GCC

Three Omani nationals have been convicted in separate cybercrime and vote-buying offences linked to the tenth Majlis A’Shura elections, with their sentences upheld by the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

The Muscat Primary Court found the defendants guilty of using information technology to insult an individual and attempting to influence the electoral process through vote buying.

According to the Public Prosecution, Abdullah Abdulrahman Mohammed, Yousef Ahmed Shaheen and Tarik Ibrahim Hassan were convicted of online defamation under Article 16 of Oman’s Law on Combating Cybercrimes.

The court sentenced each defendant to one year in prison and imposed a fine of RO1,000. The first defendant was granted a partial suspension of his sentence and will serve one month in custody.

In a separate ruling, the second and third defendants were convicted of vote buying aimed at influencing the outcome of the Shura elections.

They were each sentenced to one year in prison and fined RO5,000. The court partially suspended the sentence against the third defendant, reducing his imprisonment to six months and lowering his fine to RO1,000. The second defendant will face the full sentence. The court also ordered the publication of the judgment.

The Public Prosecution said investigations found that the first and second defendants had shared a video on social media containing remarks considered insulting to one of the candidates in the tenth Shura elections.

The video questioned the candidate’s eligibility and ability to carry out his responsibilities, affecting his reputation and public standing, prosecutors said.

Investigators also uncovered communications between the second and third defendants that showed an agreement to buy votes in support of the second defendant. Authorities said the act was intended to compromise the integrity of the electoral process and undermine voters’ freedom of choice.

After completing the investigation, the Public Prosecution referred the case to the competent court, which issued the convictions.

The prosecution said the ruling demonstrates Oman’s commitment to protecting electoral integrity and enforcing laws against cybercrime and unlawful attempts to influence elections.

Qatar has introduced a comprehensive legal framework to regulate unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations, with the Ministry of Justice publishing Qatar Law No. 10/2026 governing drone activities across the country.

The legislation aims to support the growing use of drone technology by individuals and businesses while ensuring the safety of air navigation and protection of national airspace. According to the Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA), the law aligns UAV operations with national requirements and international aviation conventions.

Under the new framework, the QCAA will oversee drone-related activities in coordination with relevant authorities. Its mandate includes issuing and renewing licences and permits, defining approved operating zones and maximum flight altitudes, regulating drone imports and exports, monitoring compliance, approving airspace and flight routes, and establishing environmental protection requirements.

The law introduces a range of administrative penalties for violations, including warnings, suspension of licences for up to three months, and temporary closure of drone-related businesses for up to 15 days. Such closures may be extended if corrective measures are not implemented.

Serious violations of key provisions may attract imprisonment of up to seven years, fines of up to QAR 300,000, or both. Authorities may also confiscate drones and equipment used in offences. Other breaches may result in fines of up to QAR 200,000.

Saudi Arabia’s Cabinet has approved an updated State Revenues Law as part of efforts to enhance fiscal governance, improve government revenue management and strengthen financial sustainability across the Kingdom.

The revised law, approved during the Cabinet’s session on Tuesday, introduces measures to improve the efficiency of revenue collection, strengthen compliance with government payments and establish clearer procedures for managing public receivables.

Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan said the updated legislation would enable government entities to enhance revenue estimation mechanisms, improve the collection of government dues and streamline the settlement of outstanding debts while ensuring that payment procedures take into account taxpayers’
circumstances.

The new framework forms part of Saudi Arabia’s broader financial reforms aimed at improving governance, transparency and efficiency within the public sector, in line with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030.

The law sets out clearer roles and responsibilities for relevant government bodies and introduces improved mechanisms for estimating government revenues over the medium and long term. These measures are expected to support better financial planning and enhance the accuracy of revenue forecasts.

It also establishes procedures for collecting government receivables and regulates payment and instalment arrangements under specific controls designed to promote fiscal discipline.

The updated legislation reflects Saudi Arabia’s continued efforts to modernise its financial system and ensure more effective management of public resources as the Kingdom advances its economic transformation agenda.

