Kuwait’s ruler, 91, admitted to hospital for medical checkup

In this March 31, 2019, file photo, Kuwait’s ruling emir, Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, attends the opening of the 30th Arab Summit, in Tunis, Tunisia. Kuwait’s 91-year-old ruler has been admitted to the hospital for a medical checkup, the oil-rich nation’s state-run news agency reported Saturday, July 18, 2020. Sheikh Sabah was in “good health,” the KUNA news agency said, citing a statement from the country’s diwan minister. (Fethi Belaid/Pool Photo via AP, File)

DUBAI — Kuwait’s 91-year-old ruler has been admitted to the hospital for a medical checkup, the oil-rich nation’s state-run news agency reported Saturday.

Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah was in “good health,” the KUNA news agency said, citing a statement from the country’s diwan minister.

The brief report did not elaborate. However, the visit comes as the tiny nation fights the coronavirus pandemic, which has seen over 58,000 cases and 400 deaths in the country of 4.1 million. Its Health Ministry said over 49,000 people have recovered from the virus and the COVID-19 illness it causes.

In August 2019, Kuwait acknowledged the emir suffered an unspecified medical “setback” that required him to be hospitalized. That came after visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on Twitter that he was “praying for Emir’s speedy recovery,” without elaborating.

Sheikh Sabah has ruled Kuwait since January 2006. He’s pushed for diplomacy to solve regional issues, such as the ongoing boycott of Qatar by four Arab nations, and hosted major donor conferences for war-torn nations like Iraq and Syria.