This morning while visiting Avenues I noticed they had installed x-ray scanners at various entry points around the mall. Coming up from the underground parking there was only a security guard with a metal detector wand but when coming in from any of their ground floor entrances you now have to put your bags in an x-ray machine. Arraya and Salhiya have also both installed metal detectors at their entrances as well.
I’m guessing this heightened mall security is because of the mosque bombing that took place back in June.
28 replies on “Heightened Mall Security Around Kuwait”
This only works if they actually use them. The guy with the wand only checks a handful of people when he can be bothered. He checked me the first week after the bombing but allowed 3 ladies in abayas to go past unchecked as they refused. The next week he didn’t bother checking me at all!
There has been a metal detector at the entrance of Array ballroom for a long time, but you don’t have to go through it.
I was talking about Arraya mall not ballroom.
This kind of security should have been enforced long back. Malls in Thailand, India etc take security seriously. Hope its not just for decor here!
I have to disagree. Malls don’t need this kind of security, its a mall not airport. Anyone who wants to perform an act of malice can do so easily since these guys with the wands don’t have any authority and are going to be overwhelmed. plus it doesn’t make sense why you have xray scanners in some entrances and not in others. there are too many holes and it’s basically all just for show.
Totally agree with Mark. Where Kuwait always fails is consistently. When I observed them, they were not scanning women, only men, mainly expats. As reported yesterday, since ISIL has run out of children to blow up in their suicide program, they are using women suicide bombers now. I would assume this is the threat. If you are to implement security then you need to be consistent about it otherwise it is just for show and useless. Let’s say it is to counter the kids bringing in knives, etc. for fighting in the malls, then are they prepared to take these weapons away from them? I doubt that they are even capable. AND after Mark’s posting on smoking at the Avenues, I did a quick observation throughout the mall and there were people smoking everywhere. This just highlights bad management. If you are going to do anything, do it right, or don’t do it at all.
https://9to5mac.com/2015/10/27/worlds-largest-apple-store-dubai/
The Apple Store opens tomorrow in the Emirates Mall. There are some new restaurants in the new section of the mall. Loved the new Arabic restaurant. And the VOX theatre is amazing, especially the VIP section. No security scanners, beautiful mall, customer service levels much better than Kuwait, and no smoking in the malls (enforced). I stopped shopping at the Avenues ages ago, I rather fly to Dubai and shop in peace and security.
Just because you keep changing your name doesn’t mean I don’t know who you are. Your main purpose of all your comments is to trash Kuwait and make Dubai look better. It’s getting old now…
hahahahahaha
Mark no joke your blog has a couple of people who I am absolutely sure are paid PR people for UAE
lol, Mark you own and moderate this blog
simply do not publish thos comments off topic
best
Honestly it is difficult to enforce…but some security is better than none. After the mosque bombing – security, which was completely lax around Kuwait (with the biggest culprit being the airport) started picking up. Putting these detectors and making more efforts at least deters some people and might stop something from happening. Who knows…
Strip Searching Coming Soon 😀
overkill for this kind of security at malls it should be done at airports or any place that can let people come in and out of the country ( land / air / sea )
people in kuwait (especially women in abayas) need to get over their shit and co-operate with guards to be scanned. they should have female inspectors if they are uncomfortable with male ones. they should realize this is for their own good. what if terrorists dress up in abayas and bomb a mall?
all in all i think this is a good step in the right direction.
Based on your logic, then people should also be scanned when walking to a school, college, mosque, or even a super market, since these places seem to attract the masses and are potential terrorist targets…..
Give me a break…..
So you’re saying there shouldn’t be security? Why? Because you wanna do something? Give ME a break!
wake up and smell the coffee..look around you and see how many mosques now have concrete barriers around them with metal detectors. there was a direct threat issued by these people saying they intend to target malls. so security at malls should be a natural response stemming out from common sense. again i dont get it whats with ppl in this country and security? is it really that big a hassle for you if your precious lives could potentally be saved? does the hassle outweigh life?
coming to schools, no one has issued a threat, but if they do target schools, i would imagine security should be beefed up too there.
It’s a mall. It’s a wide open public space. What next you scan people crossing the street?
Not sure why so many people think there shouldn’t be security at the malls (of course the way it’s being done right now is just for show). Malls are easy targets in terms of lives, infrastructure, business etc. And much easier to set up in a mall versus on street for terrorists. I just wish it was done rightly though!
Everything can or will be a target. If you instill paranoia at every place we go, what kind of living is that?
Again, we should be fearing/respecting God and infact now everywhere we go, we are fearing humans or the possiblity of an “attack”!
Places of worship, places to shop, places to travel, all these all places are supposed to be liberating not instantly instigating paranoia. It really disturbs me, that before going to such places, now its a constant reminder that my life is in danger. It’s like a viscious cycle, we create a place of solace/comfort and then thanks to some fucking idiot who manages to create fear/chaos, the whole purpose of the place is lost. Don’t you agree?
I understand the concept behind it, yes everyone should feel safe in these places, but on contrary aren’t you also making these places a valuable target by providing “casual security systems”? Kind of like a streisand effect. Why make everything and every place seem like a golden egg? The more we fuel this, the more the flames of fear among common lay people grow. Stop this insanity. People need to be happy not affraid in such places.
They are idiots. They only know to check and boss the innocent.
are you sure this called x-ray machine?
It’s great to see that shopping malls are going the extra mile to protect their customers. They have installed all these x-Ray machines, metal wands/detectors etc.
The million dollar question is, with this planned and implemented, lets assume someone REALLY walks in with a bomb or semi automatic machine guns, then what??? What are these poor defenseless security personal going to do? Nothing. They might as well hide behind these machines!
I honestly think what we are seeing around these malls is just to give us the sense of security. Otherwise the most they can prevent is a pocket knife trying to be sneaked in by these nomads!
We all know that the most crowded place in Kuwait is the avenues phase 3, aka Champs Elysees,g and that’s where the next bombing could be, now, you can go in with your car and use any elevator or escalator, leave your bomb bag anywhere and leave.
Just like what happened back in the “qahwa shabiya” back in the 80’s.
It’s all security theater, and will accomplish nothing as far as actual security is concerned.
Since a lot of people (locals and expats, both) here completely disregard expat security people and the authority they are supposed to have, they should hire Kuwaiti security people. Sadly, i think ego would not allow it.
“security”
At the Avenues, once you exit Ikea to enter into the mall through an entrance leading towards Pinkberry, there is no metal detector or a security guard to welcome you from that particular door. However, they continue doing their job from the Avenues’ main entrance. This was just last week and I’m not sure if things may have changed as I type this comment. A security loophole or what?
Plus, the guy scanning people using his hand held metal detectors continuously gets beeps on his device. The guard is not bothered at all to question visitors as to what they have in their pockets.