Kuwait has significantly transformed its judicial system through an ambitious programme of legislative and administrative reforms designed to improve court efficiency, reduce case backlogs and accelerate the adoption of digital justice while preserving judicial safeguards and data confidentiality. Since May 2025, the Ministry of Justice, working alongside the Supreme Judicial Council, has pursued a comprehensive reform agenda focused on speeding up litigation, clearing accumulated appeals, modernising judicial notification procedures, expanding electronic litigation and updating the legal framework governing court processes.

One of the most notable developments came in July 2025, when the Ministry of Justice established additional appeal circuits within the Court of Cassation in coordination with the Supreme Judicial Council and the Civil Service Commission. The move followed detailed studies demonstrating the effectiveness of specialised appeal chambers in handling growing caseloads and reducing delays.

The reforms have already produced measurable improvements. Supreme Judicial Council President and Court of Cassation President Counsellor Dr Adel Boursli said the Court of Cassation resolved 17,434 appeals during the 2025–2026 judicial year, representing a 17.7 per cent increase over the 14,816 appeals decided in the previous judicial year.

According to the Supreme Judicial Council, the court continues to implement an ambitious strategy to eliminate the backlog of appeals in line with the directives of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Addressing the Court of Cassation’s General Assembly in May, Dr Boursli commended judges for substantially reducing the number of long-pending appeals.

The reforms have also transformed the performance of the Misdemeanour Appeals Chambers at the Court of First Instance. During the 2025–2026 judicial year, the chambers disposed of 36,093 appeals, a remarkable 203 per cent increase compared with the previous year. As a result, the waiting period for appeal hearings has fallen dramatically—from more than two years to no longer than two months after an appeal is filed.

The Court of Appeal has likewise recorded significant gains. Between October 1, 2025 and the end of April 2026, it received 31,790 appeals while resolving 33,195 cases, including matters carried forward from previous years, allowing the court to reduce its accumulated caseload.

Alongside improvements in case management, Kuwait has modernised one of the judiciary’s most persistent challenges — the judicial notification system. Justice Minister Nasser Al-Sumait said incomplete notification procedures had previously accounted for nearly 36 per cent of dismissed cases.

A major breakthrough came after the Ministry of Justice completed electronic integration with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Public Authority for Civil Information in March. The initiative increased the availability of verified company contact information from less than one per cent to approximately 67 per cent, covering around 162,000 of Kuwait’s 242,000 registered companies.

The introduction of electronic judicial notifications through the Sahel Aamal platform has further strengthened court efficiency by linking official notices directly to government databases. The system improves the accuracy of notifications, reduces administrative delays and speeds up legal proceedings.

The ministry has also equipped process servers with digital tools that electronically connect notifications to case files, litigants and procedural requirements, significantly reducing paperwork while improving operational efficiency. The use of official electronic seals on ministry-issued documents has further enhanced the authenticity and legal reliability of digital judicial records.

Digital transformation has also extended to criminal proceedings. Ministry of Justice statistics show that 27,665 electronic criminal notifications were issued between June 7 and July, 9, 2026, compared with only 12 during the corresponding period in 2025, illustrating Kuwait’s rapid transition towards fully electronic criminal procedures.

Earlier this month, the country reached another milestone with the launch of the first phase of its electronic litigation platform for penal orders. The new system is the first in Kuwait to enable fully electronic criminal judgments for such cases.

Penal orders account for roughly one-fifth of all court cases each year, making the platform a significant step in the digitalisation of criminal justice. According to Al-Sumait, the system enables penal orders to be processed entirely online — from filing and judicial review to judgment issuance and official notification through approved legal channels. The platform is expected to shorten litigation timelines, reduce dependence on paper-based procedures and minimise the risk of criminal cases being dismissed because of procedural delays.

The judicial reforms have also been reinforced through a series of legislative amendments designed to simplify litigation and strengthen electronic court procedures.

