Kuwait State News Agency Claims It Was Hacked After Publishing False U.S. Troop Withdrawal Story

Kuwait has claimed its state-run news agency’s Twitter account was hacked after it posted false story that claimed U.S. troops would be imminently withdrawing from the Gulf nation. A post by the KUNA news agency early Wednesday claimed that Kuwait’s defense ministry had received a letter from the commander in chief of a U.S. military camp in the country “declaring imminent withdrawal of all U.S. military forces in three days.” KUNA reported Kuwait’s defense minister as saying: “Receiving such letter from Camp Arifjan was unexpected and we are communicating with U.S. Department of Defense for more details and information.” However, the tweets were quickly deleted and the news agency has since claimed it was hacked and the story is false. “Our social media account (Twitter) has been hacked... KUNA categorically denies reports it broadcast statements by Defense Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Mansour about withdrawal of U.S. forces from Kuwait,” said posts on the agency’s Twitter account.