Kuwait’s Constitutional Court Rejects Petition on 'Offender Law”

 Kuwait’s Constitutional Court rejected on Sunday appeals for the unconstitutionality of the “offender law.” (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kuwait’s Constitutional Court rejected on Sunday appeals for the unconstitutionality of the “offender law.” (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Kuwait’s Constitutional Court Rejects Petition on 'Offender Law”

 Kuwait’s Constitutional Court rejected on Sunday appeals for the unconstitutionality of the “offender law.” (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Kuwait’s Constitutional Court rejected on Sunday appeals for the unconstitutionality of the “offender law.” (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Kuwait's Constitutional Court rejected on Sunday the appeals for the unconstitutionality of the “offender law.” This came less than a week before the elections of the members of the Kuwaiti National Assembly.

The elections of the Kuwaiti parliament are set to begin on Thursday, Sept. 29.

The Constitutional Court issued a verdict on Sunday, rejecting the constitutional case referred by the Court of Appeal regarding the elections of members of the National Assembly, which pertains to the “offender law.”

The court has dismissed the petition on the constitutionality of Clause Two, Article Two of National Assembly Election Law No. 27/2016 that prohibits citizens convicted of offending God or Prophets and the Emiri entity from contesting the parliamentary elections.

The court affirmed the constitutionality of the clause, asserting that those convicted of such offenses could not represent the nation.

On Thursday, the voting process will begin to select members of the National Assembly. The Kuwaiti Interior Ministry’s Elections Affairs Department announced that 118 polling stations would be distributed across the country, with 313 candidates, including 22 females, competing in the elections.



Gulf, EU Leaders Meet for First Summit against Background of Mideast Turmoil

European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Gulf, EU Leaders Meet for First Summit against Background of Mideast Turmoil

European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud pose during an official welcome ceremony on the day of the joint European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, in Brussels Belgium October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

The leaders of six Gulf nations and European Union met for an inaugural summit on Wednesday against a backdrop of turmoil in the Middle East and struggles to find a unified position on the war in Ukraine and relations with Russia.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, led Saudi Arabia’s delegation to the meeting in Brussels.

The summit was expected to encompass everything from visas and trade to the situation in the Middle East.

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said the summit was “long overdue” and added that “the economic ties between the European Union and the Gulf countries need to be strengthened."

“They are there, but they have the potential to be developed much, much further,” he said.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that “to be strategic partners means to listen to each other, to respect each other, to trust each other.”

She also highlighted the need for cooperation on pressing geopolitical issues like the war in Ukraine and that of Israel against Hamas and Hezbollah groups.

“We cannot implement our economic ambitions without security,” she said.

The 27-nation EU has long had relations with the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which include Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.