Investigations are ongoing to locate those linked to tuesday attack on U.S. soldiers on Failaka island, Kuwait's First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah said in remarks published on Wednesday.
Sheikh Sabah, was quoted by the Kuwaiti Al-Rai Al-Aam daily as saying "Our efforts will continue till we capture those who tried to harm Kuwait and the Kuwaiti people," adding "this crime will not affect (Kuwait's) relations with the United States."
Two armed Kuwaitis attacked U.S. marine soldiers on Failaka island on Tuesday, killing one and injuring another, before the pair were gunned down. The Kuwaiti official expressed deep sorrow towards this incident, especially due to the fact that the attackers were Kuwaitis, and called upon all nationals to be aware of the current "criticial situation and circumstances" and necessity to refrain from acts that would impair the country's interests.
The first deputy premier warned, "There are many who try to harm Kuwait and its people thus we will continue to investigate this issue and will not rest till justice is served."
Sheikh Sabah expressed condolences to the U.S administration on death of one its soldiers on Kuwaiti territory. "This is the first incident of this kind on the land of security and peace ...," he said. He denied that this incident would affect relations with the U.S. "The challenges of terrorism should be faced with unified efforts," Sheikh Sabah conveyed.
Meanwhile, a Kuwaiti Interior Ministry official described the two attackers as fundamentalist Muslims. More than 30 of their friends and relatives were detained for questioning, he said, according to AP.
A Kuwaiti Islamic fundamentalist leader, Abdul-Razzak al-Shayeji, said authorities should deal with Tuesday's shooting as an isolated incident. "There are few jihad fighters (holy warriors) in Kuwait. The Islamic movement here is moderate," he said.
On Wednesday, Lt. Garrett Kasper, spokesman for the U.S. Navy Fifth Fleet based in Bahrain, said that the injured Marine "was recovering from non-life threatening injuries," (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
