Kuwaiti ruler hospitalised for medical checks

The crown prince of Kuwait has taken on the role of partial ruler after the country's emir was hospitalised.

Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, 91, was admitted for "routine" medical tests on Saturday, the country's national news agency said.

The report added he was in "good health" but gave no further details.

His half-brother and crown prince, 83-year-old Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, will "temporarily" take on a number of functions.

Last summer, the emir was reported to have suffered a health "setback" while in Kuwait.

The following month, he was hospitalised for medical tests during a visit to the US.

Sheikh Sabah has been credited with shaping the Gulf nation's foreign policy and spent decades as foreign minister before becoming emir in 2006.