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n the wake of the crumbling of certain sandcastles in the sky, sovereign wealth funds in the middle east have baited our analytic gaze over the last month or so. It takes very little, therefore, to prompt us to take careful notice now just about whenever one is mentioned. Today, the Kuwait Investment Authority (hereinafter the "KIA") and its brutal body-blow to Citi demand our attention. While pinning solid figures on any of the sovereign wealth funds in the middle east is a speculative effort at best, it is difficult to come up with figures much smaller than $150-200 billion...

Note: The following text is a quote: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, December 9, 2009 United States Transfers One Guantanamo Bay Detainee to Kuwait Fouad Mahmoud al-Rabiah, a Kuwaiti national, has been transferred from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to the control of the government of Kuwait. As directed by the President’s Jan. 22, 2009 Executive Order, the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force conducted a comprehensive review of this case. As a result of that review, the detainee was approved for transfer from Guantanamo Bay. In accordance with Congressionally-mandated reporting requirements, the Administration informed Congress of its intent to transfer...

Growing up in Kuwait, I had the best of everything. My father owned a successful construction company, and provided us five children with amenities like piano lessons, swimming, calligraphy and trips all over the world. Although we were Muslims like everyone else, we were totally secular and my father always aimed to shield us from religious people whom he described as crazies. I grew up being told that Israelis and Jews were the lowest type of creature in existence, put on Earth only to kill us Arabs. In math class the teacher would say, “If one rocket killed X number...

SNIPPET: "Iraqi soldiers foiled a potentially deadly suicide attack today at the border crossing at Al Qaim in western Anbar province. From Aswat al-Iraq (Voices of Iraq): “A force from the 28th infantry division managed to defuse a car bomb and to kill its driver in al-Qaim, Anbar province,” said the statement received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “The suicide driver carries the Kuwaiti nationality, and had on his possession a fake ID issued from Baiji,” the statement added. “The car was loaded with three tons of Chlorine and C4 as well as other chemical materials,” it added. Having closely...

Kuwait hoping for French jet deal Kuwait is hoping for a deal to buy Rafale fighter jets from France, the Gulf state's defence minister said on Wednesday. Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah said his country would be "proud" to have the supersonic jet in its armed forces. "We hope to see an offer (from France) on the matter soon," he told journalists in Paris after signing a new defence accord with his French counterpart Herve Morin. Any deal would be studied carefully by the Kuwaiti air force, he added. "We hope to get the Rafale for our air force," he...

GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) - Plans to close Guantanamo are not sitting well with the Sept. 11 victims' relatives who sat stunned while two alleged terrorists declared they were proud of their role in the plot.

Note: The following text is a quote: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, October 9, 2009 United States Transfers Two Guantanamo Bay Detainees to Kuwait and Belgium WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice today announced that two detainees have been transferred from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to the control of the governments of Kuwait and Belgium. As directed by the President’s Jan. 22, 2009 Executive Order, the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force conducted a comprehensive review of each of these cases. As a result of that review, these detainees were approved for transfer from Guantanamo Bay. In accordance with Congressionally-mandated...

police have targeted those who “break their fast publicly” and if caught eating or drinking anything in daylight, police have arrested them immediately, including one man who was purchasing juice for his family. That man, Ahmed Mustafa, was quoted by al-Youm al-Saba’a as saying “I was standing at the store buying juice for my children for Iftar [meal that breaks the fast],” adding that he was indeed fasting. He is just one of many citizens who have felt the heavy hand of Egyptian police during the holy month. It is part of an odd campaign launched by the interior ministry...

The ex-wife of the groom at a Kuwait wedding where a raging fire killed 43 women and children has confessed to starting the blaze as an act of revenge, local newspapers reported on Monday. Al-Qabas newspaper said the 23-year-old woman had told police she used petrol to torch a wedding tent packed with women and children to avenge her ex-husband's "bad treatment" of her before their divorce. Interior ministry spokesman Colonel Mohammad al-Saber told state-run Kuwait Television that Saturday's fire -- which engulfed the tent in just minutes and triggered a panicked stampede -- was an act of arson. "We...

