Citing Interior Ministry
sources, Kuwaiti lawmakers have accused police of torturing to death a
man detained on suspicion of illegal possession of alcohol. The death
was first reported by local media earlier this week.Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Khaled Al-Sabah had denied those allegations.A
parliamentary source said Sabah submitted his resignation on Thursday,
adding that it was now up to the prime minister to decide whether to
accept it.The man, Mohammed Al-Mutairi, was detained by police on
suspicion of possessing 24 bottles of alcohol — a criminal offense in
Kuwait.The state news agency KUNA, citing an interior ministry
statement, said Muteiry had admitted to the crime but resisted the
police by attacking several officers.Details of a forensics report released by KUNA on Thursday said there was evidence of “criminal activity.”“The
doctors’ committee specializing in forensics formed to investigate the
death of the citizen Mohammed Ghazay Al-Maymouny Al-Mutairi has
demonstrated there was suspected criminal activity behind his death,”
the report was quoted as saying.Another Parliament member, Faisal Al-Muslim, praised the minister’s resignation.“I
salute the interior minister for submitting his resignation, and I
request the prime minister to accept it immediately,” he was quoted as
saying in a text message sent by the news service Al-Rai to its
subscribers.Sheikh Sabah was already under pressure after a police crackdown on an opposition gathering in December wounded several people.That
incident triggered a move by three opposition members of Parliament to
question the prime minister. He survived a vote against him that could
have potentially either forced him to resign or dissolved the
Parliament.
