Kuwaiti Parliament Endorses Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad as New Crown Prince

By Staff, Agencies

Kuwait’s parliament on Thursday endorsed Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad as the country’s crown prince, after the new emir named him on Wednesday.

The parliament made the announcement in a post on its Twitter page, Reuters reported.

Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah assumed power as emir following the death of his brother Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad last week.

Octogenarian Sheikh Meshal is deputy head of the country’s National Guard.

On Tuesday, Parliament Speaker Marzouq al-Ghanim said that although the assembly’s term would end on Thursday ahead of upcoming elections, it would hold an extraordinary session if the new emir names his choice of crown prince by Wednesday.

Kuwait experts describe Sheikh Meshal as a forceful figure, who steered clear of political battles and spent much of his career helping build the country’s security and defense apparatus.

“The emir will listen to his views, he will have an impact in that way,” said Kuwaiti political scientist and former UN envoy Ghanim Alnajjar. “His focus will be security, the judiciary and other domestic issues.”