Earlier today, we posted a link to an article which mentioned that Kuwait Islamic Bank had entered into a joint venture with Colorado-based real estate company UDR: We were curious as to what, if any, restrictions were to be imposed on the real estate properties in which Kuwait Islamic Bank invested here in the United States, so we made an inquiry via UDR’s “contact us” form on the company’s web site. The company was quick to reply as, within minutes, we received a phone call from Dave Messenger, CFO of UDR. I asked Mr. Messenger two questions: 1. What, if...

Ex-wife 'admits starting' Kuwait wedding party blaze that killed 43 Many of those who died were killed in the stampede for the exit of the tent, in which 180 women and children were celebrating James Hider, Middle East Correspondent A fire in a wedding party tent that killed 43 women and children in Kuwait was started deliberately by the ex-wife of the bridegroom, a Kuwaiti newspaper said today. Al-Qabbas said that the 23-year-old former wife had admitted pouring petrol on the cotton tent and setting it on fire, furious at what she called her “bad treatment” by her former partner...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2009 – U.S. military officials are crediting Kuwaiti security services with foiling a planned terrorist bombing aimed at a major U.S. logistical hub and staging operation in Kuwait and several other Kuwaiti sites. Kuwaiti authorities reportedly arrested six al-Qaida operatives accused of conspiring to carry out the attack on Camp Arifjan next week, during the opening days of Ramadan. Two suspects confessed to planning to use a truck laden with explosive chemicals and fertilizer to attack the base, according to Kuwait’s Al-Rai Al-Aam newspaper, which quoted a Kuwaiti interior ministry statement. The defendants reportedly rehearsed the plot...

An Ottawa taxi driver who grabbed and kissed a female passenger after following her into an apartment building committed a “serious predatory attack” and should spend at least a month in jail, a Crown prosecutor argued Tuesday. Assistant Crown attorney John Ramsay said Hassan Jabar Majli, 36, abused a position of trust when he took advantage of a female passenger. Majli, who has lost his taxi licence since the incident, was found guilty of sexual assault in May after court heard testimony from the victim, a teacher, about how the driver followed her into the apartment block and kissed her...

Here is a brief video report on the August 2, 1990 Iraq invasion of neighboring Kuwait, 19 years ago today. Iraq invaded using over 100,000 troops and 700 tanks. The invasion led to the First Gulf War in which a coalition of nations - led by the United States - drove Iraq out of Kuwait. Below is part of a speech by President George H.W. Bush to a Joint Session of Congress on September 11, 1990, in which he demanded that Iraq withdraw immediately and unconditionally from Kuwait. . . . . .

BAGHDAD — Britain says it will withdraw its remaining forces in Iraq to Kuwait, after the Iraqi parliament failed to pass a deal allowing the British troops to stay beyond the end of the month. The deal would have let up to 100 British troop stay in Iraq to protect oil platforms and provide training in the south of the country. The rest of the British forces are withdrawing under a separate agreement. British Embassy spokesman Jawwad Syed said Tuesday it's a procedural delay and that the remaining British forces will pull back to Kuwait until the issue is resolved....

Kuwait says Rafale worth "serious consideration" Tue Jun 2, 2009 1:18pm EDT KUWAIT, June 2 (Reuters) - Kuwait's defence minister said on Tuesday that buying Rafale fighter aircraft was worth "serious consideration", the official Kuwait News Agency reported. "On a Rafale French military aircraft deal, Sheikh Jaber al-Hamad al-Sabah said the issue will be looked at, noting that the French aircraft's high quality and advanced technology demands serious consideration with regard to buying them," the agency said. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in February that Paris and Kuwait were in talks on a possible sale of warships and 14-28 Rafale...

The Best Speech of the Virginia GOP Convention. Cadet Colonel Adnan Barqawi:"Impossible is Nothing..." Click here for the video Cadet Colonel Adnan Barqawi "Impossible is Nothing"We had so many speakers at the Virginia Convention, we had Mitt Romney, Sean Hannity and a slate of Virginia representatives but it was not one of them that claimed the day. It was Cadet Colonel Adnan Barqawi, a new citizen and descendent of Palestinian refugees born in Kuwait, who brought the house down with his speech given from the heart with a clear love of his new country and its founding principles. His success...

