Kuwaiti Shia MP given new jail term for insults

The verdict, announced in a court statement, comes two months after he was sentenced to 14 years and six months for a similar offence.

Dashti has been living abroad for several months, after leaving Kuwait in March to seek medical treatment in Britain.

The MP appeared for a press conference this week in Geneva, where he and a rights group challenged the legality of verdicts against him.

Dashti was also convicted in July of endangering ties with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and for calling on people to join the Hizballah.

Dashti confirmed the latest court ruling on Twitter, saying he expects more sentences that could amount to 100 years' jail as he is facing about a dozen similar cases.

The verdicts are not final, however Dashti can only challenge once he returns to the oil-rich emirate. He has not said when he will go back.

Dashti is a staunch supporter of Iran and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and a critic of the royal families of both Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

He denounced as an "invasion" the 2011 Saudi military intervention in Bahrain to support the government against Shia-led protests.

There are nine Shia lawmakers in Kuwait's 50-seat parliament, and the religious minority comprises about 30 percent of the country's native population of 1.3 million.

In Kuwait, criticism of Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah can result in charges of insulting him. Dozens of opposition activists have been jailed for this offence in the past few years.

The next ruling against Dashti is scheduled for October 10.