Kuwait's premier on Thursday comfortably survived a parliament vote called by the opposition in a bid to oust him over allegations he boosted ties with Iran rather than Gulf Arab states, the parliament speaker announced.

Only 18 MPs voted for the motion, seven votes short of the required number to unseat Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah, speaker Jassem al-Khorafi said after a secret session.

Kuwaiti opposition lawmakers have vowed to keep up their campaign to oust the prime minister who faces a key no-confidence vote on Thursday for having boosted ties with Iran.

"Yes, we have an agenda to rescue Kuwait from (Prime Minister Sheikh) Nasser Mohammed al-Ahmad Al-Sabah who has destroyed the country," veteran opposition MP Ahmad al-Saadun told a gathering on Monday night.

Three opposition MPs on Tuesday quizzed Kuwait's prime minister in a secret session of parliament for allegedly harming national security by favoring ties with Iran over Gulf Arab states.

Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah, a senior member of the ruling family, said he was ready to face questioning as parliament accepted a government request to hold the grilling behind closed doors.

Kuwait's deputy premier, Sheikh Ahmed Fahad al-Sabah, a senior member of the ruling family, has submitted his resignation from the cabinet, a minister said on Monday.

"Sheikh Ahmed has submitted his resignation and the cabinet referred it to the ruler," state minister for cabinet affairs and government spokesman Ali al-Rashed told reporters.

Hundreds of Kuwaiti youths have rallied for the ouster of the oil-rich Gulf state's prime minister and for democratic reforms to resolve an ongoing political crisis.

Protesting for the fourth straight week late Friday, the youths also called for the removal of deputy premier Sheikh Ahmad Fahad al-Sabah who local media reported has submitted his resignation.

Thousands of youth activists have rallied for the removal of Kuwait's prime minister, pushing the oil-rich Gulf state closer toward political turmoil.

"The people want to topple the prime minister," chanted more than 3,000 protesters who rallied late Friday night for the third straight week, braving temperatures close to 40 degrees Celsius in the desert state.

The Gulf state of Kuwait withdrew diplomatic staff from its embassy in the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Wednesday because of the security situation, the foreign ministry said.

The Kuwaiti diplomats "have left Sanaa this morning (Wednesday) due to the tense security situation" in Yemen, the official KUNA news agency reported, citing an official source at the foreign ministry.

A Kuwaiti citizen was released after he was kidnapped and blackmailed to pay 2 million dollars to the abductors, a communique issued overnight by the General Directorate of State Security said.

Mount Lebanon Regional Directorate guaranteed the release of Kuwaiti citizen Y. J. less than 48 hours after the abduction, said the communiqué. Without giving further details, it said the man was kidnapped on May 24 with the force of arm.

Around two thousand Kuwaiti youths took to the streets late Friday, despite an unprecedented security presence, to demand the oil-rich Gulf state's prime minister resign.

The demonstrators chanted repeatedly, "The people want to topple the head" of government, a common refrain of anti-regime protests that have spread across the Arab world this year.

Kuwait and Iran have agreed to return their ambassadors, Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said Wednesday, signaling an end to tensions that have soured ties between both countries.

"It has been decided for the ambassadors of both countries to quickly return to their missions," Salehi told reporters in Kuwait.