Kuwait prosecutor strips Shia MPs of immunity in investigations
Kuwait”s public prosecutor on Tuesday called on parliament to strip two Shia opposition MPs of their immunity to allow them to be questioned regarding subversive activities, the acting parliament speaker said.
The two deputies last month attended a rally to mourn Imad Mugniyah, a slain top Hezbollah security official accused in Kuwait of a 1988 plane hijacking during which two Kuwaiti passengers were killed.
The cabinet, following its meeting during the week of the Mugniyah commemoration, condemned organizers of the rally for glorifying a “terrorist whose hands were stained with the blood of innocent martyrs and who was behind many terrorist and criminal attacks.”
“We have received a request from the public prosecution to lift the immunity of MPs Adnan Abdul Samad and Ahmad Lari,” MP Mohammad al-Busairi told reporters.
The rally triggered strong reactions from the government and other MPs, with authorities arresting eight Shia activists and accusing them of working to overthrow the government.
The decision to lift their immunity must be approved by parliament within a month”s time. It is expected that MPs will debate the request in next Tuesday”s session.
Busairi declined to say on what grounds the public prosecution made its demand, and whether the two MPs will be interrogated for taking part in the rally or for allegations of being members of an underground opposition group.
The public prosecution also on Tuesday freed on bail five of the activists who were in custody pending interrogation, but renewed the detention of former MP Abdul Mohsen Jamal, their lawyer said.
The activists’ lawyer, Abdul Karim bin Haidar, said that the five men, who include a former MP, a prominent cleric and a municipal council member, were released on bail of 5,000 dinars ($18,400) each.
Last week, two activists were released on similar bail.
Haidar said on Sunday that prosecutors did not question the suspects about the rally but focused their interrogation on allegations that they joined a previously unknown group the authorities say is called Hezbollah Kuwait.
“They accused them of joining Hezbollah Kuwait to spread ideas for the destruction of the basic foundations of society through illegal means, which amounts to overthrowing the government,” the lawyer said.
“They were also accused of spreading false reports that weaken Kuwait”s foreign position,” Haidar added.
All have denied the accusations.
The arrests triggered two noisy protests by hundreds of Shia on Sunday and Monday, with the case fueling sectarian tensions in the oil-rich emirate where Shia form about one-third of the native population of one million.
On Monday, the government and Parliament Speaker Jassem al-Khorafi issued appeals for unity.