Kuwait's Cabinet resigned as expected, new emir accepts resignation

Kuwait's Cabinet resigned as expected Monday, one day after the new emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, was sworn in as the leader of this oil-rich U.S. ally. The emir, who had been prime minister, accepted the resignations and asked the government to stay on in a caretaker role until a new Cabinet is formed, the state television reported.

"It is my honor to submit to your highness my resignation and the resignation of my colleagues, hoping you would accept them," said the letter submitted by Deputy Prime Minister Sheik Nawwaf Al Ahmed Al Sabah.

Sheik Nawwaf said he believed the "duties of the Cabinet" ended when Sheik Sabah took the oath of office on Sunday.

Parliament confirmed 76-year-old Sheik Sabah as emir in an unanimous vote. He took the oath of office the same day, ending an unprecedented leadership struggle within the ruling Al Sabah family that had assumed crisis proportions after Sheik Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah died Jan. 15, leaving an ailing crown prince as his successor. Sheik Sabah has not yet named a new prime minister or a crown prince. It remains to be seen if he will keep the two jobs separate, or return to the Kuwaiti tradition of assigning both jobs to the same man. Sheik Sabah is scheduled to address the nation Monday night, reports the AP. I.L.