Qatar row: Saudi and Egypt among countries to cut Doha links
SOURCE: BBC WORLD NEWS
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| Qatar's government said it believed the move was "unjustified" |
A number of Arab countries including Saudi Arabia and Egypt
have cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, accusing it of destabilising the region.
They say Qatar backs militant groups including so-called
Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaeda, which Qatar denies.
The Saudi state news agency SPA said Riyadh had closed its
borders, severing land, sea and air contact with the tiny peninsula of oil-rich
Qatar.
Qatar called the decision "unjustified" and with
"no basis in fact".
The unprecedented move is seen as a major split between
powerful Gulf countries, who are also close US allies.
It comes amid heightened tensions between Gulf countries and
their near-neighbour, Iran. The Saudi statement accused Qatar of
collaborating with "Iranian-backed terrorist groups" in its restive
eastern region of Qatif and in Bahrain.
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What has happened?
The diplomatic withdrawal was put into motion first by
Bahrain then Saudi Arabia early on Monday. The United Arab Emirates (UAE),
Egypt, Yemen and Libya's eastern-based government followed suit.
SPA cited officials as saying the decision was taken to
"protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and
extremism".
Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain have given all Qatari
visitors and residents two weeks to leave their territory.
So far, there has been no sign of reciprocal moves by Qatar.
In the latest developments:
- The UAE and Egypt have
given Qatari diplomats 48 hours to leave both countries
- Airlines
from many of the affected countries, including Etihad Airways
and Emirates, said they are to cancel flights to and from
the Qatari capital Doha
- The
Gulf allies said they had closed their airspace to Qatar Airways,
which has suspended all its flights to Saudi Arabia
- Bahrain's state news agency said it was
cutting its ties because Qatar was "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 its "practices that strengthen terrorism" and its support of extremist groups.
Why has this happened?
While
the severing of ties was sudden, it has not come out of the blue, as tensions
have been building for years, and particularly in recent weeks.
Two weeks ago, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE blocked Qatari news sites, including Al Jazeera.
Comments purportedly by Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani criticising
Saudi Arabia had appeared on Qatari state media.
The
government in Doha dismissed the comments as fake, attributing the report to a
"shameful cybercrime".
Back
in 2014, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE withdrew their ambassadors from
Qatar for several months in protest over alleged interference in their affairs.
More
broadly, two key factors drove Monday's decision: Qatar's ties to Islamist
groups, and the role of Iran, Saudi Arabia's regional rival.
While
Qatar has joined the US coalition against IS, the Qatari government has
repeatedly denied accusations from Iraq's Shia leaders that it provided
financial support to IS.
Wealthy
individuals in the emirate are believed to have made donations and the
government has given money and weapons to hardline Islamist groups in Syria.
Qatar is also accused of having links to a group formerly known as the Nusra
Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate.
The
SPA statement accused Qatar of backing these groups, as well as the Islamist
Muslim Brotherhood - banned in Gulf countries as a terrorist organisation - and
that it "promotes the message and schemes of these groups through their
media constantly".
Saudi
Arabia itself is a key backer of Islamist rebels, including hardline jihadist
groups, in Syria.
While on a visit to Riyadh two weeks ago, US President Donald Trump
urged Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalisation, and blamed Iran for
instability in the Middle East.
"It
seems that the Saudis and Emiratis feel emboldened by the alignment of their
regional interests - toward Iran and Islamism - with the Trump
administration," Gulf analyst Kristian Ulrichsen told Reuters news agency.
"[They]
have decided to deal with Qatar's alternative approach on the assumption that
they will have the [Trump] administration's backing."
Is Saudi to blame for IS?
Saudi
Arabia, too, has been accused of funding IS, either directly or by failing to
prevent private donors from sending money to the group - allegations it denies.
In
recent days, British Prime Minister Theresa May has also come under pressure
from election rivals to publish a report thought to focus on the funding of UK
extremist groups by Saudi Arabia.
What has been the reaction?
Qatar,
which is due to host the football World Cup in 2022, was critical of the
decision. The foreign ministry said the decisions would "not affect the
normal lives of citizens and residents".
US
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, speaking in Sydney, urged the countries to
resolve their differences through dialogue.
Iranian
foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said there was a need for
"transparent dialogue and diplomacy", adding: "No country in the
region will benefit from the heightened tension."
Qatar's
stock market closed down 7.27%.
One of the likely knock-on effects is on food stability: about 40% of Qatar's food is
believed to come by lorry from Saudi Arabia.
The Doha News newspaper reported that
people had rushed to supermarkets to stock up on food and water.
Nearly
90% of Qatar's population are migrant workers, many of whom are working on the
construction boom fuelled by the successful World Cup bid.
Why this decision now? - Alan
Johnston, BBC Middle East analyst
There
have long been tensions not far beneath the surface. Qatar has often seemed out
of step with its neighbours.
It
has tended, for example, to side with Islamist forces in the Middle East - like
the Muslim Brotherhood, which is reviled by the Saudis and the current Egyptian
leadership.
Past
efforts by the neighbours to pull the Qataris into line have had limited
impact. But now Doha has suddenly come under much greater and more co-ordinated
pressure.
Emboldened
by President Trump's trip two weeks ago, the Saudis and the Emiratis believe
that this is the moment to make clear to Qatar that its divergent views will no
longer be tolerated.
And
right now this small country's rulers will probably be feeling very lonely
indeed.
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