WASHINGTON, May 26, 2009 – The 586th Air Expeditionary Group is one of three Air Force groups organized to complete joint expeditionary taskings and is contributing significantly to operations in Iraq and Kuwait, the group’s commander said. Col. Alan Metzler, 586th AEG commander, spoke with journalists and bloggers during a DODLive Blogger’s roundtable May 20. Metzler is responsible for organizing, training and equipping more than 650 ground combat airmen across four geographically separated locations to fill U.S. Army requirements. The airmen conduct combat logistics, convoys, area security operations, detainee visitation, explosive detection and chapel ministry. “When deployed, those forces --...

Several swine flu cases have been detected among U.S. soldiers passing through Kuwait, officials said Saturday. The soldiers were treated on a U.S. base and some of them have left the country, the state news agency quoted a Health Ministry official as saying. The official, Ibrahim Abdul-Hadi, did not say how many soldiers were infected or where they were traveling from. The U.S. Embassy said cases have "tentatively" been confirmed without providing details. It said the soldiers did not come into contact with the Kuwaiti population. "Each case was characterized as being a mild flu-like symptom," the American military said...

FORMER President George W. Bush's policy of en couraging Middle East democratization has just produced spectacular results in the Kuwaiti general election. In a major victory for the secular reformists over the Islamists, women -- four of them -- were elected to the 50-seat national parliament for the first time. The Islamists' share of Sunday's vote dropped almost 30 percent from the last general election, held just more than a year ago. The radical Muslim Brotherhood lost three of its four seats, while the hard-line Salafis dropped to two from four. The election of women represents a political earthquake in...

Sunni Islamists lost ground in Kuwait's general election but women made history by bagging four seats, their first ever in the 50-member parliament, according to results released on Sunday. Official results from the five electoral districts showed that the two mainstream Sunni Islamic groups were dealt a heavy blow by losing most of their seats they held in the outgoing parliament. The hardline Islamic Salafi Alliance won two seats out of four it held while the Islamic Constitutional Movement, the political arm of Muslim Brotherhood, won a single seat down from three it had in the dissolved house. Overall, the...

CAMP BEUHRING, Kuwait – At the core of any combat arms Soldier lays discipline, fighting instincts and the distinct ability to put lead on target. The Advanced Close Quarters Marksmanship course lays a foundation to ingrain these attributes into their minds. The combat arms Soldiers who comprise Company F's "Blues Platoon," 3rd Assault Helicopter Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, will spend multiple days learning advanced techniques from civilian contractors with Special Operations backgrounds. The training encompasses multiple phases culminating with a final assault on a two story complex, said Rick Gordon, a civilian contractor...

CAMP VIRGINIA, Kuwait, May 8, 2009 – If enemies fear one Marine, they now have twice the reason to be afraid. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Robert I. Johnson, right, and his twin bother, Marine Corps Sgt. Tracey R. Johnson, enjoy a brief reunion on Camp Virginia, Kuwait, April 23, 2009. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Michael T. Knight  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Robert I. Johnson and Sgt. Tracey R. Johnson, twin brothers, enjoyed a brief reunion here, far from their small hometown of Albany, La. Robert, currently deployed to Kuwait, met up...

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2009 – Before U.S. military troops touch ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, they must first pass through one of a handful of military portals, or gateways, that coordinate their movement in and out of the theater. Soldiers await their bus to the air strip at the Theater Gateway in Kuwait. The gateway processed more than 700,000 troops and civilians last fiscal year moving in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. It is a behind-the-scenes effort that sometimes can be best described as “organized...

Salah Bahman, an independent candidate for the Kuwaiti parliament, has dropped out of the race a day after he called for full normalization of relations between Israel and Kuwait, igniting a storm of controversy in the Persian gulf state. In a radio interview Wednesday, Bahman backtracked on his previous statement before announcing his withdrawal from the race. During an interview Tuesday with the news Website "Al-Arabiya", Bahman said Kuwait needed to normalize relations with Israel immediately after their liberation from Iraqi occupation. Bahman stated that Kuwait plays an important role in international relations and normalization of ties with Israel would...

