Arabian diplomacy crisis

This item appears on page 4 of the July 2017 issue.

The countries of Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, UAE, Bahrain and the Maldives cut off all diplomatic ties with Qatar on June 5, claiming that Qatar supported terrorist organizations, including the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the al-Qaeda allied Nusra Front in Syria, and accusing Qatar of offering assistance to Iranian-backed groups in the region.

In addition, all sea and air travel between Qatar and the four countries was ceased. The airlines involved, such as UAE-based Emirates and Etihad, immediately canceled all flights to Qatar and offered refunds. Qatari-based airlines are also prevented from traveling through the airspace of all of the countries involved.