Kuwaiti opposition tweeter jailed for emir insult

[Paul E Ester]

Source: France 24

Kuwait's lower court on Sunday sentenced opposition tweeter Hamed al-Khaledi to two years in jail on charges of insulting the Gulf state's ruler, a rights activist said.

"Khaledi has been sentenced to two years in jail with immediate effect," the director of the Kuwait Society for Human Rights, Mohammad al-Humaidi, said on his Twitter account.

Khaledi was charged with writing remarks on his Twitter account deemed offensive to Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah. The verdict is not final, but his jailing was immediate pending the appeals process.

His lawyer Jasser al-Jadaei said he will file an appeal later on Sunday against the verdict and seek an early hearing.


Read more: http://www.france24.com/en/20130331-kuwaiti-opposition-tweeter-jailed-emir-insult

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Criticising the emir is illegal in Kuwait and is considered to be an offence against state security.

[Journeyman]

1. But what was the insult? . . .

There's insults (like Don Rickles traffics in), and then there are insults (like the Teabaggers and assorted ilk resort to, veiled threats of death and dismemberment that can put anyone on edge, let alone a national leader).