When Hollywood movies and their stars trash America's brave soldiers, the anti-war press can't give them enough attention. Yet, when cast and crew members of the soon to be released prequel of the sci-fi classic "Star Trek" visited service men and women in Kuwait on Saturday, newsrooms across the fruited plain couldn't care less. Spc. Howard Ketter filed this report shortly after the event concluded (h/t Big Hollywood, video embedded below the fold h/t Blackfive): "We feel priviledged to be here and to meet the people who are working hard on our behalf," said John Cho, who starred as Hikaru...

WASHINGTON, April 8, 2009 – The war may be fought in the sands of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan, but for most troops and cargo heading into theater, it starts on a small air strip just outside of Kuwait City, Kuwait. Two airmen from the 386th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron work to unload cargo from a C-17 Globemaster III at a small air strip in Kuwait, March 17, 2009. The airmen facilitate the most cargo and troops to theater of any air portal in the region. DoD photo by Fred W. Baker III  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image...

KUWAIT CITY (AFP) — The emir of the Gulf state of Kuwait dissolved parliament on Wednesday for the second time in a year after a new row between MPs and the cabinet, which is dominated by members of his Sabah family. Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah called a snap election within the next two months, the official KUNA news agency said, the second poll in the Western-backed oil producer since May last year and the third since June 2006. The emir, whose country is the main rear base for US-led operations in neighbouring Iraq, said he took the decision to...

Japan's JGC has not officially been informed about the cancellation of Kuwait's 615,000 b/d al-Zour refinery project, in which the engineering and construction company had secured key contracts, a JGC official said Monday. "We are aware of the declared cancellation of the project by prime minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammed through media reports," the official said. "However, we have not been informed about this from Kuwait as yet. We are in the middle of confirming this information through our networks," he added. JGC shares were trading at Yen 1,129 ($11.53) each at 10:22 am local time Monday (0122 GMT) on the...

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2009 – Deployed servicemembers in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo and Kuwait will not miss out on Girl Scout cookies this year, thanks to the troop-support group “Hugs for Our Soldiers.” Brownie Troop 61, from Duluth, Ga., display the Girl Scout cookies they plan to send to deployed sevicemembers as part of “Operation: Taste of Home.” Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The group’s first Girl Scout cookie drive was in 2004. Five years later, the group continues to partner with Gwen Lawrence and her Brownie Troop 61 to collect cookies for “Operation: Taste of Home.”...

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md., March 13, 2009 – Air National Guard civil engineer squadrons comprising hundreds of construction and repair experts will involuntary deploy overseas in historic numbers and scope over the next two years, senior Air Guard officials said. The mobilizations involve nearly one-eighth of the Air Guard’s civil engineer squadrons and differ from previous deployments, when citizen-airmen stepped forward as volunteers to man joint expeditionary groups. "We have large groups being involuntarily mobilized in the beginning and middle of 2009,” Air Force Col. John Elwood of the Air Guard Readiness Center's civil engineer office said. He said...

KUWAIT: State Security forces recently managed to acquire what they described as a "treasure trove of information" from an Al-Qaeda recruiter caught while he was on his way back from Iran using a forged GCC passport. A security official said that the suspect, a former military officer identified only as MSAA, had been placed under close covert surveillance for more than two years. They added that the man has confessed to playing a major role in recruiting young men in Kuwait and other GCC nations to join the Mujahideen in Afghanistan." SNIPPET: "The official added that two other GCC national...

A professor from Kuwait, the country liberated from Saddam Hussein's attack squads by the United States in the first Gulf War, has outlined on Arab television a potential terror attack that would involve smuggling anthrax from Mexico into the U.S. and killing 330,000 people in 60 minutes.

