ADVERTISEMENTFour countries in the Middle East have severed their ties with Qatar, accusing the Gulf state of supporting terrorism.
Bahrain has accused Qatar of meddling in its internal affairs. Egypt and the United Arab Emirates quickly followed suit, saying that Qatar is destabilising the region.
It dramatically escalates a dispute over Qatar’s support for the Muslim Brotherhood. There are also accusations that Doha backs the agenda of regional rival Iran.
Three states have cut transport links with Qatar and given Qatari residents and visitors two weeks to leave their countries. Etihad Airways has said it will suspend all of its flights to and from Qatar from Tuesday morning.
In Cairo Egypt’s foreign minister met his Saudi counterpart on Sunday. Last week their countries and Bahrain blocked al Jazeera websites amid a row over reports by Qatar’s state-run media channel the country claimed were fake news published by hackers.
The divisions over the Gulf State create an unprecedented breach between the most powerful members of the Gulf Cooperation Council. They could have repercussions across the region.
Qatar, which is due to host the football World Cup in 2022, has previously denied supporting terrorism or Iran.