Kuwait receives remains of 21 captives from 1990 Iraq invasion

Kuwait City: The Kuwaiti embassy in Baghdad received the remains of 21 people today believed to be Kuwaiti citizens who went missing during the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, local media reported.

The Iraqi ministry of Defense, the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI), were present during the handover which took place near the Baghdad International Airport.

“Handing over the remains is part of efforts related to Kuwaiti and third-country prisoners and missing file,” Mohammad Al Wuqayyan, Kuwait’s Charge D’Affaires told KUNA.

The file is being looked over by a tripartite committee and a technical committee, chaired by the ICRC, and Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the US, UK and France are members of the committee.

“According to the initial indications, it is believed that the remains belong to Kuwaitis prisoners and missing persons who were found in the Samawa desert in Southern Iraq,” Al Wugyan said.

In order to verify their identities, the remains will undergo DNA tests in Kuwait, Al Wugyan added.

Prisoners of War (POWs)

According to the National Committee of Missing and POWs Affairs (NCMPA), as a result of the invasion there were around 605 people missing. Of those, the bodies of 246 were found and identified.

The committee, established in 1991, has reported that for every 1,000 Kuwaitis, one was held as a POW.