By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The special ministers' tribunal yesterday acquitted former prime minister, former defense minister and seven top officials in a high-profile graft case that involved the embezzlement of over KD 150 million of public funds, lawyers said. After months of deliberations, the court found that former premier HH Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, who resigned two years ago, former defense minister Sheikh Khaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah and seven current and former defense ministry officials were not guilty of charges of embezzlement and facilitating graft.

The senior officials involved in the case include former defense ministry undersecretary Jassar Al-Jassar, a number of military attaches abroad and director of the so-called army fund. The officials were charged with embezzling some KD 157 million of the fund's assets, estimated at KD 240 million. All the defendants were detained for several months before being released on bail pending trial.

The ruling is not final as it must be reviewed by the court of cassation, whose rulings are final. This is Kuwait's biggest graft case that reached the court involving senior members of the ruling family. Around 30 years ago, former oil and finance minister Sheikh Ali Al-Khalifa Al-Sabah was tried for embezzlement but finally acquitted.

Sheikh Jaber has occupied several Cabinet posts since the 1980s, including defense and information minister, before being appointed prime minister in late 2011. He resigned two years ago after the news about the army fund graft case became public.