‘Kuwait targets boost inDIWANIYA cultural ties with …...Abdulrahman Al-Awadwrote for Al-Sabah daily. “The decision is binding under the general policy of the country, and sub-

‘Kingdom making presence felt in region’

‘Saudis embrace leader’s garb’“THE Kingdom of Saudi Arabiasimultaneously recently hosted the36th Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)summit, the Syrian opposition move-ments conference and the anti-Houthimeeting of Yemeni groups simultane-ously in addition to receiving manyWestern and Eastern delegations dur-ing the same period and officials fromvarious other countries for discussionson political, economical and strategicdecision-making process comprisingregional and international affairs,”columnist Yusuf Al-Jassem wrote forAl-Jarida daily Tuesday.

“Given the above, we conclude thatthis development put emphasis on thevital role that is being played by theKingdom of Saudi Arabia on regionaland global levels and its importance asa centre for dealing with the politicalreality of the Gulf region and drawingthe future characteristics of this part ofthe world.

“Moreover, the discussions reflectedon the significance of the Kingdom’scontribution to the political structure ofthe Arab world and consecutive strate-gic changes currently happening insome of the Arab countries, particular-ly in the wakeof the so-called‘Arab Spring’ –the spring thatin reality hasbecome the‘Arab hell’.

“What callsfor attentionindeed is theinternal affairsof Saudi Arabia,which at themoment witness some kind of relativesocial détente and this has become crys-tal clear by the role played by the Saudiwomen and their presence which is feltin hotels and the various public placeswithout their traditional clothing.

“Apart from the above, we haveobserved vast presence of the SaudiShura Council members and womenduring the concluding session of therecent GCC summit. But the most sig-nificant thing in this context is repre-sented by the Saudi women participa-tion in the country’s municipal coun-cils as candidates and voters and thisshows the restrictions which were pre-viously imposed on the contribution ofthe Saudi women to some of the pub-lic affairs have been lifted for good.

“Furthermore, we cite the opennessthat currently prevails in theKingdom’s intellectual and culturalarena and this was evident through thetangible activities of the Saudi intel-lectual and educated people in variouscultural, informational and technicalactivities.

“However, this development repre-sents nothing extraordinary for theKingdom of Saudi Arabia which hasefficiently managed to reconcilebetween its nature as a conservativecountry and its effective role in theArab cultural and technical movementand this was evident through its con-tribution to the various Arab cultural,media and technical activities.

“In this context, we say the Kingdomhas witnessed the appearance of manyprominent figures including the pub-lishers Hesham and Mohammad AliAbdulhavefth, the role played by thesons of King Salman in terms of estab-lishing Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (MiddleEast) Press Foundation, the PrinceKhaled Al-Faisal from Arab IntellectualFoundation, the role played by the sonsof Prince Sultan in Al-Hayat newspa-per, Sheikh Saleh Kamel – the owner ofART Satellite TV Station, SheikhWaleed Al-Ibrahim the owner ofMiddle East Broadcasting Corporation(MBC), the owner of Rotana SatelliteTV Station Prince Al-Waleed Ben Talal,the role played by the sons of the AmirKhaled Ben Abdullah BenAbdurrahman in terms of founding‘Orbit’ Satellite TV Station.

“It is needless to say the abovemedia corporations have opened thedoor for the educated and intellectualArabs to practice freely their cultural,political and artistic activities. Notjust that, the Kingdom at the momentis seen as one of the richest countriesin terms of establishing research andstudies centers in addition to manyforums which currently run through-out the Kingdom.”

Also:“Over the past week, the Kingdom

of Saudi Arabia hosted a conferencewhich was attended by representativesof various Syrian political parties andarmed opposition groups,” columnistZayed Al-Zaid wrote for Annahardaily Tuesday.

“The two-day conference resultedin the formation of a commissiongrouping representatives from most ofthe Syrian opposition parties andmovements in a prelude to form ajoint delegation to represent theSyrian opposition during the forth-coming international negotiations todiscuss the Syrian issue.

“This development was a relativesuccess which projected the ability ofthe Syrian opposition to unify itsranks and attitudes over majordemand of the parties and movementswhich are working to topple theregime of Bashar Al-Assad.

