Kuwaiti foreign ministry has called on Egypt to investigate an “assault” on a number of Kuwaiti students by security personnel at a mall in Alexandria.
Kuwait’s ministry of foreign affairs called on Sunday for the Egyptian authorities to investigate an “assault” on a number of Kuwaiti students by security personnel at a mall in the northern city of Alexandria. The demand came a day after the Kuwaiti parliament demanded that the Gulf State’s ambassador should be called back from Cairo in protest.
According to the Kuwaiti foreign ministry, the incident took place on Saturday when Egyptian security personnel intervened to stop a quarrel that broke out within a group of Kuwaiti students, but unfortunately ended up assaulting them instead.
Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Mansour Al-Otaibi has conveyed to the Egyptian ambassador in Kuwait his country’s dismay over the incident.
He called on the Egyptian authorities to investigate the incident and hold the perpetrators to account. Cairo, he added, “Should take necessary measures to deter such unacceptable behaviour that does not reflect the fraternal relations between Kuwait and Egypt.”
Kuwaiti MPs slam assault
Also, Kuwaiti members of parliament on Sunday vented anger over the reported beating of several Kuwaiti students by Egyptian security guards, vowing they will raise the issue during the National Assembly session on Tuesday.
The Kuwaiti lawmakers were upset mainly at a statement issued by the Kuwaiti Embassy in Cairo, which blamed the students for quarreling and called on them to respect Egyptian laws. Some MPs demanded the removal of the ambassador.
The Kuwaiti students were first involved in a fistfight among themselves at a commercial mall in Alexandria. They were separated by Egyptian security, who beat them in public.
The students were later interrogated by police and freed.
The Kuwaiti foreign ministry later issued another statement in which it strongly criticized Egyptian security men for beating the students and called on authorities to investigate.
The ministry also called the Egyptian ambassador in the country and called for a probe.
The statement said Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Mansour Al-Otaibi communicated with Egyptian Ambassador to Kuwait Osama Shaltout, calling on Egyptian authorities to take official and legal action.
The Kuwaiti official also called on Egyptian authorities to carry out investigations into the case, bring the perpetrators to accountability and take necessary measures to deter such unacceptable individual behaviors that do not reflect fraternal relations between Kuwait and Egypt.
The Kuwaiti official told the Egyptian ambassador that the foreign ministry, in collaboration with the Kuwaiti Embassy in Cairo, would follow up the required action to be taken by Egyptian authorities.
MP Hamad Al-Matar said he will file a motion at the start of the session demanding a debate on the incident, adding that the assault on Kuwaiti students should be condemned by the foreign ministry, which should demand the security men be penalized.
He also called on the foreign ministry to summon the Egyptian ambassador.
MP Abdulkarim Al-Kandari said the foreign ministry must deal with the Kuwaiti envoy in Cairo because he condemned the students rather than assisting them.
He said that the fighting among the students does not give anyone the right to beat them.
MP Khaled Al-Otaibi criticized the attack and also blasted the Kuwaiti ambassador for blaming the students.
