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Gulf States Cut Ties With Qatar Over Terrorism Links
Topic Started: Jun 5 2017, 12:07 AM (74 Views)
Webster
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BBC News: Four countries cut links with Qatar over 'terrorism' support
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Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, accusing it of destabilising the region. The countries say Qatar is supporting terrorist groups including the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Saudi state news agency SPA said Riyadh had closed its borders, severing land, sea and air contact. It cited officials as saying it was to "protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism".

Egypt has also closed its airspace and ports for all Qatari transportation, the foreign ministry said.

The United Arab Emirates has given Qatari diplomats 48 hours to leave the country. Abu Dhabi accuses Doha of "supporting, funding and embracing terrorism, extremism and sectarian organisations," state news agency WAM said.

Bahrain's state news agency said the country was cutting ties with Qatar over "shaking the security and stability of Bahrain and meddling in its affairs".

The Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Yemen's Houthi rebels also expelled Qatar from its alliance because of Doha's "practices that strengthen terrorism" and its support to groups "including Al-Qaeda and Daesh [also known as the so-called Islamic State], as well as dealing with the rebel militias", according to SPA.
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Webster
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--The Qatar Stock Exchange has closed down 7.27 per cent. All 44 stocks were in the red. (Anca I. Cighi, FTI Consulting - 5 June 2017)
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Webster
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BBC News: Qatar faces airspace ban as crisis with neighbours grows

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Egypt is closing its airspace to Qatari planes in a growing diplomatic row, with Saudi Arabia and Bahrain expected to do the same on Tuesday.

Several countries have cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism in the Gulf region.

Qatari nationals in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been given two weeks to leave.

Qatar denies backing militants and its foreign minister has called for "a dialogue of openness and honesty".

Egypt said it was closing off its airspace to Qatar from 04:00 GMT on Tuesday "until further notice". Travel disruption is expected as the airport in Doha, Qatar's capital, is a major hub for international flight connections. Airlines affected will include Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways and Emirates.

When avoiding the massive neighbour to the west, Saudi Arabia, Qatari planes will inevitably have to take longer routes leading to longer flight times.

But Qatar's Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, told broadcaster al-Jazeera the country would "still have access to the world through international sea lanes and international airspace".

An anonymous Somali official told AP news agency at least 15 Qatar Airways flights had used Somalia's airspace on Monday, many more than on a normal day.
-Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-40168856
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Webster
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The Guardian: Qatar - panic buying as shoppers stockpile food due to Saudi 'blockade'

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Shoppers in Doha were taking no chances despite Qatari officials telling citizens not to panic after Saudi Arabia imposed a de facto food blockade. Qatar shares its only land border with Saudi Arabia and relies heavily on importing food, much of it from Gulf countries.

Arab nations including Saudi Arabia and Egypt on Monday cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremism, in the biggest diplomatic crisis to hit the region in years.

Multiple queues up to 25-people deep formed in Carrefour supermarket in Doha’s City Center mall, one of the busiest shopping areas in the Qatari capital, hours after five Arab states cut diplomatic ties with the kingdom.

Shoppers piled trollies and baskets high and shelves were stripped of essentials such as milk, rice and chicken.

Among the hundreds of shoppers desperately searching for staple goods was Azir, a Sri Lankan who went to the store when relatives called him from home after watching the news on television.

“I was asleep. My family phoned me and woke me up from Sri Lanka,” he said, his trolley full of nappies for his 18-month-old child. “I came because of the crisis.”
-Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/06/qatar-panic-buying-as-shoppers-stockpile-food-due-to-saudi-blockade
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Webster
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BBC News: Qatar Row - Trump Claims Credit For Isolation
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US President Donald Trump has claimed credit for the pressure being placed on Qatar by Gulf neighbours who accuse it of supporting terrorism in the region. He said his recent visit to Saudi Arabia was "already paying off" and the development might mark the "beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism".

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, Yemen, Libya's eastern-based government and the Maldives have all cut diplomatic and other ties with Qatar. Qatar strongly denies the allegations.

Mr Trump's recent speech in the capital Riyadh, in which he blamed Iran for instability in the Middle East and urged Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalisation, is seen as likely to have emboldened Gulf allies to act against Qatar. "During my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar - look!" Mr Trump tweeted on Tuesday.

He later tweeted: "So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off. They said they would take a hard line on funding... extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!"

Qatar is home to the biggest US military air base in the Middle East, with about 8,000 personnel based at al-Udeid. The official statement from White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the US was in communication with all parties "to resolve issues and restore co-operation".

"The US still wants to see this issue de-escalated and resolved immediately, in keeping with the principles that the president laid out in terms of defeating terror financing and extremism," he said.

In the same week as Mr Trump's Riyadh speech, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE blocked Qatari news sites, including Al Jazeera.

On Monday, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE gave Qatari nationals two weeks to leave, banned their own citizens from travelling to Qatar, and cut all transport links. Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Tuesday that the economic measures should persuade Qatar to change its policies and behave "like a normal country".

Speaking in Paris, he called on Qatar's rulers to end their support for the Muslim Brotherhood, the Palestinian militant group Hamas and what he called "hostile media". "We believe that common sense and logic and will convince Qatar to take the right steps," he said.

The emir of Kuwait - one of the Gulf countries not involved in the dispute - travelled to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday in an attempt to mediate. He later left after a "brotherly visit" but there was no word on the outcome of the talks.

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told Al Jazeera that his country would not retaliate but was unhappy with regional rivals "trying to impose their will on Qatar or intervene in its internal affairs". He told the BBC that Qatar was well prepared to withstand a "blockade", but also complained that the people of Qatar were the victims of "collective punishment" by other countries.

The foreign minister said his government had told President Trump during his Middle-East trip that there was no evidence that Qatar was supporting radical Islamists, adding that the claims were based on "fabricated evidence and lies".
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BBC News: Qatar blockade - Gulf states silent on Tillerson plea to ease measures
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Nations behind a blockade on Qatar have welcomed strong comments from President Donald Trump backing their move, but were silent on calls from his secretary of state to ease the measures.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Bahrain have cut ties, accusing Qatar of funding terrorism. Qatar denies the accusations. The UAE hailed Mr Trump's "leadership".

But the states did not respond to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's warning of humanitarian consequences.
Mr Trump on Friday told Qatar: "Stop teaching people to kill other people." He said: "I decided with Rex Tillerson that the time had come to call on Qatar to end funding and extremist ideology in terms of funding."

Mr Trump said he wanted Qatar "back among the unity of nations".

However, the tone of his comments contrasted with those of Mr Tillerson, who had earlier said the blockade was having humanitarian consequences. Mr Tillerson also said the ongoing row was affecting regional co-operation on countering extremism. He said the blockade was "impairing US and other international business activities in the region" and that the US backed mediation efforts being pursued by Kuwait.

On Saturday, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE made no mention of Mr Tillerson's call. In Saudi Arabia, an official source told the Saudi Press Agency that Qatar must change its policy, saying: "Fighting terrorism and extremism is no longer a choice, rather... a commitment requiring decisive and swift action to cut off all funding sources for terrorism."

Bahrain's official BNA news agency stressed "the necessity of Qatar's commitment to correct its policies and to engage in a transparent manner in counter-terrorism efforts". UAE ambassador to the US Yousef al-Otaiba praised Mr Trump's leadership in the face of Qatar's "troubling support for extremism". He said: "The next step is for Qatar to acknowledge these concerns and commit to re-examine its regional policies."

Monday's dramatic move came after years of tension between Qatar and its Gulf neighbours, in particular Saudi Arabia.
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