KUWAIT: Kuwait’s ruler said yesterday he was pardoning all the people convicted of insulting him, after a year-long crackdown on politically sensitive comments about the country’s leadership.
Dozens of Kuwaitis have been charged with insulting the Emir H H Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad
Al Sabah, especially online, and those convicted for a variety of offences against the ruler have been sentenced to up to 11 years in jail.
People charged have included political activists of both sexes, as well as prominent opposition politicians. Some have already been acquitted by the court of appeal.
“On the occasion of the last 10 days of Ramadan, I am pleased to grant ... amnesty to all those convicted of offending the Emir,” Sheikh Sabah said in a speech on state television. REUTERS
