MP Mohammad Hayef

KUWAIT: MP Mohammad Hayef strongly criticized the government's attitude towards the assassination of Kuwaiti businessman Mohammad Al-Shalahi in Turkey, noting that neither the foreign ministry nor the cabinet issued an official condemnation for the murder.

Further, Hayef said that he contacted the Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Mohammad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah, and asked him to have the cabinet issue a statement. Despite the minister's assurance to him that a statement would be issue, nothing was done so far, Hayef said.

"What happened is an international crime and the cabinet still takes it lightly," he added, pointing out that such an attitude "might force us to take our own protection with us." He also slammed the fact that the cabinet's weekly meeting report condemned an attack that happened the Cuba last week yet fell short to express regret to the death of a Kuwaiti citizen. Shalahi was shot dead last Saturday in an armed attack on his car as he was in the company of his Iranian business partner Saeed Karimian in Turkey.

Lease contracts

The Finance Ministry's Assistant Undersecretary for State Property Affairs Adel Al-Menaie announced approving setting the duration of lease contracts by which private schools utilize state-owned buildings to 20 years, provided that proper regular maintenance is done and a report about the building's safety is submitted every five years.

Transport rules

During the 19th meeting of the GCC Customs Union held recently in Bahrain, GCC Custom directors approved a number of recommendations concerning the movement of trucks amongst the Gulf Cooperation Council member states to be effective by July 1st, 2017. Informed sources said that special lanes would be allocated at all land border exits for unloaded trucks, trucks loaded with goods that could be quickly damaged and trucks moving from one GCC state to another.

By A Saleh