Kuwait's top court sentences opposition leader to prison

Kuwait's top court sentenced an opposition leader and a number of politicians to three-and-a-half years in prison over the 2011 storming of parliament.

Musallam Al Barrack, an opposition leader who left prison in April 2017 after serving a two-year sentence on separate charges, was among the dozens of activists, sitting and former politicians sentenced by the Court of Cessation on Sunday.

The case involved a total of 70 defendants, who were initially acquitted in the years-long case until a November court decision resurrected the charges against them.

Al Barrack had left Kuwait before the sentencing.

____________

Kuwait frees dozens on bail over 2011 parliament storming

____________

In 2011, Kuwait's then-prime minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammed Al Sabah, faced allegations made by Al Barack and other opposition figures of corruption. Sheikh Nasser eventually resigned.

On November 16, 2011, protesters and opposition MPs stormed Kuwait’s parliament building demanding that Sheikh Nasser step down. Once inside, they occupied the main chamber and sang the national anthem before leaving a short time later.

The activists were initially charged after the storming of the parliament but a lower court in 2013 ruled they had no criminal intent during the incident. However, an appeals court ruling last November sentenced dozens of defendants to prison terms of as much as nine years.

Libya's Gold

UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.

The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.

Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.

A State of Passion

Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi

Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah

Rating: 4/5

Essentials

The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Los Angeles, from Dh4,975 return, including taxes. The flight time is 16 hours. Alaska Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Aeromexico and Southwest all fly direct from Los Angeles to San Jose del Cabo from Dh1,243 return, including taxes. The flight time is two-and-a-half hours.

The trip
Lindblad Expeditions National Geographic’s eight-day Whales Wilderness itinerary costs from US$6,190 (Dh22,736) per person, twin share, including meals, accommodation and excursions, with departures in March and April 2018.