Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah was born on June 16, 1929, and he is the fourth son of the male children of the tenth Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, from his mother Mrs. Munira Al-Ayyar, and he is the half-brother of the late Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Jaber.

He was initially educated at Al-Mubarakiya School in Kuwait, and was supplemented by private professors.

He assumed many responsibilities and held many jobs, starting with the presidency of the Department of Social Affairs and Labor and the Department of Publications and Publishing, and ending with the Emirate of Kuwait, and between the two positions he held various ministries.

He was appointed Minister of Guidance and News in 1962, and he held the position of acting Minister of Information twice, the first in the period 1971-1975, and the second in 1981-1982, in addition to his position as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and between the two terms he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister at the beginning of 1978.

Despite the multiplicity of jobs and responsibilities he assumed, the position for which he was known for a long time was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which he took on from January 28, 1963, and kept it in all governments that followed that date, and combined other positions with it in some periods.

In 1992, he assumed the position of First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, then on July 13, 2003 he became Prime Minister.

He became involved in political work from his position as a member of the ruling family and an official in the government and the executive authority, and he was part of the general scene of Kuwaiti politics, and one of its external facades, and he played a major diplomatic role in the aftermath of Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990.

He assumed the reins of power on January 29, 2006, after the National Assembly transferred the powers of Prince Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah to the Council of Ministers due to his health conditions, and members of the National Assembly unanimously pledged allegiance to him after choosing him from the Council of Ministers for this position, following his assumption of the emiri authorities.

During his reign, Kuwait experienced a clash between the executive and the legislative authorities, due to repeated interrogations by the National Assembly (Parliament) of members of the government, so he dissolved the parliament several times.

In 2012, he issued a controversial legislative decree, amending the electoral district system and the voting system in what was known as the "one-vote decree" that the opposition rejected and challenged before the Constitutional Court.

The Kuwaiti Constitutional Court fortified the decree and considered it constitutional, but it considered the National Assembly elected in December 2012 under the decree as null, due to the unconstitutionality of the election committee that supervised his election.

As a result of that ruling, the parliament was dissolved and parliamentary elections were held in mid-2013, boycotted by the opposition of all spectrums.

The Gulf Crisis

The Emir was famous for his great efforts to heal the rift between the Gulf states immediately after the outbreak of the Gulf crisis in 2017, when Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain - along with Egypt - announced the blockade of the State of Qatar on June 5, 2017.

In addition to his many moves, the Emir has repeatedly stated that it is no longer acceptable or likely for the continuation of the disagreement between the brothers in the Gulf Cooperation Council states, because it has weakened the capabilities of the Council and threatened its achievements.

In recognition of his outstanding efforts, Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani said a few days ago that the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, has a great position in the heart of every Qatari citizen.

The Qatari official praised the role of the Emir of Kuwait in trying to solve the Gulf crisis, and said, "We found His Highness at the beginning of the Gulf crisis in 2017, traveling from one country to another in an attempt to heal the rift, and his commitment to these efforts has continued to this day in order to heal the rift and restore cohesion to the Gulf home."

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman affirmed that the State of Qatar, the government and people, valued the efforts of the Emir of Kuwait and the efforts of the State of Kuwait, not only in contributing to solving the Gulf crisis, but also in solving other crises.

The health of the Emir of Kuwait has deteriorated in recent months, and on July 18, the Kuwait News Agency reported that Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah will temporarily assume some of the constitutional powers of the Emir of the country, after Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah entered the hospital for medical examinations.

At the time, the Qatar News Agency reported that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, made a phone call to the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah, to check on his health.

Then Sheikh Sabah underwent a successful operation, which created tremendous joy expressed by thousands of tweeters on social media platforms, each in his own way.

At that time, the hashtags topped several communication platforms, the most prominent of which were: # Prince of Humanity, # Wage_Wealth_Oy_Face_Of_All, #Your_Su_Yah_Sabah, and #Morning_Al Ahmad_Al Jaber_Al-Sabah.

The tweeters recalled the virtues of the Emir of Kuwait and his endeavors to serve his country and his nation, and how his mediation contributed to solving many of the region's crises, or at least prevented their direction for the worse.

On the 18th of this month, the Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs in Kuwait, Sheikh Ali Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah, said that US President Donald Trump awarded the Military Merit Order with the rank of Supreme Commander to the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, during a ceremony at the White House.

The Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs added in a statement that this honor comes in recognition of the great efforts and the great role that the Emir of Kuwait leads in the region and the world, and a culmination of the historical and distinguished partnership relations between Kuwait and the United States.