The decree numbered 121 of 2026 listed Hussein Al-Maatouq, Mansoor Al-Muhareb, Lulwa Al-Hussainan, Abdulaziz Al-Foudari, Mohammed Al-Matar and Abdullah Al-Saleh as those whose Kuwaiti citizenship had been withdrawn. First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah proposed the measure, which gained approval from the Council of Ministers prior to publication in the official gazette. Kuwait Al-Youm carried the full text of the decree on July 29, 2026, without detailing case-by-case grounds for the revocations.
Al-Maatouq had been sentenced in absentia to five years in prison by the State Security Court of the Criminal Court on May 7, 2026, after a conviction for inciting sectarian strife, according to judicial records cited by The New Arab. The cleric previously held the position of secretary-general of the National Islamic Alliance, a political group representing parts of Kuwait’s Shia community. He has resided outside the country for several years, a fact noted in multiple regional reports on the case.
The five other individuals named in the decree have maintained online platforms focused on political and social issues while based abroad, regional monitoring groups have reported. Mansoor Al-Muhareb attempted to deliver a petition outlining public demands to the Kuwaiti embassy in London on the day the decree was issued, according to accounts compiled by the Gulf Centre for Human Rights. Mohammed Al-Matar commented on his own case via social media weeks before the revocation, stating it aligned with a pattern affecting other families through loss of property and family separation.
This revocation forms part of an ongoing nationwide review of citizenship records that has expanded through 2026. The National reported that eight separate decrees published in June 2026 alone revoked citizenship from 2,192 individuals and their dependents in cases tied to the official gazette. Kuwait Al-Youm has carried similar announcements at regular intervals this year, with additional decrees in August affecting 30 more people under separate decisions by the Supreme Committee for Kuwaiti Citizenship Investigation.
Kuwaiti Nationality Law permits such measures under provisions covering fraud in acquisition, dual nationality and supreme state interests, according to explanations published alongside past decrees. The Ministry of Interior has overseen the process through both Emiri decrees and committee rulings, with the latest figures showing cumulative revocations exceeding 43,000 since early 2024, The New Arab data indicated. A September 2026 decision from the same ministry established a framework for granting up to 10-year residency permits to certain individuals who lost citizenship after securing alternative nationality.
Subsequent decrees have addressed both large groups and specific high-profile cases, including former athletes and cultural figures in earlier rounds, Kuwait Times reported. The official gazette serves as the sole legal vehicle for publishing the names and legal references in each instance. Authorities have maintained that the reviews examine every nationality file without exception.
