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| Arabia | ||
| Kuwait expresses dismay over IraqisÂ’ border protest | ||
| 2013-03-13 | ||
| DUBAI — Kuwait has expressed dismay to the United Nations over a protest by stone-throwing Iraqis against the demarcation of the border, state media reported, underlining lingering tensions between the Arab neighbours a decade after Saddam Hussein was overthrown. Iraq formally accepted a UN-demarcated border line in 1994 after the first Gulf War — when Iraqi strongman Saddam sent his troops into Kuwait in 1990 and was forced out by a US-led coalition. But many Iraqis in the area remain opposed to it, saying the line robbed them of property and territory.
Kuwaiti border guards, hearing the gunshots and believing they were being targeted, opened fire at Iraqi security forces in response, Kuwaiti media reported. There were no reports of casualties on either side.
“We have issued a statement expressing our dismay over the irresponsible act,” he said. “It is an act that runs counter to the nature of brotherly relations between Kuwait and Iraq.” Kuwait pulled its border guards out of the area after the incident “to calm the situation”, Kuwaiti newspaper Al Rai reported on its website. | ||
| Posted by:Steve White |