Decree-Law No. 71 of 2025 amended provisions of the Civil and Commercial Procedures Law by streamlining litigation, particularly for lower-value claims, which represent around 75 per cent of all cases before lower courts. The amendments authorise creditors to notify debtors through approved electronic communication methods capable of being stored and retrieved, alongside traditional registered mail, thereby laying the groundwork for wider adoption of digital legal services.

Decree-Law No. 133 of 2025 further expanded the legal framework for electronic litigation by establishing dedicated case preparation offices responsible for managing electronic case files from registration until the first hearing. These offices verify documentation, complete case files and communicate electronically with litigants. The legislation also addresses the misuse of judicial recusal applications, which had sometimes been used to prolong legal disputes and delay proceedings.

Criminal justice reforms have also advanced through Decree-Law No. 157 of 2025, which authorises judges to review penal order applications electronically and issue judgments bearing approved electronic signatures. The legislation grants electronic signatures and documents the same legal validity as paper records, provided they comply with the Electronic Transactions Law and its implementing regulations.

According to the Ministry of Justice, the combined impact of these legislative and procedural reforms is already evident across Kuwait’s judicial system. During the second half of 2025, the overall number of court cases declined by approximately 21 per cent compared with the same period in 2024. Payment order cases also fell by around 40 per cent, dropping from approximately 56,000 to about 34,000 over the same period, underscoring the growing efficiency, speed and effectiveness of Kuwait’s modernised justice system.

The Omani Public Prosecution has issued a fresh warning against the misuse of digital technology and social media, reminding residents that sharing another person's private photographs, videos or other digital content without their consent is a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment and hefty fines.

The advisory highlights that individuals can be held legally responsible not only for creating or recording such content but also for transferring, copying, storing, disclosing or publishing it without the permission of the person concerned. Authorities stressed that digital privacy is protected by law and that every social media user has a legal duty to respect the rights of others before forwarding or sharing any material online.

The Public Prosecution also warned that publishing news, photographs, audio recordings or video clips through electronic platforms with the intention of harming another person is prohibited, irrespective of whether the information or content is true. According to prosecutors, criminal liability can arise the moment a person chooses to share content that infringes another individual's privacy or reputation.

An aluminium and blacksmithing workshop in Oman’s Al Dakhliyah Governorate has been fined after a court found it guilty of failing to deliver contracted services within the agreed timeframe, in violation of the country’s Consumer Protection Law.

A court in Oman has convicted the company behind the Hi Shopping platform in a major money laundering case, imposing a fine of RO50,000, confiscating illicit proceeds and ordering the permanent closure of the business after finding it had laundered funds generated through fraudulent investment schemes.

Saudi Arabia has issued a fresh warning to visitors and expatriates against overstaying their entry visas, saying violators could face fines of up to SR50,000, imprisonment for up to six months and deportation from the Kingdom.

In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the Ministry of Interior stressed that all foreign visitors must leave the country before their entry visas expire. Authorities said strict legal action would be taken against anyone who remains in the Kingdom beyond the authorised period, as part of ongoing efforts to enforce immigration laws and maintain public security.

The ministry reiterated that overstaying an entry visa is a legal offence punishable by a maximum fine of SR50,000, a prison sentence of up to six months and deportation after completion of the sentence. The warning applies to all categories of entry visas, including visit visas, unless extended in accordance with Saudi regulations.

The Ministry of Interior also urged members of the public to report any violations of residency, labour and border security regulations. Reports can be made by calling 911 in the regions of Makkah, Riyadh and the Eastern Province, and 999 or 996 in all other regions of the Kingdom.

The latest advisory comes amid an intensified nationwide campaign against immigration and labour law violations. Saudi authorities have recently conducted large-scale inspection drives, arresting thousands of individuals for breaches of residency, labour and border security laws. Officials have emphasised that enforcement efforts will continue to ensure compliance with the Kingdom's immigration regulations and to safeguard public order.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly reminded visitors, employers and sponsors of their legal responsibilities, urging all concerned to comply with visa conditions and avoid penalties by ensuring that visitors depart before their visas expire.