Two people suffered minor injuries in the early morning strike against the Souk Sharq complex by an Iraqi Silkworm missile, which struck a pier and seawall directly adjacent to the mall.
The mall, which was closed at the time of the attack, is located in a busy commercial district in Kuwait City and is said to be the largest shopping center in the country.
"Where is the outrage?" asked Kuwait City resident Said Nasser. "Saddam attacks Arab people, not the army. Is terror."
Kuwait Information Minister Sheik Ahmad Al-Fahad Saturday said the 1:45 a.m. attack on the shopping mall was not uncharacteristic of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's stance toward Kuwait, a staunch U.S. ally and key launch pad for military strikes into southern Iraq. "This has been a problem since the Iraqi war," Al-Fahad said.
Political efforts are underway to seek broader Arab condemnation of Iraq's attack on the shopping center. Kuwait House Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi said he would ask the Arab League to take appropriate action, the Kuwait Times reported Sunday.
The attack against a civilian target was also condemned by the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional consortium of Arab states in the Persian Gulf region, according to the Kuwait News Agency.
Al-Attyya warned Saturday's Silkworm attack could complicate matters in the war to oust Saddam from power, the agency reported.
Kuwaiti military officials now say it appears the missile was fired from a launcher hidden on Iraq's Faw Peninsula, which was thought to be secured by coalition forces. Officials had earlier speculated the missile may have been fired from a boat or ship offshore.
"The allies must find these missile sites and destroy them forever," said Kuwait City resident Mohammed Al-Saoud, speaking through an interpreter.
The low-flying missile evaded radar defenses and struck without warning, prompting the Kuwait Defense Ministry to announce new measures to prevent such attacks in the future. However, top ministry officials offered no details on what those measures might be.
Saturday's missile attack came as Kuwaitis were beginning to emerge from their homes following days of heightened tensions and sandstorms in the area.
Thousands of Kuwait City residents could be seen on city streets hours before the attack, shopping and greeting friends on a cool and mostly clear March evening.
But anxiety continued following the shopping mall attack when an air raid siren sounded at 6:10 p.m. local time Saturday night.
A defense ministry source said the air raid was in response to an Iraqi missile launched toward Kuwait, which was shot down by a Patriot missile battery over Kuwait's northern desert.
