KUWAIT CITY // Joint Gulf force the Peninsula Shield began a 17-day exercise in Kuwait yesterday as officials said the war games were not related to unrest in the region.
"The exercise was prescheduled and agreed for years. It is unrelated to any regional or political events," the head of Kuwaiti army public relations, Brigadier Abdulaziz al-Rayes, was cited as saying by the KUNA news agency.
It aims at "activating the concept of joint defence... and implementing the unified defence strategy of the Gulf Cooperation Council states," he said.
The main part of the exercise will take place in the Kuwaiti desert, but naval and air forces will also feature in the manoeuvres slated to end on February 26, coinciding with Kuwait's national day celebrations.
General Rayes did not give details of troop numbers taking part, but did say the exercise would include units from Kuwait's national guard and the interior ministry.
Kuwait marks its 51st independence from Britain on February 25 and the 22nd anniversary of liberation from seven months of Iraqi occupation on February 26 in which units from the Peninsula Shield took part.
The Peninsula Shield force was formed by the six GCC member states -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- in 1982 as a 5,000-strong force but has since expanded to more than 30,000 troops.
Two years ago, Peninsula Shield troops were deployed in Sunni-ruled Bahrain to help the kingdom's security forces confront protests led by the Shiite majority.
Kuwait has witnessed street protests in the past several months by opposition groups calling for the dissolution of the pro-government parliament elected on December 1 after the emir amended a controversial electoral law.
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is the most popular virtual currency in the world. It was created in 2009 as a new way of paying for things that would not be subject to central banks that are capable of devaluing currency. A Bitcoin itself is essentially a line of computer code. It's signed digitally when it goes from one owner to another. There are sustainability concerns around the cryptocurrency, which stem from the process of "mining" that is central to its existence.
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
POSSIBLE ENGLAND EURO 2020 SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Dean Henderson.
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kieran Trippier, Joe Gomez, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Ben Chilwell, Fabian Delph.
Midfielders: Declan Rice, Harry Winks, Jordan Henderson, Ross Barkley, Mason Mount, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Forwards: Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi.