Kuwait, November 18: Kuwaiti officials hold crisis talks after the country’s parliament was stormed by protesters demanding the resignation of Premier Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad Al Sabah.
The Kuwaiti council of ministers launched an emergency meeting on Thursday chaired by Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al Sabah following the sharp rise in the anti-regime sentiment in the Persian Gulf Sheikhdom, AFP reported.
The Parliament also cancelled a scheduled meeting after the protesters broke in late on Wednesday and left some damage in the building.
The incident occurred during a rally called by the opposition to protest against the government for breaching the constitution.
The demo turned violent when the police clashed with protesters and used batons to disperse thousands of protesters marching on the prime minister’s home to demand he resign.
Among the protesters were a number of opposition lawmakers who have been campaigning for the step-down of the prime minister for the past several years.
The Wednesday rally was the first outbreak of violence in Kuwait after elite forces beat up protesters and MPs at a public rally in December.
Tension has been on the rise in the Persian Gulf nation over the past three months following reports that about 16 MPs in the 50-member legislature received some USD 350 million in bribes for their parliament votes.
The public prosecutor has opened a rare probe into the case after several local banks referred several lawmakers’ accounts on suspicions of receiving huge illegal deposits.
The opposition accuses the government of involvement in the bribery case, saying the 71-year-old premier has been transferring public funds into his personal accounts overseas.
Opposition lawmakers boycotted a parliamentary session on Wednesday, one day after the government and its supporters rejected a bid by the opposition to question the prime minister over corruption allegations.
The embattled Kuwaiti prime minister, a nephew of the emir, was appointed to the post in February 2006.
Since then, Sheikh Nasser has been forced to resign six times, and dissolve parliament and hold fresh elections on three occasions.
——-Agencies