Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah صباح الأحمد الجابر الصباح Emir of Kuwait Reign 29 January 2006 – present Predecessor Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Heir apparent Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Prime Ministers See list Nasser Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah Prime Minister of Kuwait Reign 13 July 2003 – 29 January 2006 Predecessor Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Successor Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah Monarch See list Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Spouse Fatuwah bint Salman (d. 1990) House House of Al-Sabah Father Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Mother Munira Al-Ayyar Born 16 June 1929 (1929-06-16) Kuwait City, Kuwait Religion Sunni Islam

Sheikh Sabah IV Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (Arabic: صباح الأحمد الجابر الصباح Sabāh al-Ahmad al-Jābir as-Sabāh; born June 16, 1929) is the Emir of Kuwait. Sheikh Sabah was sworn in on January 29, 2006 after confirmation by the National Assembly of Kuwait. He is the fourth son of Emir Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Sheikh Sabah is the head of the ruling Al-Sabah family. Currently, he is introducing many new projects in Kuwait to increase the tourism industry. He is also a strong advocate for women’s rights in the Middle East.

Early life

Sheikh Sabah received his primary education at Al Mubarakya School during the 1930s and then completed his education under tutors. He is the half-brother of the previous Emir of Kuwait, H.H. Sheikh Jaber III al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, who appointed Sabah as Prime Minister in July 2003, replacing the then Crown Prince of Kuwait, H.H. Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah. He had previously been Foreign Minister for 40 years, from 1963 to 2003, making him one of the longest-serving foreign ministers in the world.

Sheikh Sabah is a widower. His wife, Sheikha Fitooh, died before the Iraqi invasion of August 1990. He has two sons, Sheikh Nasser (Minister of the Ruler's Court "Diwan Amiri"), and Sheikh Hamed. Sheikh Sabah also had two other children who died. His daughter, Sheikha Salwa, died from breast cancer in July 2002. In her honor, the Emir named his palace "Dar Salwa", which means "The House of Salwa". His third son, Sheikh Ahmed, died in a car accident in 1969.

Dynastic crisis of January 2006

U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney meets with Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah to deliver condolences on the death of the Emir in 2006.

On 15 January 2006 the then Emir, Sheikh Jaber, died, which placed Sheikh Saad, who was then the Crown Prince of Kuwait, into the position of Emir. With the accession of Sheikh Saad, Sabah was likely to become the new Crown Prince, retaining his function of Prime Minister. However, the Constitution requires that the Emir be sworn in before Parliament, and the oath of office is complex; soon the word began to spread that Sheikh Saad was unable to take the oath in full. Some reports suggested that he suffered from Alzheimers or some other debilitating disease; it was generally agreed that he was unable to speak, at least at any length. However, after a power struggle within the ruling family, Sheikh Saad agreed to abdicate as the Emir of Kuwait on 23 January 2006 due to his illness. The ruling family then chose Sheikh Sabah as the new Emir of Kuwait. On January 24, 2006, Kuwait’s parliament voted Emir Saad out of office, moments before an official letter of abdication was received. The Kuwaiti Cabinet nominated Sheikh Sabah to take over as emir. He swore himself in on January 29, 2006 with the National Assembly's approval, ending that crisis.

Government crisis of March 2008

Sheikh Sabah dissolved the National Assembly of Kuwait on March 19, 2008 and called for early elections on May 17, 2008, after the cabinet resigned in the week of March 17, 2008 following a power struggle with the government.

Significant laws that have been passed during his reign

• Repeal of law against public gatherings.
• A law increasing the amount of licenses available for privately held newspapers and television stations.
• An increase of his stipend from 8 million KD (approximately $25 million) to 50 million KD (approximately $188 million) annually.
• A new media law that is one of the strongest press freedom laws in the Arab world.

Foreign Minister of Kuwait

Prior to being the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah was the Foreign Minister of Kuwait between 1963 and 2003. Sheikh Sabah is the longest serving foreign minister in the world, making him known to be adept in foreign relations and diplomacy. During Sabah's time as foreign minister he had to restore Kuwaiti international relations after the Gulf War. Sabah played a big role in the efforts of liberating the country after the Iraqi invasion. HH joined the former emir of Kuwait Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in the United Nations in a meeting with the U.S. President George H. W. Bush and other allies to help in liberating Kuwait.

Other positions held

• Member of the Central Committee Municipality Council from 1954 to 1955.
• Member of the Building and Construction council.
• Chairman of the Social Affairs and Labour Authority in 1955.
• Member of the Higher Council of Country Affairs in 1956.
• Chairman of the Printing and Publishing Authority from 1956-09-09 to 1962-01-17.
• Minister of Information - in the first cabinet that took power after independence in the period of Sheikh Abdullah Salim Al-Sabah, on January 17, 1962.
• Foreign Minister since 28 January 1963.
• Deputy Prime Minister on February 16, 1978 in addition to his post of Foreign Minister.
• First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister on October 18, 1992.
• Member of the Supreme Council of Planning in 1996, headed by the Crown Prince Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah.
• Chairman of the Cabinet's Joint Ministerial Committee on Priorities of Governmental Work.
• Prime Minister from July 13, 2003 to January 29, 2006.
• Honorary Trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York

Titles, styles and honours

Monarchical styles of The Emir of Kuwait
Reference style	His Highness
Spoken style	Your Highness
Alternative style	Sheikh

Titles and styles

• His Excellency Sheikh Sabah bin Ahmad Al-Sabah (1929–2003)
• His Highness Sheikh Sabah bin Ahmad Al-Sabah, Prime Minister of the State of Kuwait (2003–2006)
• His Highness Sheikh Sabah IV bin Ahmad Al-Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait (2006 – present)

Honours and awards

• Distinguished First Class of the Order of Abdulaziz al Saud (2 July 2000)
• First Class of the Order of Merit (10 July 2002)
• Collar of Abdulaziz al Saud (11 March 2006)
• Collar of the Order of Khalifa (12 March 2006)
• Collar of Independence (13 March 2006)
• Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (1 December 2006)
• Extraordinary Grade of the Lebanese Order of Merit (20 January 2009)
• Order of Heydar Aliyev (2009)
• First Class of the Order of Merit, (24 June 2009)
• First Class the Civil Order of Oman (28 December 2009)
• Grand Cordon of the Order of Merit (16 May 2010)
• Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Jordan (17 May 2010)
• Grand Cordon of the National Order Of The Cedar (18 May 2010)

• Honorary doctorate in Law from the George Washington University (30 June 2005)
• Honorary Citizen of Tirana, Albania (12 April 2008)

Hobbies

The Emir enjoys fishing and going to Oman frequently (Salalah in the Dhofar Governorate to be exact) where he owns a small island^{[citation needed]} and goes fishing for leisure. HH shies away from areas where there is a lot of glamour preferring instead areas where he can keep a low profile. Al-Sabah also used to go to Somalia to hunt, but after the political turmoil, he stopped visiting.

See also

• List of Prime ministers of Kuwait
• List of national leaders

References

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External links

• Al-Diwan Al-Amiri - the official website of the office of the Emir

Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah House of Al-Sabah Born: 16 June 1929
Regnal titles
Preceded by Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah	Emir of Kuwait 2006–present	Incumbent Heir apparent: Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Political offices
Preceded by Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah	Prime Minister of Kuwait 2003–2006	Succeeded by Nasser Mohammed Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah