaiti youth movements affected by the atmosphere of the “Arab Spring.” The loud tone of this movement can be seen on websites such as Twitter, which have become a major tool for the circulation of news and sharp political criticism. | Al-Monitor

AUGUST 29

A Kuwaiti man freed by gunmen who abducted him last week in eastern Lebanon said his kidnappers accused him wrongfully of being a dissident commander in the Free Syrian Army. | Oman Observer