Kuwaitis Prepare for the Worst by Stocking Up on Cash and Gas

KUWAIT CITY — Lines stretched behind cash machines and gasoline stations Saturday as thousands of Iraqi troops massed across the border in a buildup like that presaging the 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

But there were few other signs of anxiety after the Cabinet called on Kuwaitis to refrain from hoarding food and water.

Traffic at the border with Saudi Arabia was reported normal, and no significant increase in flight reservations was reported.

“There is no reason to fear; we have agreements with the superpowers,” Haidar Mulla Jumaa, an oil company employee, said as he stood in a grocery store checkout line with about a dozen items in his shopping cart.

Since liberation from the Iraqi occupation, Kuwait has sought to ensure its safety by signing 10-year defense pacts with four of the five permanent Security Council members--the United States, France, Russia and Britain.

Nevertheless, some Kuwaitis seemed reluctant to take any chances given Hussein’s unpredictability.

They headed to gas stations to fill up their tanks in case they had to flee again. Others queued at cash machines to withdraw money.