Attacks on Kuwait, GCC states unprovoked, unjustifiable, unacceptable
THE TIMES KUWAIT REPORT
Since the outbreak of hostilities in the region following attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran, Kuwait along with other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States have faced near-daily barrages of air strikes from Iranian ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as armed drones that have caused extensive destruction and claimed scores of lives.
At the onset of the conflict, the GCC States had made it abundantly clear that it would not allow its territory or airspace to be used in attacks on Iran. Despite these assurances, Iran has since the start of hostilities targeted civilian infrastructure, including residential buildings, airports, seaports, water and energy production sites, and power transmission grids across the six GCC nations. The aggression against Gulf States crucial to global energy supplies have disrupted global markets, endangered livelihoods, and put at risk international supply chains.
The attacks, in flagrant violation of international law and the UN Charter, violate the sovereignty of GCC States, threaten global security and stability, and impact the lives and livelihoods of people in the region and beyond. Iran, which initially stated it was targeting US bases and military facilities in the region, has brazenly fired at civilian targets, resulting in destruction and damage to infrastructure, and claiming the lives of innocent people living and working in the GCC countries.
Shortly after the first attacks on Kuwait by the Iranian regime, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, expressed strong condemnation of the strikes and conveyed his distress that Kuwait is facing an unprovoked attack from a neighboring Muslim country “which we consider a friend, and against which we did not allow the use of our land, airspace, or waters for any military action.”
Despite the denunciation by Kuwait’s government and leadership, Iran has persisted in its vicious and unprovoked aggression against Kuwait, its infrastructure and people. In the latest strikes on the country, the Ministry of Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy reported on Friday that a power and water desalination plant was attacked by Iran at dawn, causing material damage to parts of the facility.
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation also said early on Friday that the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery was targeted in a drone attack, sparking fires in several operational units.
A day earlier, on 2 April, the defense ministry said air defenses intercepted three cruise missiles and 15 hostile drones within 24 hours, while the National Guard reported downing six drones across its areas of responsibility. Meanwhile, the Public Authority for Civil Aviation reported that fuel storage tanks at Kuwait Airport were targeted in a drone attack, sparking a large fire and causing significant material damage, but no casualties. Over 630 cases of damage from falling debris following interception operations have been reported since the start of the attacks.
The Council of Ministers during their weekly meeting reviewed the latest regional developments and strongly denounced continuing attacks targeting Kuwait. The meeting, chaired by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, condemned the latest targeting of a service building at a power generation and water desalination facility that resulted in the death of an Indian worker and caused material damage.
The Cabinet also deplored attacks on infrastructure at Kuwait Airport, Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port and Shuwaikh Port using drones and cruise missiles. For his part, Minister of Oil Tareq Suleiman Al-Roumi reported on a fire aboard the Kuwaiti oil tanker ‘Al-Salmi’, caused by an attack while anchored off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. In light of ongoing developments, ministers also reviewed preparatory measures to safeguard citizens and residents and ensure the availability of essential supplies.
On the diplomatic front, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al- Sabah said that messages of support for Kuwait’s security and sovereignty have kept coming in from world leaders. He also affirmed Kuwait’s firm stance on the Strait of Hormuz, rejecting any unilateral measures or attempts to create, impose or consolidate a new status quo at the Strait of Hormuz in contravention of international law.
In his address to the ministerial meeting, called by the United Kingdom on 2 April to discuss the situation in Strait of Hormuz, Sheikh Jarrah stressed that the Strait is an international waterway, and that in accordance with the rules of international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the right of transit passage through the Strait is guaranteed to all shipping.
Continued strikes by Iran on the GCC states are also in violation of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2817 unanimously adopted on 11 March. The resolution followed a letter submitted by Bahrain, on behalf of GCC States and Jordan, against Iranian missile and drone attacks on their territories. Media reports indicate that over 83 percent of Iranian strikes in the ongoing conflict have been against the GCC countries.
UNSC Resolution 2817 expressed strong support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence of the GCC States and Jordan. It deplored the deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian objects by Iran, including airports, energy installations, food supply lines, and other critical civilian infrastructure, as well as the indiscriminate use of weapons in populated areas and its consequences for the civilian population.
The Resolution also affirmed the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense, under Article 51 of the UN Charter. The Resolution demanded that Iran forthwith cease all attacks against the GCC States and Jordan, and that it immediately and unconditionally cease from any provocation or threats to neighboring States, including through the use of proxies. It called on Iran to comply fully with its obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, particularly regarding the protection of civilians and civilian objects in armed conflict.
Additionally, the Resolution reaffirmed the right of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz for shipping to and from all ports in the region that are not parties to the hostilities, and condemned any actions or threats by Iran aimed at obstructing, or otherwise interfering with international navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, or in the Bab Al Mandab. Affirming that such actions constituted a threat to international peace and security, the resolution called upon Iran to immediately refrain from such actions.
Furthermore, the United Nations Human Rights Council’s (UNHRC) unanimously adopted a resolution on 25 March condemning Iranian attacks in the region.
In a statement following adoption of the UNHRC resolution, GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi rejected the egregious hostile actions by Iran, describing them as a flagrant violation of international law and norms. He said that the attacks posed a direct threat to regional and international security and stability, as well as to the safety of global energy supplies.
Albudaiwi emphasized that Iran’s continuing acts of aggression undermined de-escalation efforts and threatened both regional and international supply chains. “Iranian claims of holding GCC member states responsible for any military operations are unfounded, categorically rejected, and lack any foundation,” said Albudaiwi. He urged the international community to condemn the attacks, take firm action, and pressure Iran to comply with UNSC Resolution 2817.
Saudi Arabia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Offices in Geneva, Abdulmohsen Majed bin Khothaila, addressing the emergency UNHRC session, perhaps said it best: “To target a neighbor is a violation of the principles of good neighborly relations. To target a mediator betrays all efforts aimed at peace and undermines any constructive initiative. To target states that are not party to the hostilities amounts to unacceptable and unjustifiable attacks that cannot be passed over in silence.”
