Enlarge image
Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah performing in 2014
Photo: Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP
The ruling Emir of Kuwait is dead. Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah died on Saturday at the age of 86, according to a statement from the palace broadcast by Kuwaiti state television. Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah had been ruler of the oil-rich Gulf state for three years, having been sworn in in September 2020 after the death of his half-brother.
In the statement of the ruling house, it was said that the announcement of the death was made with "great sadness and pain". State television interrupted the regular program and broadcast recited verses from the Koran. A cause of death was not given. According to the state news agency Kuna, Sheikh Nawaf had already been admitted to hospital in November for an "emergency".
Sheikh Nawaf was appointed crown prince in 2016 by his then ruling half-brother Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. After taking office in September 2020, he led the country through an economic crisis caused by the collapse of oil prices. The current Crown Prince, Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Sabah, is also a half-brother of the late sheikh. The question now is whether a member of a younger generation will be brought to power.
In Kuwait, power is largely in the hands of the ruling al-Sabah family. In 1962, however, the country was the first Arab Gulf state to introduce a parliamentary system, and the people's representation is more powerful in the country than in any other Gulf state. Kuwaiti women have had the right to vote and stand for election since 2005. Recently, however, political disputes between elected deputies and the ministers appointed by the palace had led to political turmoil, which also deterred foreign investors.
sol/AFP