Court acquits 14 citizens accused of joining ‘Nusra’

Curtains on ‘stormers’ case

By Jaber Al-Hamoud

KUWAIT CITY, July 7: The Fourth Criminal Circuit of the Court of Appeals presided over by Judge Anwar Al-Enezi acquitted 14 citizens who were accused of joining Al-Nusra Front in Syria which advocates principles aimed at ousting regimes illegally through the use of force in order to change the existing social and economic systems in the country.

According to the investigations conducted, the group trained members on the tactics of war and the use of weapons and arms.

The members were fully aware that they were being prepared to be used for achieving the illegal objectives of the group and carrying out hostile actions against a foreign country, in this case Syria, without the government’s permission.

The actions of the accused citizens had exposed Kuwait to the danger of severing political ties with a sisterly country, Syria. They were also accused of possessing Kalashnikovs and ammunition which are prohibited by the law.

The Public Prosecution had provided a list of evidences, most notably the testimony of the State Security officer whose investigations had led to the shenanigans of the suspects. He affirmed that the suspects all follow extremist “takfir” ideology and are heavily involved in the ranks of the Al-Nusra Front.

However, the defense counsel Lawyer Abul Aziz Al-Subai’e said his clients are not subject to the criminal text, citing lack of incriminating evidences against them. He said even if his clients had joined the notorious group, the actions of that group were restricted only in Syrian territories due to which it is irrational to say the group intends to overthrow the ruling system in Kuwait when the group is fighting the Assad regime and foreign forces. He added that there are no concrete evidences that his clients carried out hostile acts that would sever the ties between Kuwait and sisterly countries.

‘Stormers case’:

Al-Subai’e

The Court of Cassation will draw the curtain on the National Assembly stormers’ case in which 70 citizens, including some former and current lawmakers, were charged.

In the previous session, the court adjourned the appeal along with a stay of action order on the execution of the Appeal Court’s verdict and released the convicts among the defendants. The Court of Appeal previously sentenced some of the defendants to jail terms ranging from one year to seven years with hard labor, which prompted the defense attorneys to appeal the judgments.

Decision annulled:

The Administrative Court overturned the decision of the Foreign Affairs Ministry which disqualified a citizen from a diplomatic position for failing the oral and written exams — the employment requirements for such positions.

The court also ordered the ministry to pay the citizen KD 1,001 as temporary compensation for moral damages caused by its decision and the legal fees, in addition to enrolling him to a training course at Saud Al-Nasser School of Diplomacy.

Lawyer for the citizen, Attorney Mohammad Al-Ansari argued that his client fulfilled all the requirements stipulated in Article 18 of Law No. 21/1962 on consulate and diplomatic appointments, as well as the conditions set by the concerned department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which advertised its need for candidates to fill diplomatic or consulate positions.

Al-Ansari pointed out his client took the oral and written exams but when the list of qualified candidates was released, he did not see his name. His attempts to address the ministry in writing proved futile, prompting him to file a lawsuit against ministry due to suspicion that someone misused authority in this regard.

‘Laws applicable’:

In an outstanding judicial verdict, the Court of Cassation affirmed that Kuwaiti laws are applicable on Kuwaitis committing crimes outside the country, even if those crimes are not punishable in those foreign countries — as long as the crime in its entirety or part of it was committed inside Kuwait, reports Al-Jarida daily.

The verdict of the court came in response to an appeal filed by the lawyer of citizen Salem Bu Refa’ah who was handed over to Kuwait by Britain about a year ago. With regard to the sentence slapped on his client, the lawyer maintained the Kuwaiti judiciary lacks jurisdiction in prosecuting the accused for statements he published via “Snapchat”, especially as the incident occurred in Britain. He stressed the issue is not considered a crime according to British laws.