Tight security in Kuwait as emir attends joint prayers

 Kuwait deployed unprecedented security measures around mosques for Friday prayers following last week's deadly bombing, as the Kuwaiti emir attended a joint ceremony in a show of unity.

Also on Friday, dozens of people prayed side by side in a mosque near the capital of Bahrain, Manama. 

Mosques in Kuwait City were completely cordoned off, and roads leading to them were closed to traffic, as security men and volunteers stood guard, an AFP reporter said.

A Saudi suicide bomber from the IS militant group blew himself in a mosque last Friday killing 26 people and wounding 227 others in the worst bombing in Kuwait's history.

Thousands of worshippers held a rare joint prayer at the Grand Mosque in Kuwait.

The Emir, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, attended the noon prayers along with the crown prince, parliament speaker and several cabinet ministers and lawmakers.

Armoured vehicles, elite forces and policemen stood guard outside the mosque, where the mercury hit 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit).

All roads leading to the mosque were off limits to vehicles and worshippers were thoroughly searched before they were allowed inside.

Prayer leader Sheikh Waleed Al Ali called for national unity and urged people to abandon extremist ideology.

"Extremism has led to this bloodshed," he said in his sermon.

Worshippers stood in rows beside each other.

"Our message today is that Kuwait is united and nothing will ever succeed to divide us," Abdullah Nuri, an engineer, told AFP.

"The highly positive reactions by our brothers after the blast made us very satisfied," Nuri said.

Cleric Abdullah Al Nejada said: "this is a proof we are the same and that they (terrorists) will not succeed in dividing this country."

Kuwait, declaring itself in a state of war against "terrorism," has placed security forces and the police on high alert.

A large number of suspects have been arrested, and five sent to the public prosecution.

"This is a clear message to terrorists that you will not succeed in your plot. This is the Kuwaiti response to you," MP Khalil Abul said as he left the mosque.

On Wednesday, parliament approved $400 million (360 million euros) in emergency funding for the interior ministry.

IS's Saudi affiliate, the Najd Province, claimed the bombing and identified the assailant as Abu Suleiman Al Muwahhid.

Kuwaiti authorities have named him as Fahd Suleiman Abdulmohsen Al Qabaa and said he was a Saudi born in 1992.

Gulf interior ministers agreed at the end of a meeting in Kuwait early Friday to boost cooperation to fight "terrorism".

Meanwhile, residents in Manama said tight security was in place for the special session of weekly prayers in a mosque at Diraz, a village west of Manama.

The interior ministry ordered a strong police presence.

The joint prayers were a show of Bahraini "unity in the face of those plotting against the Arab and Islamic world", said Justice and Islamic Affairs Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ali Al Khalifa.

Bahraini authorities, backed by volunteers, have stepped up checks on those entering mosques for Friday prayers in the wake of the attacks elsewhere in the Gulf region.

Source: Timesofoman