Kuwait - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Kuwait cover image

Kuwait

April 23, 2026

Kuwait City 9:15 pm

27°C

Ahmed Shihab‑Eldin attends the Opening Night during the Doha Film Festival 2025 on Nov. 20, 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Breaking | Last Updated: April 23, 2026, 10:55 am

Kuwait acquits journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin after 7 weeks in detention

The American-Kuwaiti journalist is expected to be released after 52 days in custody over posts about wartime damage.

Ahmed Shihab‑Eldin attend "Palestine 36" red carpet during the Doha Film Festival 2025 on November 24, 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Kuwait detains American journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin: What to know

Kuwaiti authorities have been cracking down on alleged violators of the country's media law during the Iran war.

picture of Qatar Energy's operating facilities on March 3, 2026, in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar.

Analysis

How fast can Gulf energy production rebound after US-Iran ceasefire?

The truce could pave the way for lost oil and LNG supplies to flow back to global markets, but restoring Gulf energy production to normal levels could take months, if not longer.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Smoke rises from an area of Kuwait's international airport after a reported drone strike on April 1, 2026. Kuwait's civil aviation authority said that the Gulf state's international airport had come under an Iranian drone attack that led to "a large fire" at a fuel depot. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images) / Kuwait OUT / KUWAIT OUT

Iran strikes Gulf again, hitting Kuwait refinery as UAE shuts gas hub

Kuwait’s desalination plant and key refinery have been damaged, and the UAE has suspended Habshan operations after debris from intercepted missiles caused a fire.

Latest News

Jet fuel squeeze exposes Europe’s reliance on Middle East supply

Exhaust emits from the engine of a passenger jet as it prepares for take off at Heathrow Airport on March 30, 2006, in London, England.

Analysis

Oil-rich Gulf states could face power crunch as Iran war hits energy security

A general view of South Pars gas field facilities in the southern Iranian port town of Assaluyeh, on the Gulf, Nov. 19, 2015.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Kuwait arrests 6 over alleged Hezbollah plot to assassinate leaders

Mourners wave Hezbollah flags during the funeral ceremony of top Hezbollah chief Haytham Ali Tabatabai and other members killed in an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs on November 24, 2025.

Analysis

Iran war drives Turkey-Gulf defense alignment, but not alliance

United Arab Emirates army helicopters fly from the Burj al Arab hotel (R) toward Burj Khalifa, Dubai, Jan. 16, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Jonathan Fenton-Harvey

In London, reporting on North Africa and Gulf politics

Karen Young

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

A woman votes at a polling station in Kuwait city February 2, 2012. Kuwaitis headed to the polls on Thursday for the fourth time in six years in a snap parliamentary election in which opposition candidates expect to expand their influence and push for change in the oil-exporting Gulf Arab state. REUTERS/Stringer (KUWAIT - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTR2X7TI

Kuwaiti Parliament is Failing Women Citizens

A new proposal to increase unemployment payments to jobless Kuwaiti women will ensure more women stay at home and out of the workforce.

The Mideast in Venice

Nine Middle Eastern countries are represented at the Venice Biennale, including a piece aptly called "Resistance" from a Turkish artist.

United Arab Emirates

Kuwaiti former member of parliament and opposition politician Musallam al-Barrak (L) greets supporters from his house in Andulos, after a ruling sentenced him to jail for insulting the emir, April 15, 2013. Barrak was sentenced to five years in jail on Monday for insulting the emir, his lawyer said, in a ruling that brought thousands of people to the streets in protest. The Kuwaiti criminal court found Barrak guilty of insulting Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah in a speech in October last year in which he app

Kuwaiti Opposition Leader: 'We’re Not Asking to Overthrow Regime'

Musallam Al-Barrack, former MP and leader of Kuwait’s opposition, tells Jamie Etheridge that “Kuwait cannot afford to continue being an experiment for the failures of the government.”

Kuwaiti men stand at the main entrance of the Kuwait Parliament December 10, 2009, after the parliament session on the issue of "bedoons" (stateless Kuwaiti residents) was cancelled due to the lack of quorum. Police had cordoned off the area surrounding the Parliament to prevent any possible protests from the stateless people in the city. REUTERS/Stephanie McGehee (KUWAIT POLITICS) - RTXROPH

Is Kuwait Serious About Bedoon Naturalization?

Given the history of unfulfilled promises by the Kuwait government, the Bedoon community is skeptical of the country's seriousness in granting them citizenship, Mona Kareem writes.

Boeing 777 jets are seen on the tarmac at Baghdad international airport December 15, 2012. Three Boeing twin-aisle 777-200LR jets arrived in Baghdad in a move aimed to boost the transportation sector in a country suffering decades of wars and sanctions. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS TRANSPORT BUSINESS) - RTR3BLRU

Baghdad-Kuwait Flights to Resume After 22-Year Hiatus

Iraq’s national carrier, Iraqi Airways, is about to begin a twice-weekly service from Baghdad to Kuwait, a development that shows progress in reconciliation between the two former foes, writes Omar al-Shaher.

Iraq Oil Minister Abdul Kareem Luaibi addresses a news conference during the fourth licensing round for exploration blocks at the Oil Ministry's headquarters in Baghdad May 30, 2012. A consortium led by Kuwait Energy and partners Turkey's TPAO and Dubai-based Dragon Oil secured a deal to explore Block 9, a mainly oil area in southern Basra province. REUTERS/Saad Shalash (IRAQ - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS ENERGY) - RTR32THT

Iraqi Oil Contracts Reward Kuwait, Punish Turkey

The signing of the latest round of oil contracts in Iraq has been a victory for the Iraq-Kuwait detente, but comes at the cost of deteriorating relations with Turkey, writes Omar al-Shaher.

Kuwaiti citizen Raken Subaiya checks his Twitter feed on his phone as Yousef al Anazi looks on during a sit-in protest in front of the Justice Palace in Kuwait City October 19, 2012. The protest is against the detention of three former lawmakers and four citizens, including the son of the former Speaker of Parliament and prominent opposition politician Ahmed al-Saadoun. REUTERS/Stephanie Mcgehee (KUWAIT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST)

Kuwait Cracks Down on Dissent, Twitter

Mona Kareem documents the Kuwaiti government's crackdown on dissent through Twitter.