FORT BELVOIR, Va., Feb. 24, 2009 – As 17,000 soldiers and Marines ordered to Afghanistan by President Barack Obama prepare to deploy this spring and summer, logisticians already are orchestrating the shipment of critical supplies such as food and lumber. Army Staff Sgt. Thomas Marstin of Company B, 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, enjoys the view from an M939 5-ton truck at Forward Operating Base Lane in Afghanistan’s Zabol province, Feb. 15, 2009. The Defense Logistics Agency is planning for increased demands of food, building supplies, fuel and spare parts for additional troops expected to arrive in Afghanistan by...

Kuwait City, 27 Jan. (AKI) - The emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah, says no donations destined for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip should go to the Palestinian National Authority led by president Mahmoud Abbas. Al-Sabah made the remarks after Muslim parliamentarians asked the emir about the destination of funds to help the people of Gaza. "We will announce the precise figure that we will donate only at the donor countries conference due to take place in Cairo," said the emir, cited by Arab TV network Al-Jazeera. "Our government will, however, put conditions on the deposit of...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2009 – “Kuwait” and “all the comforts of home” are phrases rarely uttered in the same sentence, but a “Man Caves” makeover at Camp Virginia, Kuwait, will show that sometimes the improbable can happen. Tony Siragusa, second from right, former National Football League player and co-host of DIY Network TV’s “Man Caves,” bonds with members of an Ohio National Guard unit during a taping of the show’s one-hour special, “Man Caves: USO Troop Edition.” DIY courtesy photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The DIY Network TV show regularly turns basements and dens into guy-friendly...

This article was sent in by Dr. Sami Alrabba. Dr. Alrabaa is an ex-Muslim, a professor of Sociology and an Arab-Muslim culture specialist. Before moving to Germany he taught at Kuwait University, King Saud University, and Michigan State University. This article was written to help show the world the horrors that many foreign workers go through in Islamic countries, even Muslim workers. Reading this article makes one wonder how we will be treated if the world falls to Islam. Dr. Alrabaa will be our live guest on Wednesday night's radio show. Show times are posted on the upper left hand...

Kuwait City, Kuwait (AHN) - Political instability in some of the Arab States over the last few years has not affected the residents as much as the global economic crisis has over the period of four months alone. Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Sabah in Kuwait City said that oil-rich Gulf Arab nations have lost $2.5 trillion from the credit crunch, forcing them to postponed or cancel 60 percent of development projects.Although he did not disclose the details on the figures, he blamed the crisis for the "huge damage" caused to the financial state of the region. He was talking...

Arab investors have lost 2.5 trillion dollars from the credit crunch, Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Sabah, whose country hosts an Arab economic summit next week, said on Friday. "The Arab world has lost 2.5 trillion dollars in the past four months" as a result of the global financial crisis, Sheikh Mohammad told a press conference following a joint meeting of Arab foreign and finance ministers in Kuwait. He also said that about 60 percent of development projects "have either been postponed or cancelled" by the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states because of the global meltdown. Arab leaders who...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16, 2009 – Instead of deploying to Kuwait, about 500 Navy Seabees will deploy to Afghanistan, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said today. The Seabees are the 25th Naval Construction Regiment home-ported in Gulfport, Miss., and they will deploy beginning next month in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. “What the regiment provides is expeditionary engineering and construction support,” Whitman said. The regiment can build buildings, put in roads or air strips. The projects the Seabees work on could be used by NATO and Afghan forces. “This is a new deployment to Afghanistan,” Whitman said. “The regiment was originally scheduled...

Kuwait's foreign minister says that Arab countries have lost $2,500 billion in the last four months because of the global financial crisis.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A confidant of the man Barack Obama defeated in November said Wednesday that the president-elect has earned enormous global good will and "a moment in time" to re-engage other nations with the United States. The assessment by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was noteworthy because he is a conservative Republican and one of Sen. John McCain's closest friends. Graham campaigned vigorously against Obama in last year's presidential race. Noting himself that he had been "one of the chief opponents" of Obama, Graham pronounced himself now "very pleased" with the president-elect's attitude and policies toward the countries they visited....

