Kuwait Puts Activists on Trial

Photo Credit: al-Arabiyya

The trial of 68 Kuwaiti youth activists and several MPs began Monday. The activists are being tried for storming the parliament building to demand the resignation of the prime minister last November, and face lengthy sentences. Additionally, the accused are charged with resisting police, unauthorised gathering and urging policemen to disobey orders, said defense lawyer,” Al Humaidi Al Subaie. The activists are among hundreds who assaulted the parliament on November 16 of last year, following clashes with security forces. The protests came after at least thirteen members of the parliament were accused of corruption.

Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti government submitted its resignation to the emir on Monday, the private al-Rai television channel reported, further deepening its continuing political crisis. There has been no official response to the resignation.  The move came just days after a court ruling that annulled February’s parliamentary elections and dissolved parliament, reinstating the previous, more regime-friendly government. The opposition responded to the ruling of the top court by scrapping legislative polls as “null and void” and politically motivated, urging a reversal of the decision to avoid “turmoil” in the country. “The constitutional court has exceeded its mandate and interfered in politics, granting itself powers above those entrusted to the head of state and the national assembly [parliament],” said a statement signed by 35 members of Kuwait’s dissolved parliament.