KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait's embattled interior minister stepped down Sunday amid rising political tensions that include calls for the first major Gulf street protests inspired by uprisings in Egypt and elsewhere. Opposition groups have sharply escalated pressure on Kuwait's leadership in recent months over claims of corruption in the oil-rich state and perceived attempts to roll back political freedoms. Kuwait's political system is the most open in the Gulf and its parliament is one of the few elected bodies in the region capable of demanding reforms. The change at the Interior Ministry could signal an attempt to weaken the calls on social media sites for street demonstrations Tuesday outside parliament. Kuwait's official KUNA news agency reported that Kuwait's leaders accepted the resignation of the Interior Minister, Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, and replaced him with a close relative of Kuwait's ruler. “The prime minister informed the cabinet that the emir has accepted the resignation of Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Khaled Al-Sabah,” State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Roudhan Al-Roudhan told the state-run KUNA news agency. Sheikh Jaber has been the target of a political storm after a man was allegedly tortured to death while in police custody. Kuwaiti authorities declared that the detainee was murdered and the case was referred to the public prosecutor. Sheikh Jaber had submitted his resignation after the post-mortem report last month, but he was asked to stay on. He is now replaced by Sheikh Ahmed Al-Hamoud Al-Sabah, a cousin of Kuwait's emir. The new interior minister was a top adviser to Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah and had served as interior minister in 1991-92 and as defense minister in 1994. After submitting his resignation, the outgoing interior minister was asked to stay on but three opposition lawmakers filed to question him in parliament two weeks ago. The questioning was due to take place Tuesday but parliament postponed all sessions until March 8. With the resignation now accepted, Sheikh Jaber will no longer face a parliamentary questioning. Several MPs welcomed the resignation and called on the new minister to start comprehensive and fundamental reforms in the ministry. “We look forward for fundamental reforms in the Interior Ministry after the appointment of Sheikh Ahmad,” independent MP Saadun Hammad said.
