Kuwaiti Abuse Against Palestinians Said to Ease : Postwar disorder: Many are still in jail, some without charges. ‘Goon squad’ of princes is alleged.

Torture and other atrocities committed by Kuwaitis against resident Palestinians have begun to decline in recent days, but many Palestinians continue to be held in jail for no apparent reason, Western diplomatic sources said Thursday.

The sources said that while senior members of the ruling Sabah family appear genuinely opposed to the mistreatment of Palestinians, some younger members have had to be restrained from committing abuses.

According to one diplomat, “six or seven” of the younger Sabah princes donned military fatigues shortly after Kuwait was liberated Feb. 27, commandeered armored personnel carriers and took over army checkpoints to ferret out and abuse Palestinians.

“They were generally being a goon squad,” said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They were out thinking they were saving their nation.”

Since the war’s end, Palestinian residents have complained loudly of mistreatment at the hands of Kuwaitis who were angered by the Palestine Liberation Organization’s support for Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and his invasion of Kuwait.

Kuwaitis have accused many Palestinians--or at least suspected them--of having collaborated with Iraqi troops to crush resistance efforts during the occupation. At least 35 Palestinians have been slain since the emirate was liberated by the U.S.-led military coalition.

Sources said Thursday that at its peak, perhaps as many as 3,000 Palestinians were being held by Kuwaiti authorities. That number has since dropped to between 600 and 700.

“We’re not getting the same number of reports in areas of detentions and abuses, which would suggest to me that some of the things we are trying to impress on the government are working,” the diplomat said.

He noted, however, that many are being held incognito, without being charged with any crimes. He attributed the problem in part to the fact that Kuwait’s judicial system remains in disarray. Dozens of judges and lawyers who fled the Iraqis have yet to return home.

A team of representatives from the International Red Cross has set up shop in Kuwait city to investigate complaints of abuses and check on conditions inside detention camps. One Red Cross member predicted that the team will be here indefinitely.

“There’s obviously a problem; there are people at risk here,” the Red Cross official said. “I don’t think we’ll be out in two weeks.”

Kuwait’s information minister, Bader Jassim Yakoub, issued a statement this week contending that stories of mistreatment against the Palestinians were “lies being spread (as) part of a continuous campaign against Kuwait since the Iraqi occupation.”

While Yakoub’s statement did not indicate who was responsible for the alleged smear campaign, it did state that Kuwait is “keen to establish and support law and order putting aside all differences.” Still, many Palestinians continue to complain of abuses at the hands of Kuwaiti officials.

“They took my friend away, and I have not seen him for two days,” said one Palestinian, the marketing manager of a cake manufacturing company. “He did nothing--nothing. We did nothing to help the Iraqis--many of us were in the resistance--and still this is how they treat us.”

Some have estimated that more than 400,000 Palestinians lived in Kuwait before the Gulf War. Fewer than half are believed to remain.