DUBAI
(Reuters) - Kuwaiti authorities have arrested 12 people convicted in absentia
of spying for Iran and Lebanese Shi'ite Muslim group Hezbollah, the Interior
Ministry
said on Saturday.
Kuwait had
charged 25 of its nationals – all of them Shi'ites – and an Iranian citizen
after the discovery of guns and explosives in a raid on the so-called
"Abdali cell" in 2015, which escalated sectarian tensions.
Kuwaiti
prosecutors alleged that the men intended to carry out "hostile acts"
against Kuwait.
One person
was sentenced to death, the rest to prison terms. In June, Kuwait's highest
court overturned the death sentence and reduced some of the prison terms while
increasing others.
At least 14
were sentenced in absentia, including the Iranian national.
Iran has
denied any involvement in the case.
"The
interior ministry announces that security services have arrested in different
regions 12 people sentenced in the so-called Abdali cell," a statement
from the ministry and carried by the state news agency KUNA said.
Authorities
are still searching for two others convicted in the same case and still on the
run, the statement added.
Kuwait,
which has a large Shi'ite Muslim minority, sits in a difficult geographical
position, close to two major regional powers and arch foes - mainly Shi'ite
Iran and Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia.
0 Comments