2:48AM - Entertaining Kuwait since 2003
Yesterday Starbucks posted its quarterly results and sales were down again. According to Starbucks, their sales in North America dropped by 6%, and sales in their second largest market which is China dropped by 14%. They don’t mention the boycott as one of the reasons, but it has to be having an effect as well.
Overall their stock is up 2.79% since the boycott started last year, but they’re currently down over 4% before the market opens today.
Activision has confirmed that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has been banned in Kuwait and so will not be available to download here. Everyone who preordered the game will be getting the order canceled and refunded. Activision released the following statement:
At this time, the title will not be available for release in the region. As a result, all pre-orders in Kuwait will be cancelled and refunded to the original point of purchase. We remain hopeful that local authorities will reconsider, and allow players in Kuwait to enjoy this all-new experience in the Black Ops series. source
The Gulf War setting of the game is likely to be the reason for the ban. But, it’s kinda weird since the game hasn’t come out yet so doubt whoever banned it locally got an early release to evaluate the contents. When a movie gets banned it’s usually after screening, Black Ops 6 is getting banned before screening. So maybe once the game is out and the game is screened they will unban it. For now I guess you can download the game if you have a US account which is what I have, or purchase it next time you’re abroad.
I actually wasn’t interested in the game nor did I realize it was Gulf War related until the ban, but now I’m totally getting it. The game is released on October 25 worldwide.
update: Turns out I don’t even need to buy it since it will be available from day 1 as part of the Xbox Game Pass membership.
Yesterday, True Value declared bankruptcy in the US. For the time being their stores will stay open, but I’m curious to what will happen to the Kuwait store if they do end up closing down. Although I prefer Ace Hardware since they carry more of the things I need day to day, I’m still a big fan of True Value and like having them as an option. I especially like that they have a location in Salmiya since it’s very convenient for me. Actually, I feel lucky that I have 2 Ace Hardwares and a True Value near my place, only thing missing really is Binnisf and I’ll be set. Anyway, hopefully the bankruptcy doesn’t affect us here in Kuwait.
Yesterday, CITRA launched direct domain registration services for .kw domains. Not sure what the process was before but I’m assuming it was complicated or required you to physically visit a location and apply. But, starting today you can just get the domains through the www.kw website. I just tried to register a .com.kw domain and it asked me for the following:
You will be required to upload the following documents in the registrar portal after the successful payment:
1- Valid Commercial License from Ministry of Commerce and Industry
2- Authorized Signee Certificate
3- Civil ID of Authorized Signee
4- Trademark Certificate (if domain name is not related to the commercial license)
So you basically can’t just register whatever you want, you’ll need to be an officially registered business in Kuwait. For more info, head over to www.kw
Yesterday the Ministry of Interior announced they’ll be installing new intelligent AI-powered traffic cameras. The new cameras are meant to automatically detect seat belt violations, and drivers using their phones while driving. This isn’t the first time the MOI announced automated monitoring. Back in January 2023, the MOI announced they were installing new smart cameras that could detect both those violations, but that never materialized for some reason.
Although not much information was shared yesterday regarding the new cameras, based on some research I did there are a couple of companies that provide these traffic cameras, including Acusensus and VITRONIC. VITRONIC recently installed AI cameras in the UAE and have a Middle East office so it’s very probable those are the ones we are getting.
No matter which brand we are getting, they all work similarly:
Artificial intelligence (AI) software filters the images to detect possible mobile phone use, or failure to wear a seatbelt by the driver and front seat passenger.
If AI does not see a potential violation, it will reject the image.
If AI detects a driver who may be using a phone or not wearing their seatbelt, it flags the image for further review.
Images which are flagged for potential violations are then checked and verified by an officer.
So AI won’t be issuing tickets automatically, violations will still be double checked by a real person which is good news. These new AI cameras are also really effective. In Australia they trialed a similar AI traffic camera and in the first month alone, 1,500 drivers and 225 passengers were caught not wearing seatbelts, and almost 1,200 drivers were caught using their mobile phones.
Not sure how bad seatbelt violations are, but I’m really hoping this will stop people using their phones while driving since they’re the most annoying drivers.
Last night Kuwaiti athlete Faisal Sorour (@f9olsroor8) won the Gold medal for Kuwait in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Faisal came first in the Men’s Shot Put – F63 event by scoring 15.31m. This is Faisal’s second medal at the Paralympic Games, he previously secured a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
The F63 category is for athletes with a moderate impairment in one leg or the absence of legs above the knee.