“But this unified attitude that hasbeen adopted recently by variouscomponents of the Syrian oppositionis opposed by the Russians through a‘veto’, particularly since we know thatMoscow at the moment is the majorsupporter of the Syrian regime and asa matter of fact, immediately after thesummit wrapped up the opposition inquestion declared its rejection to holdnegotiations with ‘terrorist groups’ asthe regime in its pertinent statementwas quoted as alleging.

“However, the fact is to the con-trary, because unlike the Russianclaim none of opposition parties andgroups which took part in Al-Riyadhconference can be classified as terror-ist groups such as the Islamic State(IS) or the so-called ‘DAESH’, forinstance, nor like the Al-Nusra Frontwhere the latter still derives itsthought from al-Qaeda. Moreover,these two organizations (DAESH andAl-Nusra) still occupy vast swathes ofthe Syrian territories.

“However, the fact remains that theregime has caused a lot of calamitiesand disasters for its country and trans-formed Syria into an arena for foreignmilitary interventions. Given the cur-rent scenario it will be very difficult torebuild the devastated homeland,hence any future negotiations that arenot based on ‘booting’ the incumbentregime, shall constitute only a mock-ery of the blood that has been shed bythe Syrian people. These negotiationswill eventually represent somethingagainst the interests of this people.”

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“The ceremony held by Kuwait, onboth official and private levels tohonor the dignitary Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda GatesFoundation, is a worthy celebration,befitting the man, just as worthy ofKuwait, which honors inventors in allfields, and opens its arms to embraceand appreciate charitable and humani-tarian initiatives, especially those thatare in the interest of all mankind,”columnist Abdulrahman Awwad wrotefor Al-Sabah daily.

“From here, this appreciation mani-fested in the coolest pictures when HisHighness the Amir awarded Bill Gatesthe Order of Kuwait a mantle of firstclass, ‘in recognition of his efforts,and his distinguished work in the fieldof philanthropy and voluntary human-itarian actions.

“This honoring goes in harmonywith the honoring of HH the Amir bythe United Nations as the WorldHumanitarian Leader and choseKuwait as the World HumanitarianCenter because of the role Kuwaitplays at global level in the area ofdevelopment.

“Hosting this great pioneer, cele-brated and honored personality is agood and noteworthy initiative andincreases the importance and givesvalue to the visit because Gill Gatesdeserves the privilege to be a rolemodel for the entire world’s youth.”

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“It seems that Moscow is still underthe influence of Vodka and in shockover its warplane shot down byTurkish fighter jets, in view of funnyallegation raised by the RussianDeputy Prime Minister AnatoliAntonov against Turkish PresidentRajap Toyip whom he accuses of buy-ing oil from DAESH!” Walid IbrahimAl-Ahmad wrote for Al-Rai daily.

“Antonov expanded the scope ofhis allegations, knowing well that theUS has placed financial embargo onthe Syrian business mogul GeorgeHaswani- who holds Russian pass-port- after Europe placed sanctions onSyria. The embargo on Haswanibecame effective after the US andBelgium ascertained that he benefitedfrom oil extracted from oil wellsunder DAESH control in Syria andIraq, and in return, sells the oil toSyrian government to fill its airplaneswith explosives to bomb its citizens!

“We are saying this with assurance

that war is not limited to the MiddleEast due to the presence of the dicta-torial Russian regime, as it spreads bythe intervention of US, Britain, Franceand Russia in the sky of Syria. Thesecountries claim to attack DAESH allthe time but we have yet to hear aboutlosses incurred by the terrorist groupor reduction in its activities!”

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“The enactment of law number31/2008, which obliges a couple plan-ning to get married to undergo med-ical tests, was an excellent step.Undoubtedly, this law has had positiveeffects on various aspects of the soci-ety,” columnist Abdallah Mateer Al-Sharika wrote for Al-Anba daily.

“We used to hear that the bride gotmarried without her consent and suchrevelations proved to be damaging torelations, not only between the brideand groom but also their families.Since the enactment of the law, suchcases have disappeared because goingfor the test is enough to signify con-sent, especially on the part of thebride.

