Kuwait Gets Tough with Hizballahis

By David Schenker

Kuwaiti authorities have reportedly arrested two former members of parliament and a prominent local Shiite leader for belonging to Kuwaiti Hizballah.

The arrests of the MPs, Abdul Mohsen Jamal and Nasser Sakhouh, and a religious leader, Sheikh Hussein Al Maatouk, comes weeks after the death of top Hizballah operations commander, Imad Mughniyeh. Mugniyeh was killed by a carbomb in Damascus on February 12. Days later, a rally was held in Kuwait commemorating his “martyrdom.”

Approximately 30% of Kuwait's one million residents are Shiite.

Kuwaiti authorities were incensed by the rally mourning Mugniyeh: the former Hizballah leader was widely held responsible for the killing of two Kuwaitis in a 1988 airplane hijacking. As one Kuwaiti MP put it, "Holding a rally for Imad Mughniyeh is a provocation for the Kuwaiti people... especially because he was a criminal who killed Kuwaitis.”

Shortly after the rally, 1500 persons were summoned for questioning about the rally, and Kuwaiti Minister of the Interior Sheikh Jaber Khaled al-Sabbah announced that the state would “deport any expatriate who took part” in the rally.

Now, some other Kuwaiti parliamentarians have filed suit against participants in the rally, including Shiite parliamentary member Adnan Abdul Samad, who spoke at the commemoration. Abdul Samad has been questioned by the Ministry of the Interior, as well in regard to his involvement with Kuwaiti Hizballah. Last week, he described the government’s steps as “regrettable,” and denied Mugniyeh’s involvement in the 1988 hijacking.

It will be interesting to see how this story develops.

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