Protestors burn the Israeli flag outside Leinster House during the Ireland Palestine demonstration in Dublin today. Photo: Matt Kavanagh A man attempted to set himself alight at a protest today in Dublin over the continued bombing of Gaza. The man, who appeared visibly distraught, set his arms and shoulders alight before onlookers managed to extinguish the flames. He was not seriously injured. The incident happened at around 1.45pm this afternoon at the Central Bank in Dublin where around 600 people had gathered to protest at Israeli attacks in Gaza. The protest continued without incident to Leinster House and finished this...

Clinton for sale By posting this am I saying that Bill Clinton is different from any other powerful politician, in taking money from foreign donors who obviously hope to influence the political process? No, in this Bill Clinton is not singular. But look at this list: $10 million to $25 million from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Between $1 million and $5 million each from Saudi businessman Nasser Al-Rashid, Friends of Saudi Arabia, the Dubai Foundation, and the governments of Kuwait, Qatar, Brunei and Oman. And the New York Post here is worried about money from India keeping Hillary from...

From the MEMRI TV Archives- Kuwaiti Islamist Sa'd Al-'Inzi; Homosexuals Should Be Tortured in Public Squares – Death is Too Good For Them Following are excerpts from an interview with Kuwaiti Islamist Dr. Sa'd Al-'Inzi, which aired on Al-Rai TV on December 10, 2007: To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1921.htm. "What Are the Secret Acts Performed Behind Closed Doors [of Massage Parlors]?" Moderator: "Doctors and professionals recommend that people should relax. Modern experiments and studies have proven that the best method of relaxation is massage. No reasonable person would deny this, but some people, who abuse this...

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait, Nov. 20, 2008 – The Ohio Army National Guard's 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team is making its presence felt in three key areas of Central Command: Kuwait, Iraq and now in Afghanistan. About 40 soldiers from the 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team prepare for an upcoming mission to Afghanistan to establish critical communications assets. The Ohio National Guard brigade, nearing the end of a yearlong tour, is sending about 40 signal soldiers into Afghanistan to establish critical communications assets. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. About 40 soldiers from the brigade have been...

While his accounts are being scrutinized by Obama’s search committee, a Kuwaiti report indicates Bill Clinton reaped $500,000 for a single speech there Sunday. The National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) has paid $500,000 to Bill Clinton for a single lecture he delivered in Kuwait City on Sunday on his assessment of Barack Obama’s foreign and economic policies. It was delivered the day after the Kuwaiti stock market resumed trading after it was suspended by order of a Kuwaiti court on Thursday to avoid a total collapse. Without mentioning reports that Clinton’s finances were coming under close scrutiny as his wife,...

The 13 members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pumped an average 32.26 million barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil in October, according to a Platts survey of OPEC and oil industry officials just released. This is a 210,000 b/d decline from the September level of 32.47 million b/d. Excluding Iraq, production from the 12 members hitherto bound by output agreements fell by 220,000 b/d, to 29.96 million b/d from 30.18 million b/d, the survey showed. When Indonesia, which will leave OPEC at year end is also excluded, the survey shows a 210,000 b/d drop in...

Kuwait's Central Bank stepped in Sunday to prop up one of the country's biggest banks and said it was considering guaranteeing deposits in domestic banks — in one of the first concrete signs that the global financial crisis may next hit the oil-rich Gulf. In Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, the government said it would deposit $2.7 billion into the Saudi Credit Bank to help lower-income citizens deal with financial difficulties, the country's Al-Ektisadiya newspaper reported. The two moves came just a day after finance ministers from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council held an emergency meeting to echo assurances, which they have...

Canada plans to send an oil and gas business delegation next week to Kuwait with the hopes of forging new commercial hydrocarbon partnerships, the Canadian Embassy in Kuwait said Tuesday in a statement carried by the official news agency KUNA. The 30-member oil and gas delegation organized by the Alberta Ministry of International an Intergovernmental Relations, Export Development Canada, and Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada will visit Kuwait October 28-31 with the aim of promoting collaboration while exploring new business partnerships between the two countries, the embassy said. In their meetings with Kuwaiti representatives, the Canadian delegation expects to...