Kuwait: Expat eco-offenders face deportation
Offences include sand thefts, illegal fishing and debris disposal at non-designated sites
Cairo: Kuwait plans to deport expatriates found guilty of committing major environmental offences, a local newspaper has said.
Head of the Kuwait Environment Public Authority Abdullah Al Ahmad has decreed “immediate deportation” of any expatriate perpetrating a serious environmental violation such as unlawful fishing at Kuwait Bay, sand thefts or disposal of debris in non-designated places, according to Al Jarida.
The paper quoted well-informed security sources as saying that Al Ahmad has notified security authorities that he has instructed environment inspectors to hand over such offenders to nearby police stations as a step for deportation from Kuwait.
Three expatriates, meanwhile, were arrested on suspicion of stealing sand from a desert area in Al Jahra governorate, the paper said, citing a security source.
The suspects are an Egyptian, Sudanese and Syrian men.
“The three were caught committing the theft and in possession of equipment for stealing the sand,” the source said.
They were handed over to the environment police before deporting them in line with the new decision, the source added.
Foreigners make up nearly 3.4 million of Kuwait’s overall population of 4.6 million.