Kuwaitis worried they are going to get more than they bargained for

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L17609047.htm

FEATURE-Saddam's gone, but worries still linger in Kuwait

23 May 2004 01:03:16 GMT

By Haitham Haddadin

KUWAIT, May 23 (Reuters) - Kuwaitis spent more than a decade praying for the downfall of Saddam Hussein, but now that he's gone Iraq continues to haunt the oil-rich Arab state.

The tiny Gulf state, a major U.S. ally in the region, is consumed with worry that violence in post-Saddam Iraq could spill over into its own backyard.

As Kuwait heaved a sigh of relief after Saddam's ousting by U.S. forces last year, it began marketing itself as the natural gateway for Iraq's multi-billion-dollar rebuilding bonanza.

The Kuwaiti stock market soared, more than doubling during 2003, and the country prepared for a future without the threat of a repeat of Saddam's 1990-91 invasion.

But things have not worked out as planned.

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