Bahrain,
UAE, Egypt, Yemen, Maldives too sever diplomatic relations with Doha
Saudi Gazette
June5, 2017
RIYADH — Saudi
Arabia has severed all ties with the State of Qatar in the latest developments
of Doha’s widening rift with its Gulf neighbors, a statement from Saudi Press
Agency said.
Bahrain had earlier
announced that it was cutting all ties with Qatar. Following Saudi Arabia’s decision,
the United Arab Emirates has also announced it is severing all ties with Qatar.
Joining these three GCC states, Egypt, Yemen and Maldives too decided to sever
all diplomatic relations with Qatar.
Saudi Arabia has
closed all of its borders with the country, including the land border it shares
with Qatar. Qatari citizens were given 14 days to leave Saudi Arabia following
the severing of ties. For security purposes, Qatari citizens are also not
allowed to enter or transit in Saudi Arabia.
The Kingdom also
instructed Saudi citizens to not travel, stay or transit in Qatar. Saudi
citizens and visitors currently in Qatar have been asked to leave the country
in no more than 14 days.
A source in Saudi
Arabia said, “Riyadh had taken the decision as part of exercising its rights
governed by international laws and its national security in order to thwart the
dangers of terrorism and extremism.”
Saudi Arabia has
also decided to close all land, sea and airports and to ban crossing its land,
air and regional waters. “They have begun negotiations with friendly countries
and international companies to apply the same procedure as quickly as possible
for all means of transport from and to Qatar for reasons related to Saudi
national security,” the source said.
Saudi Arabia has
taken this decisive decision as a result of the serious violations committed by
authorities in Qatar in the past years “with the aim of creating strife among
Saudi internal ranks, undermining its sovereignty and embracing various
terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at destabilizing the region, including
harboring Muslim Brotherhood, Daesh (so-called IS) and Al-Qaeda by means
including instigations through its media channels.”
They are also
promoting their ideology and plans through their media and supporting
activities of terror groups backed by Iran in Qatif province, east of Saudi
Arabia and the Kingdom of Bahrain, the source added.
“They have also
financed, adopted and are harboring extremists who seek to destabilize unity at
home and abroad. They have used the media that seeks to fan internal strife.
Saudi Arabia has also been made aware that authorities in Doha have supported
Houthi militias even after the declaration of the coalition to support the
legitimate government in Yemen,” the source said.
Despite the
severance of ties, Saudi Arabia, according to Al-Arabiya English, said it would
provide all facilities and services needed by Qatari pilgrims currently in the
Kingdom. The 14-day directive asking Qataris to leave does not affect Qatari
pilgrims currently in the Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the UAE
has given Qatar’s diplomatic mission in Abu Dhabi 48 hours to leave the country
after what it said where “Doha’s several policies which destabilizes the
security and stability of the region and manipulates commitments”.
It also warned
Qatari citizens they had 14 days to leave the UAE. Citizens from Qatar have
also been banned from “even passing through the UAE”.
A statement on UAE’s
official news agency WAM’s twitter account said, “Emiratis are now banned from
visiting or even passing by Qatar at all means”.
Egypt, Yemen and
Maldives too decided to sever all diplomatic relations with Qatar.
A statement from the
official spokesperson of Egypt Foreign Ministry said they took the decision on
Monday “in light of the insistence of the Qatari government to take an
anti-Egyptian stance and the failure of all attempts to dissuade it from
supporting the terrorist organizations”.
Egypt accused the
Qatari government of supporting especially the Muslim Brotherhood, which it has
designated as terrorist.
“Qatar’s has
promoted al-Qaeda’s ideology, and given support to Daesh and terrorist
operations in the Sinai. Qatar’s has insisted on interfering in the internal
affairs of Egypt and the countries of the region in a manner that threatens
Arab national security and promotes the seeds of sedition and division within
the Arab societies,” the statement read.
Egypt also declared
that it would close its airspace and seaports with Qatar.