Transfer of 47 Iranian Citizens Imprisoned in Kuwait to Iran

Iranian news agencies, citing the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas, reported that Kuwait has repatriated 47 Iranian citizens imprisoned in the country as part of a bilateral agreement with Iran to serve the remainder of their sentences in Iran. The Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Saturday, September 8, that the extradition order for these Iranian prisoners was issued by Khalid Al-Diyin, Deputy Minister of Interior and head of the country's correctional institutions and enforcement of sentences. These individuals were transferred to Iran by Iranian airlines. The newspaper wrote that during a bilateral meeting between Iranian and Kuwaiti parties to agree on the mechanism for prisoner exchange, the case of the 47 Iranian citizens was handed over to Iranian officials, after which Kuwait proceeded with their repatriation. There is currently no data on the number of Iranian prisoners in Kuwait, but in November 2014, the Iranian ambassador to Kuwait stated in an interview with Asr Iran website that there were over 190 Iranians in Kuwait's central prison, and in addition, 30 other Iranians were detained in public prisons and detention centers in the country. Alireza Enayati had said at that time that a large percentage of these prisoners were accused of drug trafficking, and about a quarter of them had been imprisoned for over 10 years. He also mentioned that on average, 10 Iranians are arrested and imprisoned in Kuwait each year. Regarding the mechanism for prisoner exchange, the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas quoted the Deputy Minister of Interior as stating that after extensive consultations on how to facilitate exchanges and considering human rights issues regarding facilitating communication between prisoners and their families, it was decided that convicts could serve the remainder of their sentences in their home country. However, this report did not provide further details on the agreement between Iran and Kuwait regarding prisoner exchanges. In this context, the Iranian ambassador to Kuwait had stated in an interview in November 2014 that the agreement for the transfer of convicts was signed in 2004 between the ministers of justice of Iran and Kuwait, and the legal processes for its approval and implementation in both countries had been completed. Alireza Enayati added that all Iranian prisoners in Kuwaiti prisons who wish to return to Iran would be subject to this agreement, unless someone prefers to serve the remainder of their sentence in Kuwait for any reason. He stated that any Iranian prisoner in Kuwait who signs a request form for transfer to Iran could benefit from the conditions for transfer and continue serving their sentence in their home country. It is unclear whether any security convicts were among those transferred to Iran, and the Kuwaiti newspaper remained silent on whether any Kuwaiti citizens were returned to their country in exchange for the transfer of these convicts to Iran. In recent years, Kuwait has attributed some security actions to Iran or groups supported by the Islamic Republic, including Hezbollah in Lebanon. For instance, in January of last year, Kuwait sentenced two individuals, including one Iranian citizen, to death in absentia for 'espionage for the Islamic Republic' and 'planning an attack in Kuwait.' In September of last year, 24 individuals were accused of espionage for Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon, although it was stated at that time that all defendants except one were Kuwaiti citizens. In August 2015, Kuwaiti newspapers reported the discovery of a large weapons shipment in the country that was claimed to have been smuggled from Iran, after which a member of the Kuwaiti parliament, who heads the Foreign Relations Committee, described Iran as the 'real enemy' of Sunni Arab countries in the Persian Gulf region. Kuwait, which generally has better relations with Iran compared to other Gulf countries, recalled its ambassador from Tehran following the severing of relations between Saudi Arabia and some of its allies with Iran last December. However, shortly after, the Iranian ambassador in Kuwait stated that the level of relations between the two countries had not changed, and the issue of reducing relations was not on the agenda.