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Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
نَوَّاف الأَحمَد الْجَابِر الصَّباح
Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (cropped).jpg
Emir Nawaf I in 2018
Emir of Kuwait
Reign 29 September 2020 – 16 December 2023
Predecessor Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber
Successor Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber
Prime Ministers Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah (2019–2022)
Ahmad Nawaf Al Ahmad (2022–present)
Born (1937-06-25)25 June 1937
Kuwait City, Sheikhdom of Kuwait
Died 16 December 2023(2023-12-16) (aged 86)
Kuwait City, Kuwait
Spouse Sharifa Sulaiman Al-Jassim
Issue Sheikh Ahmad
Sheikh Faisal
Sheikh Abdullah
Sheikh Salem
Sheikha Sheikha
Arabic نواف الأحمد الجابر الصباح
House Sabah
Father Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah
Mother Yam
Religion Islam

Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (Arabic: نَوَّاف الأَحمَد الْجَابِر الصَّباح, romanized: Nawwāf al-ʾAḥmad al-Jābir aṣ-Ṣabāḥ; 25 June 1937 – 16 December 2023) was the 16th Emir of Kuwait from 29 September 2020 to his death on 16 December 2023. He had succeeded to the throne following the death of his half-brother Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He was Minister of Interior (1978–1988, 2003–2006), Minister of Defense (1988–1991) and Deputy Prime Minister (2020–2023). During his three-year rule as Emir, he grappled with internal political disputes.

Nawaf had been nominated as crown prince on 7 February 2006.

Early life and education

Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was born on 25 June 1937. He was a son of the 10th ruler of Kuwait, Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He studied at various schools in Kuwait.

Career

The Vice President, Shri Mohd. Hamid Ansari receiving the Guard of Honour, on his arrival at Kuwait on April 06, 2009
Mohammad Hamid Ansari with Nawaf in April 2009

Nawaf was one of the most senior members of the House of Sabah. At 25, he was appointed governor of Hawalli on 21 February 1962 and held the post until 19 March 1978. He was Minister of Interior from 1978 to 26 January 1988, when he was appointed Minister of Defense. Following the liberation of Kuwait in the Gulf War, Nawaf was appointed the acting minister of labor and social affairs on 20 April 1991 and held the post until 17 October 1992. Following his appointment to the cabinet in 1991, a group of senior military officers sent a letter to Jaber al-Ahmad, the Emir at the time, demanding that Nawaf, the minister of defense during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, and Salem al-Sabah, the minister of interior during the invasion, be dismissed from the government and investigated for Kuwait's lack of military preparedness on the day of the invasion. As a result, Nawaf was not appointed to a cabinet-level position until 2003.

210908-D-TT977-0117 (51437260308)
United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks with Sheikh Nawaf, September 2021

On 16 October 1994, Nawaf was appointed deputy chief of the Kuwait National Guard and held that post until 2003. The same year, he reassumed the post of minister of the interior until an Amiri Decree was issued on 16 October 2003 making him first Deputy Prime Minister of Kuwait and Minister of Interior. Nawaf played a role in supporting programs that support national unity among the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf and Arab countries.

With the ascendance of Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to the leadership of Kuwait on 29 January 2006, an Amiri Decree was issued on 7 February 2006 officially designating Nawaf the Crown Prince. This was contrary to the tradition of the Al-Sabah family, according to which the offices of Emir and Crown Prince are supposed to alternate between the Al-Jaber and Al-Salem branches.

Sabah died on 29 September 2020 and Nawaf was announced as the Emir of Kuwait during a meeting of the National Assembly.

Personal life

Nawaf married Sharifa Sulaiman Al-Jasem Al-Ghanim, daughter of Sulaiman Al-Jasem Al-Ghanim by his wife, Ruqayyah bint Abdullah Al-Abd Al-Razzaq. They had four sons and a daughter.

Death

On 29 November 2023, Nawaf was admitted to hospital following an emergency health issue. He died on 16 December.

Honors and awards

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Yaber Al-Sabah para niños

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