Kuwaiti telecoms firm Zain, which sold most of its African assets to Bharti Airtel, has lowered its workforce by 70%, its chief executive said in published remarks.                                             
"The group's workforce has been lowered by 70% in light of the new strategy for the group in the next period," Kuwaiti daily newspaper al-Seyassah quoted CEO Nabeel bin Salama as saying on Sunday.                                             
A company spokesman confirmed the report on Sunday but did not provide more details.                                            In June, Zain and Bharti closed a $9 billion deal for the Kuwaiti firm's African assets excluding Sudan and Morocco.                     
Zain, the Gulf Arab region's third-largest telecoms group by value, now operates in eight countries.