Kuwait: Saudi requested we deport Al-Rasheed

Kuwait’s Ministry of the Interior announced yesterday that it had deported Nawaf Talal Al-Rasheed to Saudi Arabia on Saturday following a request by Riyadh.

Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) quoted a ministry statement as saying that Al-Rasheed was deported “under bilateral mutual security arrangements between Kuwait and Riyadh”.

The statement gave no further details.

This is the first official announcement about the dual Saudi-Qatari national’s fate since news of his arrest was reported over the weekend.

The National Committee for Human Rights in Qatar announced on Sunday that it had received a complaint from Al-Rasheed’s family who accuse the Saudi authorities of arbitrarily arresting him without any formal charges.

READ:“Kuwait ignoring international law by deporting my cousin”

According to the statement, the family lost contact with him during a recent visit to Kuwait. Al-Rasheed is the son of Saudi Prince Talal Bin Abdulaziz Al-Rasheed and lives in Doha, Qatar, where the New Khaleej had previously reported authorities had taken measures to secure his safety following fear that he could be assassinated by Saudi Arabia.

The committee said Al-Rasheed’s arrest was within the framework of targeting Qatari citizens and fabricating false accusations against them. It said Saudi authorities were fully responsible “for his security and safety”.

Riyadh has made official comment regarding Al-Rasheed’s arrest.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt launched a land, sea and air blockade on Qatar last June and cut all diplomatic ties with the small Gulf state accusing it of supporting terrorism. Doha vehemently denies the charges and claims the states seek to attack its sovereignty.