Execution in Kuwait

Ahmad Abdulsalam al-Baili and Hajjaj Saadi were both hanged today on a gallows set up in a car park outside the country's main prison.

Saadi, 33, was executed for abducting and raping 18 young children, while Baili had been convicted of murdering an Asian couple. Full Story

Kuwait Times has a video included in their story.

Religious backed U.S. companies in Kuwait- Timberland is a Jewish backed Company!

 Forever 21 prints a reference to one of the most oft quoted passages of the New Testament on the bottom of all of its bags.AP Photo

Purchase a skimpy $15 top or $19 skirt from trendy but budget-conscious clothing retailer Forever 21 and you may notice "John 3:16" printed on your shopping bag.

Printed on the bottom of each of the store's bags, the biblical reference is perhaps the most obvious reference to the religious beliefs promoted by the store's owners, the Chang Family, who are born-again Christians.

Mrs. Chang told Bloomberg Businessweek last year that the store had religious roots, citing that "God told her she should open a store and that she would be successful."

The store provoked criticism in the summer of 2011 when it released a slew of religious-themed tees emblazoned with slogans such as "Jesus ♥ You" and "Holy."

Does anyone have a shopping bag from the Kuwait location?

Curves founder Gary Heavin is an outspoken Christian and supporter of conservative and religious causes.Wikimedia Commons

Curves gyms are nationally known for creating a men-free environment where women of all shapes and sizes can work out.

It's lesser known that the company's founder Gary Heavin, is a born-again Christian who has garnered criticism for conservative political views and donating to anti-abortion causes, according to a 2004 Houston Chronicle profile.

Heavin acknowledged there has been some business "fallout" from his views, which prompted some members to cancel memberships.

We have Curves in Kuwait. Hmmm...

Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz says his Jewish faith motivated him to sever ties with a Chinese factory.flickr/paparain

Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz is well-known for his commitment to promoting corporate social responsibility.

For example, Swartz moved to sever the company's ties with a Chinese factory where human rights violations were allegedly occurring despite the fact that it took a hit to the shoe making company's bottom line. Swartz attributed his motivation to his own personal Jewish faith in a 2008 Fast Company profile.

"I can't show you the scripture that relates to the rights of a worker, but I can show you text that insists upon treating others with dignity," he said. "It says in the Hebrew Bible one time that you should love your neighbor as yourself, but it says dozens of times that you shall treat the stranger with dignity." Full Story

A lot of people in Kuwait are sporting Timberland gear. Hmmm......

TIES- Ramadan tips for Expats

Americans working for GLS getting Deported

"Arabic linguists Maher Al Masri, left, and Ramzi Zinnekah wait inside a Kuwaiti jail cell in a photo Zinnekah said was taken by a guard. The two men, U.S. civilians employed by defense contractor Global Linguist Solutions, were detained by local authorities in late May and deported to the U.S. as part of a dispute between GLS and the Kuwaiti company it hired to manage its employees. Both are now back at their homes in the States."

A U.S. defense contractor has barred its employees from leaving Army posts in Kuwait after local police issued arrest warrants for the group, a bizarre turn in a monthslong dispute between the company and a Kuwaiti subcontractor.
 

Nearly 100 American civilians working as Arabic linguists on camps Buehring and Arifjan, two major Army bases in the Middle East, say that since May 31 they’ve been unable to leave either post for medical appointments, personal time or even emergency matters.

 

All are at risk of being deported by Kuwaiti police, who have no authority inside base gates. The deportation threat stems from a legal dispute between their employer, U.S.-based defense contractor Global Linguist Solutions, and the Kuwaiti company it hired to manage its employees locally.

Before the ban, as many as nine linguists were detained outside the gates, held in Kuwaiti cells and flown back to the U.S., according to linguists interviewed and their employer.

 

Both the State Department and the Army say they are powerless to move the linguists out of the country or prevent arrests.

 

“It comes back to us being fugitives,” said one linguist reached at Camp Buehring, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity. “That’s our status in the state of Kuwait.”

 

Kuwaiti law requires all foreign workers be placed on the rolls of a local firm, or “sponsor,” which applies for working visas on behalf of employees and manages some aspects of payroll.

The actual employer is required to hire the services of the local firm.
 
Global Linguist Solutions re-bid its sponsorship contract earlier this year, selecting a new Kuwaiti company instead of the one it previously worked through, Al Shora International General Trading & Contracting company.

 GLS and Al Shora dispute what happened next. Al Shora claims linguists canceled their residency under the company. It charges GLS with using Al Shora to remain legal in the country while trying to transfer linguists to the new sponsor.
 
GLS says it was eager to move employees off Al Shora rolls but was repeatedly rebuffed by Al Shora. The company has accused Al Shora of lashing out after failing to win the new contract.
In March, Al Shora turned over the names of GLS employees to Kuwaiti authorities and declared them absent from work and in violation of their working visas. Curbing immigration violations is a preoccupation in Kuwait, where foreigners account for nearly half the population, many working in the service industry. Full Story

Hubby tells me the Kuwaiti lady won the contract because her sister's husband had wasta, sister got divorced wasta was lost and the sponsor couldn't fix the situation then she found out GLS had put out a bid and a new company won it, which ticked off the old sponsor who then refused to transfer them to the new company and cancelled all of the employees visas and reported them as absconding. Most of them are hiding on base until they can figure out a way to get back home.

This just proves US companies should be careful when dealing with small Kuwaiti companies, there is KRH, DefCon, AC3, MEBS and other big companies that can handle sponsorship a little better but in the end they are all just trying to make a quick buck off the US government. Anyone looking for a sponsor, feel free to ask me about their background.

UPDATE: New story from Fox News.com (link)

The Prime Minister of Kuwait is now being questioned and of course the "new sponsor" who won the contract is none other then (drum roll please) KRH!

This sounds like the beginning of a new movie drama, "Not without my Kuwaiti visa", I crack myself up!