In a sweeping and unprecedented crackdown, the Kuwaiti authorities have uncovered the most important citizenship forgery operation within the nation’s historical past, involving over 1,060 individuals, together with whole households who falsely obtained Kuwaiti nationality underneath Article 1.
The marketing campaign, led by the Supreme Committee for the Investigation of Kuwaiti Nationality in collaboration with the Ministry of Inside’s Nationality Investigation Division, has uncovered advanced fraud networks stretching again many years, stories Al-Rai every day.
One case resurfaced in 2024 after a essential tipoff was obtained by way of the Nationality Investigation Division’s hotline, prompting authorities to reopen a dormant file from 2008.
That file centered round a person born in 1956, whose id had lengthy been underneath suspicion. He was discovered to have twin Gulf citizenship, which he had hid whereas assuming a very completely different id in Kuwait.
Regardless of his 2006 confession and a pledge to surrender his Gulf nationality, his file was left open — and shortly started to increase suspiciously. He registered 44 youngsters and 122 dependents underneath his title. In 2017, he added a “Yemeni son” to his profile, additional alerting authorities.
By 2025, investigators summoned 13 males claiming to be his brothers. DNA evaluation confirmed they had been real siblings from one father, however the primary suspect was biologically unrelated.
This revelation triggered the revocation of his Kuwaiti citizenship and that of 122 others linked to him via fraudulent means.
The authorities additionally confirmed that in 2008, Gulf officers formally warned Kuwait that the suspect and his household held Gulf citizenship and requested info on how he had obtained the Kuwaiti nationality.
Regardless of Kuwait responding that the person had used a distinct id and had fraudulently secured nationality, no authorized motion was taken on the time, and the file was shelved — till now.
Among the many most staggering revelations was a single file tied to a deceased individual born in 1940, underneath whose title 440 people had illegally acquired Kuwaiti nationality.
These had been revoked in a single sweep throughout the committee’s most up-to-date assembly. Mixed with earlier instances, the overall variety of forgers on this file alone has now reached 1,060.
Sources described the fraudulent community as a “cluster bomb”—every solid id splintered into a number of different false claims throughout generations.
Beneath the route of First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Inside Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef, the Supreme Nationality Committee met on Thursday to situation revocations and forfeitures of nationality throughout a number of instances.
These included — lack of citizenship on account of twin nationality; withdrawal on account of forgery and false statements; forfeiture within the nation’s greatest curiosity.
Round 700 folks misplaced their citizenships on this spherical of choices, sourced from simply 4 main information, with 16 instances involving people who held twin Gulf or Arab nationalities.
In a separate however associated case, two brothers from a Gulf nation — biologically associated however listed underneath completely different names—had been investigated in 2021 after one obtained Kuwaiti citizenship fraudulently. He was convicted, and a 2024 ruling resulted within the revocation of his citizenship.
The crackdown spans instances between 2000 and 2025, with DNA testing, international authorities correspondence, and document audits forming the premise of investigations. Authorities emphasised that no revocation is issued with out full verification, together with cross-border inquiries.
Officers affirmed that Kuwaiti nationality is a “crimson line” and can’t be manipulated for private acquire. The marketing campaign aligns with political management directives to protect nationwide id and guarantee public advantages should not prolonged to forgers.
Kuwaiti sources reaffirmed that every one investigations are ongoing and that further revocations are anticipated, particularly in linked information. “The circulated info is rejected and won’t be taken under consideration,” officers careworn, noting that solely verified paperwork and DNA outcomes inform committee choices.
The next are the important thing statistics – 1,060 whole revocations linked to a single file; 122 revocations from one particular person’s fraudulent lineage; 700+ revocations in newest committee assembly from 4 main information; 440 people stripped of citizenship in a single document tied to a deceased man; 16 twin nationality instances (Gulf/Arab) addressed; 2000–2025: full audit interval underneath evaluate.