Succession meets with Prime Minister Sabah to deliver condolences on the death of the Emir in 2006 On 15 January 2006, Emir Jaber died, making
Sheikh Saad, his
Crown Prince and a member of the
Salim branch of the ruling family, the new Emir. With Saad's accession, Sabah was likely to become the new Crown Prince, retaining his function of Prime Minister. Saad was ill with a form of dementia, some reports suggested that he suffered from
Alzheimer's disease or some other debilitating disease; it was generally agreed that he was unable to speak at any length. As there was concern Saad would not be able to take the constitutionally required oath of office, the
Speaker of the National Assembly Jassem Al-Kharafi coordinated with members of the National Assembly on a transfer of power to the Prime Minister, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad. After a power struggle within the ruling family, Saad agreed to abdicate as Emir of Kuwait on 23 January 2006 due to illness. The ruling family then conferred and Sabah became the new Emir. On 24 January 2006, the
National Assembly of Kuwait voted Saad out of office, moments before an official letter of abdication was received. The
Cabinet of Kuwait nominated Sabah as Emir. He was sworn in on 29 January 2006 with the National Assembly's approval, ending that crisis.
Dissolution of the National Assembly in 2009 In March 2016, Sabah suspended the National Assembly to keep those in opposition from questioning the Kuwaiti prime minister over the government's actions. Sabah dissolved the National Assembly on 19 March 2008 and called for early elections on 17 May 2008, after the cabinet resigned in the week of 17 March 2008 following a power struggle with the government. A struggle broke out between the government and parliament in 2012. He dissolved the parliament.
Foreign relations and Supreme Leader
Ali Khamenei in 2014 Sabah was a regional and international mediator due in part to his place in the
Gulf Cooperation Council's leadership order and his 40 years of service as Foreign Minister and Prime Minister. Under his leadership, Kuwait acted as a go-between for
Pakistan and
Bangladesh,
Turkey and
Bulgaria, the
Palestinian Authority and
Jordan, factions in the civil war in Lebanon, and the
Gulf States and
Iran. In 2016 Sabah hosted several
United Nations sponsored meetings of leaders from the warring factions in the
Yemeni Civil War. Sabah established Kuwait as the key mediator in the
Qatar diplomatic crisis that began in 2017, meeting with Saudi and Emirati officials before leaving for
Doha to discuss the rift with Qatari leaders. and other interested parties from the region as well as the U.S., UK, France, and Germany. There were some questions from the boycotting countries about any preconditions. French President
Emmanuel Macron stated French support for Sabah's mediation efforts after a meeting in Paris on 15 September 2017, reiterating statements of support for the initiative. Trump and Sabah had a third meeting at the
White House on 5 September 2018. Sabah is credited with playing a role in the creation of the
Movement for the National Liberation of Palestine, or
Fatah, in October 1959 in Kuwait City. Several of the early leaders of Fatah, and later the Palestine Liberation Organization, also formed in Kuwait in 1964, were close to Sabah, like
Khaled al-Hassan.
Al-Ghanim recalls, The late Emir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad, refused, on the last days of his life, to attend the normalizing Bahrain Economic Conference, which was held in
Manama, despite the enormous pressure he was subjected to from parties that Al-Ghanim didn't name. Sabah in an angry mood called Al-Ghanim and said "Look my son, I am old now and I don't want to meet my Lord having shaken hands with
Zionists, and now terrible pressure is being exerted on us." The Emir later asked him calmly to address Kuwait's non-participation from the conference. It's noteworthy that the normalization conference hosted by Manama on 25 May 2019, was considered the economic part of the "
Deal of the Century",
Humanitarianism Former U.S. President
Jimmy Carter called Sabah a "global humanitarian leader", saying, "His support of disaster relief, peace efforts and advancing public health are an inspiration. Other world leaders can learn from the wise example set by my friend, His Highness the Emir." According to the 2014 Middle East
Coutts Report, Sabah provided the largest individual donation in 2013 among GCC members in support of
Syrian refugees in neighboring countries, $300 million. In 2014,
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon cited Sabah as a humanitarian leader globally and presented him with a Humanitarian Award. Ban said, "It gives me great pleasure and honour to be here today to recognize the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber al Sabah, Emir of Kuwait. This is a great humanitarian day. We are sitting together with a great humanitarian leader of our world". In 2015, Sabah pledged $500 million toward easing the Syrian humanitarian crisis at a UN Summit convened in Kuwait. In August 2017, UN Secretary-General
António Guterres expressed gratitude for Kuwait's leadership in humanitarian action, adding, "But it's not only the humanitarian leadership of Kuwait, it's the wisdom, the dialogue, the promotion of understanding that Kuwait has shown in relation to all conflicts in the region. Kuwait has no agenda. The agenda of Kuwait is peace; is understanding." Guterres further noted the positive role Sabah played in the GCC crisis and recalled that when he was
High Commissioner for Refugees (June 2005 to December 2015) Sabah presided over the three conferences to mobilize the international community to support the Syrian people.
Jailing of critics, including Members of Parliament in 2018 Dozens of protesters in Kuwait were arrested for criticizing Al-Sabah. In 2010, the
U.S. State Department said it had concerns about the case of Kuwaiti blogger and journalist Mohammad Abdul-Kader al-Jassem who was on trial for allegedly criticizing the ruling al-Sabah family and accusing Prime Minister
Nasser Al-Sabah of mismanagement and corruption, and faced up to 18 years in prison if convicted. He was detained after a complaint against him was issued by the office of Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah. Al-Sabah jailed several members of parliament for criticizing him publicly. In February 2013, a Kuwaiti court sentenced three former MPs to three years in prison with
hard labor for insulting Sabah, and sentenced another man to five years in prison for insulting Sabah. Al-Barrak, a former MP, was sentenced to two years in prison in 2015. == Death and succession ==