2023-12-18 06:06:09
While preparing for a succession at its head, Kuwait is in mourning for 40 days. Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was buried on Sunday after a private ceremony attended by members of the ruling family and some relatives.
Wrapped in the Kuwaiti flag, the emir’s coffin was taken to a mosque for prayers before a funeral ceremony broadcast by state television. Attendance was limited to members of the ruling family, who bid an intimate farewell to the ruler who ruled for three years but was involved for decades in the affairs of the small, oil-rich Gulf country.
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The speaker of the Kuwaiti Parliament was present at the funeral, as well as the new emir, Sheikh Meshaal al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, who is expected to take the oath of office before Parliament on Wednesday. He will receive condolences from the general public on Monday and Tuesday.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who is leading an American delegation to Kuwait before a regional tour that will take him to Bahrain and Qatar, said Sheikh Nawaf “has demonstrated an enduring commitment to diplomacy aimed at to defuse tensions in the Middle East”, offering his condolences to the Kuwaiti people and the Emir’s family.
Later in the day, Sheikh Meshaal, appointed new emir of Kuwait on Saturday shortly after the announcement of the death of his predecessor, received foreign leaders who came to offer him their condolences. Among them: the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, King Abdullah II of Jordan and the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa. The Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohamed Chia al-Soudani, are also among the senior officials received by the new sovereign.
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On Saturday, several heads of state paid tribute to the memory of the former emir. “Sheikh Nawaf was a valued partner and true friend of the United States for decades,” said US President Joe Biden. Emmanuel Macron for his part declared that with his disappearance, the Kuwaiti nation lost “a great leader, respected for the values of peace and moderation that he embodied”.
The disappearance of Sheikh Nawaf and the advanced age of his successor, 83, increase uncertainties in a country shaken by divisions within the ruling Al-Sabah family, some members of which accuse others of corruption or conspiracy. The new emir, named crown prince in 2020, has spent most of his career in the field of security and intelligence. He notably held the post of Minister of the Interior.
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