“AN Iraqi official was recently quoted as saying Iran has occupied a huge Iraqi oil well. Iran has categorically denied the charges,” columnist and former MP Talal Al-Saeed wrote for Al-Seyassah daily Sunday.
“The Iraqi Ministry of Interior has confirmed Iranian penetration deep into the Iraqi territories began a long time ago. The ministry hinted this penetration was recently crowned by the occupation of the Iraqi Oil Well No. 4 at Al-Fakkah oilfield, east of Amara thus violating the Iraqi sovereignty.

“Now the question is: What will the Iraqis do in the wake of hoisting of the Iranian flag over the Iraqi area which is rich in oil, because the Iranian influence in Iraq dates back to many years and this is fortified by the presence of the Iranian secret service, clerics and religious terms of references in Baghdad to such an extent Persian is now spoken in many areas of Iraq and they even deal in the Iranian national currency.

“This happens in full view and to the satisfaction of the incumbent Iraqi government. In spite of the above, the Iraqi officials still compete for leveling charges against the Kuwaitis accusing them of infiltrating into the Iraqi territory to steal Iraqi oil.
“Not just that the Iraqi government supports the accusations leveled at Kuwait although the Kuwaiti flag is hoisted only over Kuwaiti territory. Such being the case, we wonder what the Iraqis will have to say now since the Iranian flat is hoisted over the Iraqi territory.

“In this context, we have observed how the Iraqi opposition is silent on this topic because no statement has been forthcoming from the opposition in this respect.
“For its part, the Iraqi government is still perplexed between holding a meeting with the Iraqi National Security Council and between the prime minister and some of his ministers. In spite of the above, we expect a junior officer from the Iraqi Border Force to issue a statement in this regard, but the situation along the Iraqi-Iranian border will remain unchanged until the end of the forthcoming Iraqi parliamentary elections.

“In other words, Iran will reserve the right to do things in Iraq which other countries are not allowed to. Here let us imagine what would happen if a similar scenario was witnessed at the Kuwaiti-Iraqi border.
“Needless to say what has been happening recently along the Iraqi — Iranian borders represents an Iranian occupation of Iraqi territory, but not just an Iranian encroachment in a disputed area between the countries as some people would like to portray. In the meantime, one may wonder, what does such a silence, which has been shown by both the Iraqi government and opposition towards the Iranian occupation of one of the Iraqi oil wells, mean?

Also:
“I laughed aloud at the Iranian new missile which is called ‘Sejjeel’, because of its name. This missile has been designed to completely annihilate the enemies of Iran,” columnist Fuhaid Al-Busairi wrote for Al-Rai daily Sunday.
“The game of naming weapons is generally played by the backward Eastern regimes. However, the new Iranian missile reminds us of the names of Saddam Hussein’s missiles — Al-Hussein and Al-Abbas — although they are Chinese-made they were given Arab names because they are not sophisticated weapons.
“However, because Iran was busy renaming its North Korean made missiles Kuwait did not invite Tehran to participate in the GCC summit which was held recently in Kuwait and how could Kuwait invite Iran when it was busy with its missiles?
“Anyway, the absence of Iran from the GCC summit has not affected the numbers of the GCC states because they are still six.
“On the issue of the termination of the services of the Secretary-General of the GCC it is needless to say this man’s efficiency was undeniable. In this case, we suggest the GCC states must benefit from the experience of this man because he knows everything about the GCC Secretariat-General.”

“Foremost we would like to congratulate HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed for winning the confidence vote in the National Assembly,” columnist Terfah Al-Enezi wrote for Al-Watan Arabic daily Sunday.
“This development reflects the confidence of the MPs in the method and the democratic march followed by HH the Prime Minister because 73 percent of the nation’s representatives favor his rule. In other words, the Premier enjoys the confidence of more than two-thirds of the MPs and this is something rare in real democratic regimes.
“HH the Prime Minister won the confidence of the MPs because he represents the symbol of confidence. This happened at a time when his opponents were trying their best to undermine his image through the abuse of democratic practices and constitutional tools to achieve a political victory ignoring the fact that victory can be achieved only through legitimate constitutional frameworks.
“Such being the case, we suggest all of us must accept the outcome of the recent parliamentary session which was earmarked to vote on the non-cooperation motion filed against HH the Prime Minister because in democracy the minority has to accept the opinion of the majority.”

“The recent crisis created by the parliamentary interpellations passed off smoothly and HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed, by opting to stand on the grilling podium, has set an example to be followed by others when it comes to belief in democracy,” columnist Jawad Bu Khamseen wrote for Annahar daily Sunday.
“Not just that, during the interpellation HH the Prime Minister efficiently refuted all angles of the interpellation.
“As such by virtue of his wisdom, patience, sacrifice, respect for the Constitution and belief in democracy HH the Prime Minister managed to rescue the country from a choking crisis that lashed the country prior to him opting to stand on the grilling podium. He took the grilling podium before his ministers to lay emphasis on the deep-rooted Kuwaiti democracy.
 “However, with the passing of the crisis phase during which democracy was the sole winner, we suggest this development has resulted in the Kuwaiti democracy restoring its real and sound democratic march and this entails that all of us must work sincerely to fulfill the sublime desires of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed, may the Almighty Allah bless him, to transform Kuwait into an international commercial and economic hub.”
“Meanwhile, we once again congratulate HH the Prime Minister and the First Deputy Premier and Minister of Defence Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak, the Minister of Interior Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled and the Minister of Public Works and the Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Fadhel Safar for the confidence bestowed in them by the Members of Parliament.”

