Emir of Kuwait Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah is dead
Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah on September 7, 2017. REUTERS / Kevin Lamarque
Text by: Oriane Verdier Follow
3 min
Kuwaiti Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah has died at the age of 91, state television reported on Tuesday.
An outstanding diplomat, pillar of the monarchy for almost six decades, the leader was perceived as authoritarian when it comes to human rights in his country.
His designated successor is his brother, Crown Prince Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah.
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The death of the Emir of Kuwait marks a turning point in the country's political life.
Since the country's independence 60 years ago, Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah has been one of the country's strongmen.
He was notably Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1963 to 2003 and then Prime Minister until his appointment by Parliament as Emir in 2006. His arrival in power from the petromonarchy marks the end of an unprecedented political crisis.
He replaces Sheikh Saad al-Abdallah al-Sabah who only remained in power for nine days, forcibly pushed out by Parliament because of his state of health.
Mediator abroad, autocrat in his country
On the international scene, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah is seen as an outstanding mediator, a key element of stability in the region.
His forty years as Minister of Foreign Affairs have enabled him to acquire a detailed knowledge of diplomacy and to fill out a complete address book.
In 2017, for example, he announced that he had prevented a military escalation between Qatar and Saudi Arabia supported by the Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Its long diplomatic tradition of neutrality and non-alignment also allows Kuwait to maintain diplomatic representation in Iran.
He is a
particularly important contact for the United States
.
American troops defended Kuwait against Saddam Hussein's Iraq in 1990. Since then, 13,000 of their soldiers are in position and benefit from several bases there.
Kuwait is thus a strategic point of transit for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Domestically,
the liberticidal policy
led by the government of Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah is however regularly denounced by human rights organizations.
The al-Sabah dynasty has been in power since the 18th century.
Several opposition activists were sentenced to long prison terms.
Criticizing the emir on social media can now lead to ten years in prison and a million dollars in fines.
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Kuwait
Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah