KUWAIT The executioner attacks again in Kuwait: they executed seven detainees

The last executions were in 2017 and included a member of the royal family. Among those executed were four Kuwaiti citizens (three men and one woman), one Syrian, one Pakistani and one Ethiopian. The condemnation of the EU, which warns that there will be reprisals that include the blocking of the processing of entry visas.

Kuwait City () – The authorities yesterday executed seven people convicted of murder and other serious crimes, applying the death penalty for the first time since 201/. The decision sparked criticism from human rights activist groups and the warning of reprisals from international foreign ministries. One of the first critical voices was that of the European Union: Brussels summoned the ambassador of the Gulf country to the EU and warned him that it would block the procedures for granting the exemption of the entry visa to its citizens.

The EU commissioner, Margaritis Schinás, affirmed that there will be “consequences” for the executions after years of moratorium and given the “guarantees” that the death penalty would not be applied, as the official remarked. The death sentences, in effect, were carried out during the visit of the European delegation to Kuwait. “We will specify all the consequences – Schinas said in a statement – that this decision will have on the talks […] to put Kuwait on the list of countries that do not require a visa”. In this sense, the European Parliament is expected to vote today on a Commission proposal to include Kuwait on the “visa-free” list. In case of light green, citizens of the Gulf will be able to enter without the need for a Schengen visa (currently mandatory) for a minimum of a few days and a maximum of three months.

The death sentences were carried out in the central prison, although the modalities are not clear. The people executed are three men and a woman of Kuwaiti nationality, a man of Syrian nationality, a Pakistani man and an Ethiopian woman. One of the causes that led to the executions is premeditated homicide; for the authorities, the death penalty should constitute a “deterrent” for similar situations in the future. “By acting in this way, they have deprived the victims – the prosecution declared in a statement – of one of the most sacred rights, which is the right to life.”

The last mass execution was in 2017, when Kuwait executed seven prisoners, including a member of the ruling royal family, the Al-Sabah. Prior to that, other executions had been carried out in 2013. Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Amna Guellali, renewed her appeal to the authorities calling for an “immediate moratorium on executions”. And she added that “the death penalty is a violation of the right to life and a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.”