“How can the GCC countries benefit from and invest the brunt of the current international financial meltdown and its reflections on their national economies when the crisis has affected banks, investment and real estate firms in the region?” columnist and economic researcher Amer Al-Tameemi mused for Awan daily Sunday.
“As a matter of fact the economies of the GCC states are still coherent and sturdy. Moreover, the so-called ‘sovereign revenues’ of the governments in this part of the world are still ‘good’, particularly in the wake of the soaring of oil prices once again in the international market because the oil prices have hit $75 per barrel.
“Such being the case, we say the oil producing Gulf states are not suffering from any deficit either in their balance of payments or in their annual budgets and this means these countries will be in a position to enhance their capital expenditures during the upcoming years to reactivate their economic sectors, because these countries are enjoying financial surpluses which have been accumulated over the years.
“Consequently using the brunt of the current international financial meltdown means the GCC states must hasten to restructure their economies and boost the role of the private sector in general and the vital and services projects in particular because we know the government bureaucracies have proved to be a fiasco in managing vital projects and ameliorating their performance.”

“Even the supporters of the MPs who were against renewal of confidence in HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed and the Minister of Interior Sheikh Jaber Khaled Al-Sabah are wandering what is next. Does renewal of confidence in the Prime Minister help put the political life on the right track, aid the government in the implementation of projects and also help the National Assembly to play its legislative and supervisory role,” columnist Hassan Mohammed Al-Ansari wrote for Al-Dar daily.
“It is a well-known fact that when the employees enjoy their work, they become more creative and distinct and what they do reflects on their life.
“However, the performance of the MPs and ministers is immeasurable compared to the performance of ordinary employees. These people are elite chosen not only to manage the affairs of the state but the strategic programs.”

“In the first place the use of the term ‘bedoun’ is a mistake. It means they are violating the Kuwaiti residence law so it would be fitting to call them ‘illegal residents’ because they have records in the Ministry of Interior, the Public Authority for Civil Information and the Ministry of Education which proves they have a nationality contrary to what they allege,” columnist Khalifa Al-Khorafi wrote for Al-Qabas daily.
“What we say is the draft law which has been presented by the so-called Bedoun Committee should not take the lawmakers and leaders for a ride.
“When we call these people bedoun we legalize their status which in future may cause problems and embarrass Kuwait at the international level and may end up giving rights to people who don’t deserve them. I am afraid Kuwait will be obliged to naturalize the bedoun.
“Besides, Kuwait will be forced to settle the issue, establish a new database for bedoun and a new legal center contrary to what is available in the official records.”

“We request the relevant security departments to question and sue the organization that invited Hamed Abu Zaid to Kuwait, since his invitation is not very different from an attempt to commit a faith crime”, wrote Meshal Al-Qahtani for Arrouiah daily.
“This invitation and the revolution by the liberal stream that took place after Abu Zaid was banned from entering Kuwait revealed some harsh truths. His invitation does not constitute liberty and modernization, but merely hides dissatisfaction in Islam as a religion.
“We do not call him a disbeliever, as we cannot be the judge of such issues. However, the invitation extended to him to organize a cultural week to discuss issues abut the Quran was unacceptable. He is the one who was labeled as ‘apostate’ by the court. This makes the invitation questionable and suspicious.”

“In 1986, the US Air Force raided some military and civil Libyan locations in response to claims that the Libyan Secret Service attacked a nightclub that the American troops used to visit in Berlin, Germany”, wrote Abdulhadi Al-Jameel for Alam Alyawm daily.
“This attack on Libya was not the first. Many marine and air raids that targeted Colonel Moamar Al-Qathafi and his regime were carried out. The US President during that period — Ronald Reagan — who is also famous for his cowboy antics in Hollywood, was known for using charm as a weapon to appeal to the masses. He found this method effective whenever diplomacy failed.
“Colonel Al-Qathafi fumed that former President Reagan was mad and requested that he undergo medical tests to determine his mental abilities. In 1989, Reagan completed his second term and exited the White House. Years later, it was officially announced that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s, a mental disorder that affects the brain. I am writing about this illness because I believe it is important to be able to recognize its symptoms. It is an issue of concern for a political personality to be a victim of this disorder as politicians are the ones responsible for the safety and security of the nation’s people and resources.”

“I never for a day doubted the innocence of Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Khalid Al-Sabah, because he is an honorable and competent man,” Mubarak Al-Harbi wrote for Al-Shahid daily.
“He is known to be passionate about the country and its people, while his heart is full of humanity and dedication to work. I was highly delighted when the National Assembly gave him a clean bill of health after the grilling procedures. I need to congratulate the minister and wish him more accomplishments before saying what is on my mind.
“I hope the minister will now find time to close all disturbing files that are impeding national development and programs of the government. The visa traders who are unduly exploiting other people should be on top of the minister’s priority list in that regard. They have battered the image of the country at the international community, whereby Kuwait is criticized for poor human rights record”.

“Some persons expressed anger and refused to support the opinions of MP Ali Al-Rashed, who spoke on the need to amend the constitution and make it compatible with the lives of citizens living in modern-day Kuwait”, wrote Dr Abdulrahman Abdullah Al-Awadhi for Al-Anba daily.
“Al-Rashid had also asked for old articles to be refreshed. It is clear that those who protested against his ideas are the ones who have been trying to strain elations between the government and the parliament. I believe that amendments in the constitution are long overdue.
“The constitution was formed for the betterment of the lives of the citizens, and for peace and stability among its people. It should not be used as a point of argument. The amendments are necessary if the government is keen on changing the lifestyle of the country and its citizens.”

— Compiled by Zaki Taleb