¤MGN-AFRICA» pin:263789F4 » Arab states withdraw ambassadors from Qatar in protest at interference: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and UAE take steps after Qatars failure to uphold agreement on security and stability of GCC In a rare public spat that has highlighted deep political divisions in the Gulf, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have all withdrawn their ambassadors from Qatar in protest at Dohas interference in their internal affairs. The three Arab states made the decision following what was described as a stormy meeting on Tuesday of foreign ministers from the Saudi-dominated Gulf Cooperation Council in Riyadh. Factors causing irritation apparently include Qatars support for the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and elsewhere and sermons by a popular Doha-based Islamist cleric. Qatar has acted as a cheerleader for the uprisings of the Arab spring while the other Gulf states have fretted about their own stability at a time of regional change. Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain regret to announce that they will take what they deem to be the appropriate steps to protect the security and stability of their nations by withdrawing their ambassadors from Qatar, the Saudi foreign ministry said on Wednesday. The unprecedented decision was made after Qatar failed to uphold an agreement on the security and stability of the six-member GCC, it added. Qatar, the richest country in the Gulf and according to some calculations in the world, has been an outspoken supporter of Mohamed Morsi, the Muslim Brotherhood leader who was ousted as Egypts president last summer. It is also a keen backer of rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad of Syria. Qatar owns Al-Jazeera, the satellite TV network that broadcasts in Arabic and English and is loathed by the other Gulf states. The Saudis and Emiratis see the Muslim Brotherhood as fundamentally a transnational movement, so Qatars relationship with the Brotherhood is seen as facilitating a Trojan Horse, according to Emile Hokayem, an analyst with the International Institute of Strategic Studies. Adding to the rising tensions, this week a Qatari man received a seven-year sentence in the UAE for supporting a group affiliated with the Brotherhood. The GCC said they had asked Qatar not to support any party aiming to threaten the security and stability of any member, citing media campaigns against them. Its statement stressed that despite the commitment of Qatars emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to these principles during a summit in Riyadh in November with the Kuwaiti and Saudi leaders, his country has failed to comply. The move came a month after Abu Dhabi protested to Qatar about a sermon by the Doha-based preacher Yusuf al-Qaradawi, which was broadcast on Qatari state TV. In recent months, the UAE has also sentenced 30 Emiratis and Egyptians to prison terms ranging from three months to five years for forming a Muslim Brotherhood cell. The Brotherhood is banned in much of the Arab world, and the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia all pledged billions of dollars in aid to Egypt after Morsis overthrow by the Egyptian army. * Qatar * Saudi Arabia * Bahrain * United Arab Emirates * Middle East and North Africa Ian Black theguardian © 2014 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds » bit.ly/19qZv3w @officialMGN
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 14:52:21 +0000