Kuwait summons Iranian ambassador in dispute over death sentence

Kuwait summoned Iran’s ambassador and handed him a formal note of protest over a statement by the Iranian embassy that it said interfered in its internal affairs and undermined the independence of its judiciary. Deputy Foreign Minister Hamad Al Mashaan summoned ambassador Mohammad Toutounji on Wednesday after the embassy rejected allegations against an Iranian national sentenced to death in <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/gulf/2026/10/27/kuwait-sentences-three-to-death-over-iran-links-and-plot-to-assassinate-deputy-pm/">Kuwait</a>.

Kuwait condemned what it described as interference in rulings issued by its national courts and urged <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/gulf/2026/10/27/exclusive-iran-saudi-arabia-inside-tehran-talks/">Tehran</a> to respect international law, the UN Charter and the principle of non-interference in other countries’ internal affairs, the Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry wrote in a post on X. The ministry described the embassy’s statement as “blatant interference in the internal affairs of the state of Kuwait and an infringement of its sovereignty and the independence of its judiciary, in clear violation of international law and norms”.

The dispute follows a ruling by the <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/mena/kuwaiti-court-sentences-dozens-of-officials-including-sheikh-for-financial-crimes-1.1064648" target="_blank" rel="">Kuwaiti Criminal Court</a> on Monday sentencing three men to death over charges including spying for <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/gulf/2026/10/29/oman-calls-for-economic-and-security-pact-between-iran-and-gulf-countries/">Iran</a>, collaborating with Lebanon’s Hezbollah and plotting to assassinate First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/gulf/2025/08/20/everyone-under-review-as-kuwait-revokes-citizenship-of-nearly-50000-people/" target="_blank" rel="">Fahad Yousef Saud Al Sabah</a>.

It also sentenced eight men to five years in prison with hard labour. The court said directing a group inside Kuwait to assassinate the official responsible for internal security on the instructions of a foreign entity constituted a hostile act against the state. The Iranian embassy denied that an Iranian citizen was involved in any plot to assassinate officials or threaten Kuwait’s national security. It said the individual in question had not been in Kuwait in the past 10 years and described the accusations as unfounded.

The death sentences remain subject to appeal. Kuwait and other <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/energy/2026/10/21/frances-diesel-deal-with-gulf-states-will-not-make-fuel-cheap-overnight-for-european-country/">Gulf states</a> have faced security challenges this year amid attacks by Iran and domestic plots in sympathy with the Tehran regime.