Kuwait Frees 24 Held over Parliament Storming

Kuwait's public prosecutor on Thursday ordered the release on bail of 24 youth activists who had been held in detention over the storming of parliament last month, their lawyer said.

"A decision has just been issued to release all the 24 people on a bail of 1,000 dinars ($3,600) each," al-Humaidi al-Subaie, who heads the legal defense team of the activists, told Agence France Presse.

The men, who have been on hunger strike since Friday, are expected to be released from Kuwait's central prison in the afternoon, said Subaie.

Opposition MPs and supporters of the activists had campaigned for their release by camping outside Kuwait City's palace of justice each night since their arrest.

Subaie said the activists were interrogated for storming the parliament, damaging public property and assaulting police among other charges for which they face prison sentences of between six months and life.

Hundreds of opposition activists overran parliament on November 16 after clashes with riot police that followed a large protest to demand the prime minister's resignation and the dissolution of parliament.

Kuwait's emir on Wednesday appointed former defense minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak al-Sabah to form a new cabinet after former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmed al-Sabah quit two days earlier.