Kuwaitis are expected to head to the polls before July 1 for the third time in three years after the country's parliament was dissolved by royal decree on Monday.
Parliament was reinstated in March based on a Constitutional Court ruling after a previous dissolution.
Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal Al Sabah said last month the legislature would be dissolved and that parliamentary elections would be held in the coming months.
A prolonged struggle between the government and the elected parliament has hampered fiscal reforms.
The parliament, first elected in 2020, was dissolved last year in a bid to end the feuding. A vote was held in September in which the opposition made gains.
But the Constitutional Court in March annulled those results and restored the previous assembly.
Kuwait’s constitution states elections for a new parliament must be held within two months from the date of dissolution.
If elections are not held within the two-month period, the dissolved parliament is restored to full constitutional authority and meets immediately as if the dissolution had not taken place.
Following the official dissolution by decree on Monday, several high-profile political figures signalled they would begin campaigning for the coming elections, including National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al Ghanim.
“After relying on God, and as an embodiment of the principle of returning to the nation to say its word as I have repeatedly demanded, I announce my candidacy for the elections for the second constituency, asking the Lord Almighty for success,” Mr Al Ghanim tweeted.
Mr Al Ghanim did not run in the last elections in 2022, during which political opposition figures made significant gains. He has been feuding with Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al Sabah, the emir's son.
The political impasse between the 2022 dissolved parliament and the government under Sheikh Ahmad has over the past year centred on a controversial draft bill calling on the government to take over the consumer and personal loans of Kuwaiti citizens, with an estimated value of several billion Kuwaiti dinars.
The government said the move would have been too expensive, costing almost $46 billion in public funds, while MPs said it would cost less than $6.5 billion.
Sheikh Meshal, who signed Monday's Emiri decree, was handed most of the duties of the ruling emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al Sabah, in late 2021.
Announcing his plans to dissolve the reinstated 2020 parliament last month, Sheikh Meshal said the “will of the people” required new elections that would be “accompanied by some legal and political reforms to take the country to a new phase of discipline and legal reference”.
Kuwait bans political parties, but has given its legislature more influence than similar bodies in other Gulf monarchies. Political stability has traditionally depended on co-operation between the government and parliament.
Despite fears of voter fatigue — this will be Kuwait’s third election in 30 months and its tenth since 2006 — political observers are expecting the campaign season to heat up.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that the coming elections are very important, and may even be the most dangerous in the history of the Kuwaiti elections, because they are a dividing line between the consecration of the state of institutions or the continuation of chaos,” said Jassim Boodai, chairman of the Al Rai Media Group.
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Results
4pm: Maiden (Dirt) Dh165,000 1,600m
Winner: Moshaher, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer).
4.35pm: Handicap (D) Dh165,000 2,200m
Winner: Heraldic, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
5.10pm: Maiden (Turf) Dh165,000 1,600m
Winner: Rua Augusta, Harry Bentley, Ahmad bin Harmash.
5.45pm: Handicap (D) Dh190,000 1,200m
Winner: Private’s Cove, Mickael Barzalona, Sandeep Jadhav.
6.20pm: Handicap (T) Dh190,000 1,600m
Winner: Azmaam, Jim Crowley, Musabah Al Muhairi.
6.55pm: Handicap (D) Dh190,000 1,400m
Winner: Bochart, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
7.30pm: Handicap (T) Dh190,000 2,000m
Winner: Rio Tigre, Mickael Barzalona, Sandeep Jadhav.
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
RESULTS
Catchweight 63.5kg: Shakriyor Juraev (UZB) beat Bahez Khoshnaw (IRQ). Round 3 TKO (body kick)
Lightweight: Nart Abida (JOR) beat Moussa Salih (MAR). Round 1 by rear naked choke
Catchweight 79kg: Laid Zerhouni (ALG) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ). Round 1 TKO (punches)
Catchweight 58kg: Omar Al Hussaini (UAE) beat Mohamed Sahabdeen (SLA) Round 1 rear naked choke
Flyweight: Lina Fayyad (JOR) beat Sophia Haddouche (ALG) Round 2 TKO (ground and pound)
Catchweight 80kg: Badreddine Diani (MAR) beat Sofiane Aïssaoui (ALG) Round 2 TKO
Flyweight: Sabriye Sengul (TUR) beat Mona Ftouhi (TUN). Unanimous decision
Middleweight: Kher Khalifa Eshoushan (LIB) beat Essa Basem (JOR). Round 1 rear naked choke
Heavyweight: Mohamed Jumaa (SUD) beat Hassen Rahat (MAR). Round 1 TKO (ground and pound)
Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammad Ali Musalim (UAE beat Omar Emad (EGY). Round 1 triangle choke
Catchweight 62kg: Ali Taleb (IRQ) beat Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR). Round 2 KO
Catchweight 88kg: Mohamad Osseili (LEB) beat Samir Zaidi (COM). Unanimous decision
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Brief scores:
Arsenal 4
Xhaka 25', Lacazette 55', Ramsey 79', Aubameyang 83'
Fulham 1
Kamara 69'
MATCH INFO
CAF Champions League semi-finals first-leg fixtures
Tuesday:
Primeiro Agosto (ANG) v Esperance (TUN) (8pm UAE)
Al Ahly (EGY) v Entente Setif (ALG) (11PM)
Second legs:
October 23
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
