Nationwide anger over a double murder in Kuwait

The tragic incident in which a Syrian youth brutally killed his mother and a traffic police officer has erupted a nationwide fury in Kuwait. Some MPs of the parliament even demanded the resignation of the interior minister on grounds of moral responsibility for the incident. The ministry is yet to announce the suspect's motive behind the homicide.

The horrific murder took place on Monday when Mohamed, a 19-year-old Syrian national stabbed his mother to death in the Mubarak Al-Kabir area, local reports say. On his way fleeing the crime scene he killed a Kuwaiti traffic police officer. The officer, Abdul Aziz Al Rashidi, was performing his traffic duty in the Abu Halifa area of Kuwait City.

After allegedly stabbing the traffic police officer multiple times, the suspect took hold of the officer's rifle and ran to his hideout on a farm in Wafra. The security forces who cornered his hideout faced resistance, which led to a shootout. The accused succumbed to the injuries and later died at the hospital.

The expatriate community, especially the Syrian, are drawn in fear after the incident as they expect stringent visa and residence procedures. For many Syrian families, Kuwait is considered a haven from miseries they experience due to the civil war in their homeland and have no alternative place to seek asylum. Syria is among six nations Kuwait has imposed visa restrictions on.

The police officer was buried with official honour. Reports show that the accused's mother was a Kuwaiti national.