Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE and Bahrain cut ties to Qatar … home of al Jazeera
(Based on report at CBS News) The countries in Trump’s anti Iran alliance accuse Qatar of being pro Iran, pro Hamas
At the Saudi conference, Mr. Trump met with Qatar’s ruling emir.
“We are friends, we’ve been friends now for a long time, haven’t we?” Mr. Trump asked at the meeting. “Our relationship is extremely good.”
and (quietly) anti Israel. Qatar has supported Hamas but denies support for movements to overthrow the monarchies and military rulers. Qatar has made an effort to become a world capital with a world-wide airline, and is home to Al Jazeera. Qatar will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup and is home to some 10,000 American troops at a major U.S. military base.
Al-Jazeera reported that trucks carrying food for Qatar were lining up across the border in Saudi Arabia, unable to enter the country. Saudi Arabia said it would close its land border to Qatar, effectively cutting off the country from the rest of the Arabian Peninsula.
Qatar had appeared unperturbed by the growing tensions. On May 27, Qatar’s ruling emir, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, called Iranian President Hasan Rouhani to congratulate him on his re-election. The call was a clear, public rebuttal of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to force Qatar to fall in line against the Shiite-ruled nation, which the Sunni kingdom sees as its No. 1 enemy and a threat to regional stability. Qatar shares a massive offshore gas field with the Islamic Republic of Iran.