Kuwait calls on citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible

The Kuwait Cabinet has approved a new draft residence law, modifying the previous 60-year-old statute, increasing penalties for violators, and prohibiting refuge for illegal expatriates. The approval was granted during the weekly Cabinet meeting, chaired by Acting Prime Minister and Interior and Defense Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah on Tuesday, November 12. The new draft law aims to prohibit trade in residency permits or iqamas, establish rules for expat deportation, and increase penalties for violators. The new law, consisting of seven chapters, outlines rules for the entry of expats, informing authorities, trading in residencies, related crimes, and penalties for violators, Arabic daily Al-Rai reported. One of the article prohibits trading in residencies by facilitating expat entry through visas or work permits, or renewing them for money or benefits. It also prohibits employers from forcing expats to work outside their work permit, allowing employees to work without a license, and withholding employee wages. The law prohibits expats from working without a permit, from sheltering or employing them, and from renting houses to illegal immigrants. The new law mandates expat sponsors to inform the interior ministry if their visas or residences have expired and they haven't left the country. In recent months, Kuwait has stepped up its assault on illegal iqamas, arresting thousands of illegal migrant workers. Kuwait has a population of 4.9 million, including 3.3 million expatriates. — Kuwait

Kuwait: The Kuwaiti Ministry of Foreign Affairs has called on its citizens in Lebanon to leave the country as soon as possible.

This comes due to concerns of escalation and the potential for full-scale war between Hezbollah and Israel.

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In a statement on Saturday, June 22, the ministry renewed its call on “all citizens to refrain from heading to Lebanon at the present time, in view of the successive security developments that the region is going through.”

The ministry called on “those who are unable to leave to contact the Kuwaiti Embassy in Lebanon immediately, via the emergency phone.”

بيان #وزارة_الخارجية حول دعوتها لكافة المواطنين الكرام بالعدول عن التوجه للجمهورية اللبنانية في الوقت الحالي نظراً للتطورات الأمنية المتعاقبة التي تمر بها المنطقة.

البيان كاملاً: https://t.co/SZWXxlKf0F pic.twitter.com/0bXmTkQEcl
— وزارة الخارجية (@MOFAKuwait) June 21, 2024

Since the Gaza war in October 2023, Hezbollah and Israel have been engaging in daily firefights, with a sharp increase in recent days following an Israeli strike that killed the Hezbollah commander.

Israeli strikes have resulted in over 300 Hezbollah fighters killed in Lebanon, Reuters reported.

Israel reports that 18 Israeli soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed in attacks from Lebanon.