KUWAIT CITY, 9 January 2005 — Kuwaiti authorities yesterday released the correspondent of Al-Arabiya news channel after four days in detention for reporting a story denied by authorities.
Adel Al-Eidan “has been released on bail along with two other suspects,” his lawyer, Nawaf Sari Al-Mutairi, told AFP. “He has been charged with reporting false news that undermines the country’s position internally and abroad.”
Eidan was released on 300-dinar ($1,000) bail. Mutairi said one of the two other suspects is a journalist and the other a soldier.
Eidan was taken in for questioning Wednesday after the Dubai-based satellite channel reported an alleged shootout between security forces and gunmen in a suburb south of the capital.
He reported that two gunmen were arrested by Kuwaiti security forces after an exchange of fire with policemen. Police found a number of hand grenades, arms and ammunition in the gunmen’s car which had suspiciously circled state security headquarters in the area before the shooting erupted, the correspondent said.
