A Saudi man who had fraudulently acquired a Kuwaiti nationality 31 years back was sentenced to 22 years in prison on Wednesday, Al Rai newspaper reported. 

According to the local daily, the man's supposed father, who was also a defendant in the case, had forged papers in 1986 falsely claiming the Saudi national was his son. 

"At the time, the man was issued a nationality card, ID cards, and a passport," Al Rai wrote. 

He was also eventually hired by the country's ministry of interior and for years, he unrightfully received hundreds of thousands of Kuwaiti dinars in salaries and benefits. 

Both the man and his supposed father were convicted of forging a fake citizenship, however, the latter's sentence was suspended due to the legal system's statute of limitations. 

The Saudi defendant wasn't so lucky and will now be serving his full sentence in a Kuwait prison.  

He was also ordered to pay back the government 41,000 Kuwaiti dinars ($135,000). 

A few weeks back, the arrest of a Syrian national who fraudulently acquired the Kuwaiti citizenship 22 years ago made headlines across the GCC. 

The man was arrested after his wife reported him to authorities. 

This came after a heated argument erupted between the two, leading the angered wife to reveal the shocking detail to authorities. 

In her report, the wife said her husband had been granted the citizenship after he'd forged the documents needed for it. 

After thorough investigations, officers discovered that the man had entered the Gulf state on a Syrian passport. 

The investigation into the suspect include DNA tests and also saw investigators interview over 30 people with links to the family. 

The US is pulling out of the UN's cultural organisation UNESCO, accusing it of "anti-Israel" bias.

The State Department said it would establish an observer mission at the Paris-based organisation to replace its current representation.

UNESCO said the withdrawal was a loss to the "UN family" and to multilateralism.

The agency is known for designating world heritage sites such as Syria's Palmyra and the US Grand Canyon.

The country hopes to remain a non-member, observer state, in order to contribute US opinions and expertise on issues like press freedoms and protecting world heritage.

According to Reuters, the State Department said in a Thursday statement:

"This decision was not taken lightly and reflects US concerns with mounting arrears at UNESCO, the need for fundamental reform in the organization, and continuing anti-Israel bias at UNESCO."

UNESCO was founded in the wake of the Second World War, with the aim of ensuring peace through the free flow of ideas and education.

"Universality is critical to UNESCO’s mission to strengthen international peace and security in the face of hatred and violence, to defend human rights and dignity," said Irina Bokova, UNESCO's Director-General.

In 2011, the United States had cancelled its substantial budget contribution to UNESCO in protest at a decision to grant the Palestinians full membership.

At the time, members voted by 107 votes to 14 to accept Palestine as a full member state to loud cheers from delegates in Paris. 

52 countries, including the UK, abstained.