Kuwait’s medal tally is now two after the bronze medal secured by Faisal Al-Rajehi last week in the men’s 5000m race. You can follow the Kuwait Paralympic Committee @kuwaitparalympic
The Paris 2024 Paralympics started a few days ago and yesterday, Kuwaiti wheelchair racer Faisal Al-Rajhi (@faisal.alrajhi98) won a bronze medal in the T54 5,000m race. The T54 category is for wheelchair athletes with no leg function, but near full arm function.
Faisal is one of three Kuwaiti athletes taking part at the Paralympics with the other two being:
Dhari Buti – Men’s Shot Put – F37
Faisal Sorour – Men’s Shot Put – F42
The F37 category is for athletes competing with co-ordination impairments (hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis).
The F42 category is for athletes competing without prosthesis affected by limb deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement.
The Paris 2024 Paralympics is taking place from 28 August to 8 September 2024 and the official account of the Kuwait Paralympic Commitee is @kuwaitparalympic
Lufthansa has decided to cancel the Kuwait – Frankfurt route with the last flight scheduled for September 15, 2024.
Lufthansa has been landing in Kuwait since 1963, over 60 years. They’re blaming the lack of carrying capacity caused by late delivery of new aircrafts from the manufacturer. They’re also planning to reevaluate and improving its network of routes, so they might eventually fly from Kuwait again.
Last year KLM suspended flights to Kuwait blaming lack of profitability. I personally stopped flying both KLM and Lufthansa since Kuwait Airways got the new planes. I just find the Kuwait Airways timings so much better since they fly out in the morning instead of the middle of the night. I’m assuming other people are doing the same.
Update: Seems the Times Kuwait article might be wrong. According to another article, Lufthansa is temporarily suspending flights until September 15 due to the situation in the region. I don’t trust newspapers in Kuwait so I’d believe this website over Times Kuwait. Link
Update2: A reader sent me the screenshot above which was a mid August update that was sent to travel agencies. According to Lufthansa in the screenshot, they decided to discontinue the Frankfurt Kuwait connection from September 16 onwards. Lufthansa currently suspended flights to the region till September 15 due to the situation in the region. This notice is basically saying that even after the 15th they won’t be operating out of Kuwait.
There are currently plans to transform Failaka Island into a major tourism resort, which sounds great—except Failaka is also a significant archaeological and historical site. That’s why I’m glad to hear that initial steps are being taken to protect it.
The National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) and the World Monuments Fund signed a memorandum of understanding a few days ago to enlist Failaka Island in the UNESCO’s world heritage list. Dating back 4,200 years, the island has witnessed five different civilizations and was last inhabited 34 years ago, before the 1990 invasion.
There are several benefits to designating Failaka as a World Heritage site. It would boost tourism, attract funding from international bodies, NGOs, and governments, and provide access to UNESCO’s technical expertise for conservation. Most importantly, it would also raise awareness and encourage the government and authorities to prioritize protecting the island’s cultural, historical, and natural value. This includes not only archaeological sites, but also other significant historical buildings on the island.
The first step now is to study the island, identify key heritage sites, and determine how they can be utilized for cultural tourism. Once the study is complete, the file will be submitted to UNESCO.
I can’t stress enough how important this step is for preserving the island for future generations. Thank you to everyone involved in making this happen. @kw_nccal
Nvidia has signed a deal to deploy its artificial intelligence technology at data centres owned by Qatari telecoms group Ooredoo in five Middle Eastern countries, Ooredoo’s CEO told Reuters.
…
It will make Ooredoo the first company in the region able to give clients of its data centers in Qatar, Algeria, Tunisia, Oman, Kuwait and the Maldives direct access to Nvidia’s AI and graphics processing technology, Ooredoo said in a statement.
Providing the technology will allow Ooredoo to better help its customers deploy generative AI applications, Nvidia’s senior vice president of telecom Ronnie Vasishta said.
Basically what that means, companies in Kuwait who use Ooredoo data centers can now provide their customers with AI features. So for example if a company currently uses a dumb bot to handle initial customer support communication, with this new Nvidia tech they would be able to have AI take over that job from the bots. Obviously they’ll be able to do a lot more with AI than just talk to customers. Link
Here is a feel-good story to start the week. Six lions rescued from Kuwait finally have a new home at a wildlife sanctuary in South Africa. Known as the ‘Kuwait 6’, the males Muheeb, Saham, Shujaa, Saif, and females Dhubiya and Aziza were victims of the illegal pet trade. All the lions were less than two years old when they were either surrendered, confiscated, or captured in Kuwait after being abandoned by their owners.
