Kuwait’s ruling emir, 86, was hospitalized due to an emergency health problem but reportedly stable

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The ruling emir of oil-rich Kuwait was hospitalized Wednesday “due to an emergency health problem” but later was in stable condition, the state-run KUNA news agency reported.

The report did not elaborate on the problem faced by 86-year-old Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah.

Sheikh Nawaf was sworn in as emir following the 2020 death of his predecessor, the late Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah. The breadth and depth of emotion over the loss of Sheikh Sabah, known for his diplomacy and peacemaking, was felt across the wider Middle East.

Sheikh Nawaf’s term, meanwhile, has largely been quiet as Kuwait struggles through political disputes — including the overhaul of Kuwait’s welfare system — which prevented the sheikhdom from taking on debt. That’s left it with little in its coffers to pay bloated public sector salaries, even as Kuwait generates immense wealth from its oil reserves.