“Nonetheless, some lawmakershave shown interest in amending thislaw. I have some recommendations inthis regard since I have experienceconcerning the law and the entire mar-riage process.

“The law should exempt peopleabove 50 years old and women whoare close to that age from taking thetests, as well as the divorced coupleswho got back together. This is inaddition to extending the validity oftest results from six months to oneyear.”

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“The government has control overthe ordinary citizen but lacks similarwill power over the political traderswho have professionalized commer-cial politics” Mohammad Ahmad Al-Mulla wrote for Al-Shahed daily.

“The political traders engage in polit-ical clowning to proclaim themselves aspolitical activists and form groups withhonorable and beautiful nationalnames. At the same time, they perpe-trate the dirtiest political activitiesunder groups’ name to gain positions.They go on to exploit their positions tofight for tenders, and then use the con-tracts to buyout several lawmakers.

“I want to tell the political traders toprepare for their end (grave) becausetheir billions will fritter away andtheir generations will become extinct.Kuwait and the Sabah dynasty willoutlive them, because the citizens lovethe family and share a special bond. Ibeseech Allah to protect HH thepatient Amir and HH the humbleCrown Prince.”

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“It is normal for any country tofight gangs and become victorious atthe end if the government stands forthe truth and law,” Talal Al-Saeedwrote for Al-Seyassah daily.

“Recent events in the sports circleindicate a gang or gangs are wagingwar with the government, and theystruggle to be victorious with theassistance of other gangs that controlFIFA by trying to scuttle the inaugura-tion of Jaber stadium to render severeblow to Kuwaiti sports.

“All Kuwaiti citizens look forward tothe inauguration of the stadium, whichrepresents a new landmark in Kuwaitisports, in order to push the country torestore its past glory. Successes attainedin this regard will rescue the countryfrom the monopoly of Kuwaiti sportswhere gangs regard the sport sector astheir personal estate.”

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“Over 200,000 British citizens havesigned the petition for concernedauthorities to ban US presidential can-didate Donald Trump from enteringBritain, and the parliament hasendorsed the request allowing the con-cerned minister to ban Trump fromBritain if his presence will not servethe welfare of the country,”Abdulrahman Al-Awad wrote for Al-Sabah daily.

“The decision is binding under thegeneral policy of the country, and sub-sequent to ban placed on the Dutchpolitician Khairat Felders in 2009from entering Britain based on hateexpressions he used against Muslimsand Islam.

“It is illogical to hold a nationaccountable for improper actions by asingle person, given that all people arenot the same — especially if themajority of the people in that countryfrown on injustices and oppression.”

—- Compiled by Zaki Taleb

ARAB TIMES, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2015

6LOCAL

Al-Jassem

DIWANIYAa digest of public opinion

‘Kuwait targets boost incultural ties with Russia’

Sheikh Salman lauds Hermitage Museum

SAINT PETERSBURG, Dec15, (KUNA): Minister ofInformation and Minister ofState for Youth AffairsSheikh Salman Sabah SalemAl-Humoud Al-Sabah onTuesday described his talkswith Russian officials as“important and fruitful.”

Sheikh Salman, who is alsoChairman of the National Council forCulture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL),told KUNA and Kuwait TV in an exclu-sive statement before his departurefrom Russia that his talks with theRussian Minister of Culture VladimirMedinsky focused on means of promot-ing bilateral cultural ties, and exchangeof expertise and experts’ visits, in addi-tion to benefiting from the experienceof the Russian cultural centers.

He said that the Russian side highlyappreciated Kuwait’s role and the significantoutcome of His Highness the Amir SheikhSabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah’s visitto Russia in September. A bilateral culturalagreement was signed then.

Sheikh Salman said he had invitedMedinsky to visit Kuwait for further dis-cussions on means to boost bilateral cul-tural cooperation, reiterating Russia’scultural status globally.

As for the talks with Director of theHermitage Museum Mikhail BorisovichPiotrovsky, Sheikh Salman said theyaddressed means of enhancing cooperationfor enhancing exchange of historical books,developing museums, caring for nationalheritage and heritage restoration training.

