Cabinet Meeting – Kuwait tightens Covid-19 precautions

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KUWAIT CITY, Jan 3: The Kuwaiti Cabinet on Monday decided to prevent all kinds of public gatherings in closed places as of next Sunday until February 28 as a precaution against the spread of Covid-19 pandamic. During its weekly meeting under His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah at Saif Palace, the Cabinet also decided to oblige all incoming passengers to obtain a negative PCR test 72 hours ahead of arrival in the country as of Tuesday (tomorrow).

The meeting assigned the concerned bodies to implement these decisions. Representative of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah briefed the Cabinet of the outcomes of his visits to Bahrain and Qatar. During the visits to the two countries he deliver two written letters from His Highness the Amir to Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Issa Al-Khalifa and Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al-Thani on the deep-rooted relations between Kuwait and Bahrain, and Kuwait and Qatar, and their peoples as well as means of developing and promoting these ties.

The Cabinet listened to a presentation made by Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Ali Hussein Al-Mousa on the heavy rains witnessed by the country yesterday and the consequences of the accumulation of large amounts of water in the main streets, highways and tunnels. The minister also spoke about the emergency teams’ great efforts aiming to ensure the safety of citizens and residents, and preserve public and private properties, Sheikh Ahmad Nasser said after the meeting.

The Cabinet thanked continued sincere efforts made by the concerned bodies to deal with heavy rains. Furthermore, the Cabinet followed up on the developments of the global epidemiological situation of coronavirus and Minister of Health Dr. Khaled Suleiman briefed the ministers on the latest happenings on health situation in the country.

The Cabinet demanded abiding by health requirements to make coronavirus indicators under control. It also advised people to take rapidly a booster shot of the anti-coronavirus vaccine to avoid this current wave of the pandemic, the minster added.

Moreover, the government assigned Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs, in coordination with the Ministry of Health, to accelerate taking a decision on the draft law amending some provisions of Law No. 8 of 1969 regarding preventive health precautions against communicable diseases. In line with the article 98 of the Constitution, the Cabinet reviewed the program of the 16th legislative term for 2021/2022-2024/2025. It reviewed the visual presentation by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil and Minister of Electricity and Water and Sustainable Energy, and Secretary-General of Supreme Council for Planning and Development on the program.

They said the government’s work program confirms keenness to move forward to take all necessary measures to enhance economic growth, financial sustainability, social development and health care that enhance the prosperity of citizens through implementing reform programs and launching national strategies.

The Cabinet approved the program and tasked the Deputy Prime Minister with submitting it to the National Assembly. Meanwhile, the Cabinet condemned and denunciated in the strongest terms Houti continued attempts aiming to target Saudi Arabia’s security through three drone attacks on its southern area.

The ministers said that the continuation of these aggressive practices and escalation against civilians and civil areas, security of Saudi Arabia and the stability of the region constitutes a flagrant violation of the rules of international and humanitarian law.

The Cabinet said such attacks require a rapid and decisive action from the international community to deter these threats and hold the perpetrators accountable. It affirmed Kuwait’s full support to the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in all measures it takes to preserve its security, stability and sovereignty.

The Cabinet further condemned Houthi militias’ blatant violations in Yemen with missile attacks on a popular market in Usaylan District of Shabwa governorate, eastern Yemen, after the Yemeni government forces had declared that it recaptured the area. The attacks left many civilians killed or wounded, and caused serious damage to some civilian areas. In addition, the Cabinet deplored the piracy and hijacking of the UAE-flagged cargo ship Rawabi off the port of Hodeidah in the Red Sea. The ship carries equipment to operate the Saudi field hospital in the Yemeni island of Socotra.

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