Arab leaders headed to Kuwait on Thursday to offer condolences for the death of its ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad, who worked to unify a polarised region, as Kuwaitis waited for the new emir to name a crown prince to help guide state affairs. Jordan’s king, the presidents of Egypt and former occupier Iraq, and Oman’s sultan were among those paying respects to Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, the brother and successor of Sheikh Sabah, who died on Tuesday aged 91. Gulf power Saudi Arabia, with which Kuwait has its closest but most complex relationship, was represented by Mansour bin Mutib, an adviser to King Salman, who had surgery in July and whose son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is de facto ruler.