Offering Kuwaiti youth the opportunityto benefit from the long expertise of theHermitage Museum, which was foundedin 1764, featured high on the agenda ofthe talks, he said. Touring the Hermitage,Sheikh Salman expressed his deep admi-ration of the historical items on display.

The minister thanked Kuwait’sAmbassador to Russia Abdulaziz Al-Adwani for his efforts, and appreciatedKUNA and the Kuwait TV for coverageof the visit. He also voiced thanks to theRussian government for hospitality andwarm welcome during the visit.

The Kuwaiti delegation that participatedin the IV St Petersburg InternationalCultural Forum, led by Sheikh Salman,included Ambassador Al-Adwani andNCCAL Assistant Secretary General for theCulture Sector, Mohammed Al-Zoabi, andofficials from the Ministry of Information.

KUNA photo

Sheikh Salman and Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky at theHermitage Museum.

Rumors denied: Rumors spreadthrough various social networking sitesthat some donations from Kuwait weregiven to those behind the attacks inFrance are not true, reports Al-Raidaily quoting sources from theMinistry of Social Affairs and Labor.

Affirming that all charities in Kuwaitabide by the laws governing such organ-izations, sources confirmed the ministryhas not recorded any violation or unusu-al observations regarding charities.

Sources said the ministry is closelymonitoring the activities of individualssuspected of collecting donations.They explained an expatriate proven tobe collecting donations will be deport-ed, while their Kuwaiti counterpartswill be asked to write a pledge torefrain from repeating the action.

Sources added the ministry is keenon checking advertisements and invita-tions posted on social networking sitesasking for donations, as well asannouncements published by some citi-zens and officials.

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‘Will shut prison’: US PresidentBarack Obama has vowed to pushahead with plans to close the

Guantanamo Bay prison for terror sus-pects, despite evidence that a substan-tial number of former detainees havereturned to the battlefield.

In an interview with Yahoo News thatwas published Monday, Obama said thestrategic benefits of closing the notoriousfacility outweighed incidents of recidi-vism among “low-level” former inmates.

The White House itself admits thataround 10 percent of those releasedfrom Guantanamo have resumed fight-ing for Islamic extremist organizations,but says it is more important to shuttera facility that has become a recruitingtool for militants.

Obama’s comments come asSudanese militant Ibrahim al-Qosi —who was released in 2012 — seeming-ly appeared in a recent video by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

“The judgment that we’re continual-ly making is, are there individuals whoare significantly more dangerous thanthe people who are already out therewho are fighting?” Obama said.

“What do they add? Do they havespecial skills? Do they have specialknowledge that ends up making a sig-nificant threat to the United States?”(AFP)

News in Brief

Drones can pin-point militants presence

Least amount of error in collateral damageKUWAIT CITY, Dec 15: The Italianmagazine L’Espresso has published accu-rate photographs of the Islamic State orthe so-called DAESH in Iraq captured byItalian drones which took off from a mil-itary base in Kuwait which are providingsupplies for US aircraft, reports Al-Raidaily.

At the first glance, it does not seemanything unusual in the video, which waspicked up aerial reconnaissance planebelonging to the Italian Air Force for sus-pected armed Islamic militants duringtheir movements in different parts of Iraq.

At the beginning the video showsimages in black and white and monitors

air strikes against what they look like thebottom of the inspection point under ahuge black banner on a road in northernIraq.

Then quickly something happens radi-cally different, that is, a color videowhich clearly shows four armed mencoming out of the house and walking inthe streets of the town.

At a certain stage, the video camerasuddenly focuses on two armed suspectsand one of them almost certainly is a‘minor’ carrying a rifle on his shoulderclearly showing his small body comparedto the gunman next to him. And thoseimages are very clear to the point that

even the shadow of those people can eas-ily be distinguished.

In the e-mail message commentedThomas Keenan, Executive Director ofHuman Rights at the Bard College(Liberal Arts College in New York) said,“In fact, these pictures show a lot of abil-ity are very interesting, as well as the factit is not necessary to have operators onthe aircraft to portray over the site direct-ly.

“This makes it clear - among otherthings - they have the least amount oferror in terms of the potential collateraldamage, because they can see objects infine detail clearly from very high.”