KUWAIT CITY, 12 May 2005 — Kuwait has stepped up security around its oil installations, ports, airport and embassies in response to “circumstances in the area,” the Interior Ministry said yesterday.
There were no specific threats made, a ministry official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity.
“Circumstances in the area make it necessary to follow up all developments and react to them,” he said declining to elaborate.
The official denied unsourced reports in the local press yesterday that terrorist threats were made against the country’s Shuwaikh commercial port, just west of the capital.
Similar measures were taken early this year, just before Kuwait’s toughest confrontations yet with militants who allegedly planned to attack Western civilians living in Kuwait and members of the US military here. Kuwait’s state security apparatus was also a target, according to authorities.
In January, police clashed with members of the group, killing eight suspects and four policemen. The group did not carry out any of its alleged plans. Around 35 suspects have been investigated by prosecutors, but it was not clear if they have been referred to courts.
The terror group included Kuwaitis, Jordanians and stateless Arabs who have lived in the emirate for decades without becoming citizens.
The increased security in Kuwait came days after a Yemeni prosecutor accused eight suspected members of Al-Qaeda terror organization of plotting to carry out attacks in six Arab states, including Kuwait. At their trial for plotting to attack foreign embassies in Yemen, the prosecutor presented documents that alleged they planned to target Western interests in the region.
