''Al-Qabas'' ( ar, القبس) (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''the Firebrand'' or ''the Starbrand'') is an

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

daily Kuwaiti newspaper and tabloid published by Dar Al Qabas Press Printing Publishing and Distribution Company in Kuwait City.

History and profile

''Al-Qabas'' was launched on 22 February 1972. The founding shareholders of ''Al Qabas'', according to the founding contract as printed in the official gazette ''Kuwait Al-Yawm'' are Kuwaiti merchant families Al-Nusif, Al-Kharafi, Al-Bahar, Al-Shaya, and Al-Saqer. The paper is headquartered in Kuwait City. ''Al-Qabas in early days were characterized by

Mohammed Al-Sager Mohammed Jassem Al-Sager (born 18 June 1951; ar, محمد جاسم الصقر) is a journalist, businessman, and politician. Background Al-Sager received a bachelor's degree in economics from Whittier College (California, US) in 1975. He then w ...

, who had been its dynamic editor-in-chief since 1982 until his election in the

Kuwait National Assembly The National Assembly ( ar, مجلس الأمة) is the unicameral legislature of Kuwait. The National Assembly meets in Kuwait City. Political parties are illegal in Kuwait, candidates run as independents. The National Assembly is made up of 50 ...

in 1999. With his experience in international finance, Al-Sager had set up an international edition that was published in Paris, London and Marseilles (for the North African market). The paper had maintained the most extensive foreign correspondent staff of any Kuwaiti newspaper with large bureaus in Washington, London, Beirut, Cairo, and Moscow. After the liberation of Kuwait, ''Al Qabas'' discontinued its international editions. During the invasion it moved to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and was first published there on 2 August 1990. ''Al Qabas'' had a weekly supplement on

environmental issues Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...

, which can be translated into

as ''Our Environment is Our Life''. The daily had a circulation of 120,000 copies before the invasion of Kuwait in 1991. Its 2001 circulation was 79,000 copies and the paper was the third best selling newspaper in Kuwait. The paper also began its online edition which had 30,000 weekly hits in 2001.

Political stance and staff

''Al Qabas'' had a critical approach to government of Kuwait and is a liberal publication. In April 2012, it published an editorial calling for ending the struggle within the ruling family of Kuwait,

Al Sabah The House of Sabah ( ar, آل صباح ''Āl Ṣubāḥ'') is the ruling family of Kuwait. History Origin The Al Sabah family originate from the Bani Utbah confederation. Prior to settling in Kuwait, the Al Sabah family were expelled from Umm ...

. The paper's editor, Mohammed Al-Sager, is a winner of the International Press Freedom Award of the

Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journ ...

"for courageous reporting on political and human rights issues in the face of government threats of censorship and prosecution". The other significant editors of the daily include Abdullatif Al-Duaij and Ahmad Bishara. The Palestinian cartoonist

Naji Salim al-Ali Naji Salim Hussain al-Ali ( ar, ناجي سليم العلي '; born c. 1938 – 29 August 1987) was a Palestinian cartoonist, noted for the political criticism of the Arab regimes and Israel in his works. He has been described as the greatest ...

worked for the paper in the 1980s and he was killed in 1987 while working for the London edition of the daily. Respected Arab figures also contributed to the daily, including

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

novelist

Naguib Mahfouz Naguib Mahfouz Abdelaziz Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Basha ( arz, نجيب محفوظ عبد العزيز ابراهيم احمد الباشا, ; 11 December 1911 – 30 August 2006) was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize in Literature. M ...

and Egyptian philosopher Fauad Zakara. In 2019, ''Al Qabas'' launched a premium digital subscription service, producing video content for subscribers. Its flagship show, ''The Black Box'' featured 32 interviews with controversial former Kuwaiti MP and academic

Abdullah Al-Nafisi Abdallah Al- Nafisi (in Arabic عبد_الله_النفيسي- born 1945 in Kuwait ) is a Kuwaiti politician and academic. He graduated from The University of Cambridge in 1972. He was a member of National Assembly of Kuwait in 1985. Education ...

. Subsequent seasons featured extensive interviews with former Guantanamo detention camp detainee Faiz Al Kandari.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qabas 1972 establishments in Kuwait Arabic-language newspapers Newspapers established in 1972 Newspapers published in Kuwait Mass media in Kuwait City