Staff and volunteers at the Kuwait Zoo nursed the lions back to health and looked after them until they were able to find them a home. After a long 15-hour journey, the lions arrived in South Africa last week.
Animal Defenders International (ADI), the non-profit organization that campaigns against animal cruelty and exploitation, offered the lions a new life at the 455-acre ADI Wildlife Sanctuary in South Africa. Qatar Airways Cargo assisted ADI in transporting the animals as part of their WeQare ‘Rewild the Planet’ initiative. Qatar Airways Cargo has an amazing and very caring program where they offer free transport to organizations involved in returning wild animals to their natural habitat.
For their first two weeks, the lions will be in quarantine before being released into the main habitat. ADI have been posting photos and videos of the ‘Kuwait 6’ on their instagram account @animal_defenders_international and it looks like the lions are in a really good place.
If you’d like to donate for the care of the ‘Kuwait 6’, you can by clicking this link. But, you also have the option to adopt one of the lions starting from just 20KD. For more on adoption, click here.
A hacker is claiming to have 600,000 passenger data for Kuwait Airways customers which supposedly contains the following information:
Member title, first name, middle name, surname, marital status, job title, dob, gender, e-mail address, nationality, Kuwait national ID, passport, passport validity period, primary telephone, second telephone, address, city, state, zip code, country, award mile, next card, qualify miles, quality sector, tier, total award miles, total qualify miles, valid from, valid till, contents.
Kuwait Airways have responded to the claim stating:
The security and privacy of our passengers’ information are paramount to us. We are investigating the claims made on social media and have engaged leading cybersecurity experts to assess and mitigate the situation. source
🇰🇼 Alleged Sale of 600,000 Passenger Data of Kuwait Airways
A threat actor claimed to have 600,000 passenger data belonging to Kuwait Airways and was putting it up for sale. Allegedly in the database: member title, first name, middle name, surname, marital status, job title,… pic.twitter.com/PRndsOe5ce
— ThreatMon (@MonThreat) March 25, 2024
I’m a Kuwait Airways customer so I originally was concerned my credit card details might have been part of the security breach. But, I checked and I don’t have my credit card details saved, and don’t think there is a way to save them anyway. So one positive I guess. For more details, check this article out on cybersecuritynews.com
Alshaya is reportedly in talks to sell a minority stake in its Starbucks franchise business. A US private equity firm and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) are both supposedly interested in acquiring the stake.
This doesn’t seem to be related to the recent boycott of the brand since Alshaya has been looking to sell this stake since 2022. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if the boycott helped push the deal closer.
I’m not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, I really hate the water balloons throwing trend as much as I used to hate the foam spraying. But… I also don’t think it deserves up to three years in prison in case you’re caught.
The environmental police in Kuwait have emphasized that throwing water balloons constitutes a violation of environmental protection laws. Offenders may face penalties of up to a KD 5,000 fine or imprisonment for a maximum of three years. source
I highly recommend you click the source link and watch the hilariously sounding English dubbed video which reminds me of old Kung Fu movies.
This is interesting, according to Reuters, Saudi Arabia is preparing to open its first alcohol store in Riyadh which will serve exclusively non-Muslim diplomats. The store will be located in the Diplomatic Quarter, a pretty nice neighborhood I’ve visited before, and where lots embassies and diplomats reside.
Even though this store will only be for diplomats, it’s one step closer to Saudi legalizing alcohol.
I wonder how legalizing alcohol in Saudi would affect Kuwait. Will we get alcohol if they get alcohol? Not that I care honestly, but I wouldn’t mind a Tomatini every now and then.
Update: I found another article with a bit more info..
The store sits next to a supermarket in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a socially sensitive topic in Saudi Arabia. The diplomat walked through the store on Wednesday, describing it as similar to an upscale duty free shop at a major international airport.
The store stocks liquor, wine and only two types of beer for the time being, the diplomat said. Workers at the store asked customers for their diplomatic identifications and for them to place their mobile phones inside of pouches while inside. A mobile phone app allows purchases on an allotment system, the diplomat said.