Saudi led alliance accused Qatar over support for militant groups and its relations with Iran
Saudi Arabia and three other important Arab countries announce the suspension of military and diplomatic relation with the Qatar.
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Egypt are going to shut land crossings with its neighbor, potentially depriving the emirate of imports through its only land border.
Announcing the closure of diplomatic relation, oil giant Saudi Arabia accused Qatar of backing militant groups and broadcasting their ideology, in an apparent reference to Qatar’s influential state-owned satellite channels al Jazeera.
The statement accused Qatar of supporting what it described as Iranian-backed militants in its restive and largely Shi’ite Muslim-populated Eastern region of Qatif and in Bahrain.
Qatar is one of the world’s richest countries and of strategic importance, being the biggest producer of liquefied natural gas and home to one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds. It also hosts CENTCOM, the U.S. military’s central command in the Middle East.
Qatari foreign office issued a statement that, it was facing a campaign of lies and fabrications aimed at putting the Gulf Arab state under guardianship, after Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties with it.
“The campaign of incitement is based on lies that had reached the level of complete fabrications” Qatari foreign ministry said.
Meanwhile, Pakistan foreign minister for South Asian nation’s Nafees Zakaria said, Pakistan has no immediate plans to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar.
“At the moment there is nothing on Qatar issue, (we) will issue a statement if some development takes place,” Zakaria said.
Pakistan, which has a significant Shi’ite Muslim population, has in recent years been caught between the feud between its Sunni ally, Saudi Arabia, and Shi’ite-majority neighbour Iran.