The Muslim Brotherhood Is the Root of the Qatar Crisis The Saudi-led bloc has made 13 demands of Doha, but they’re mostly about resolving one issue—and time is almost up.
Monday marked the end of the 10 days that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt gave Qatar to comply with 13 far-reaching demands.
For starters, Qatar is being told to cut off relations with Iran, shutter Al Jazeera, and stop granting Qatari citizenship to other countries’ exiled oppositionists. Despite high-level American and Kuwaiti mediation efforts, a deal appears unlikely.
Qatar considers the demands an assault on its sovereignty and has refused to buckle to pressure. The other four countries, which declared an economic and diplomatic embargo on Doha on June 5, have repeatedly insisted that their demands are non-negotiable, and have promised further escalation if the deadline passes without an agreement.
On the surface, the policy disagreements at the center of this rift aren’t new. The anti-Qatar bloc has long viewed Doha as too chummy with Iran, too provocative in its backing of Al Jazeera and similar media outlets, and too supportive of Islamist movements.
What’s new is the zero-sum stakes that the anti-Qatar bloc perceives in the current standoff. Saudi Arabia and the UAE particularly view Qatar’s support for Muslim Brotherhood affiliates as lethally threatening to their own regimes, and therefore see Qatar’s behavior as not merely objectionable, but utterly intolerable.
In fact, while the countries’ 13 demands of Qatar include a range of issues, the overwhelming majority are relevant to their ongoing concerns about Qatar’s relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood, and reflect these countries’ desire to nip what they view as an existential threat in the bud. In a sense, the Gulf monarchies have worried about their long-term stability ever since late 2010, when a series of popular uprisings started upending autocratic regimes across the Middle East and North Africa.
While the activists at the forefront of those uprisings demanded political reform and economic equality, the so-called “Arab Spring” rapidly descended into a series of bitter power struggles. In the deadliest of cases, civil wars erupted in Syria and Libya, as regimes responded brutally to protests, fomenting conflicts in which hundreds of thousands have been killed and millions have been displaced.
But even in less violent instances, the regimes quickly faced zero-sum stakes: Deposed Tunisian dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fled into exile, while his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak was tried and jailed.
These events, and Washington’s embrace of the various protest movements, unnerved the Gulf monarchies—including Qatar to
some extent. While Al Jazeera covered the January 2011 uprising in Egypt very aggressively, it joined its Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) partners in opposing the subsequent uprising in Bahrain, and it participated in the March 2011 Saudi-led military intervention to support the Bahraini monarchy as it quashed the protests.
But as Muslim Brotherhood organizations rose politically in the aftermath of these uprisings, Qatar charted a separate course and strongly backed these groups. Doha’s decision partly reflected its ideological inclinations: The emir was infamously close with Egyptian-born cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the de facto Brotherhood spiritual guide who had lived in Qatar since 1961, and Al Jazeera had long provided a platform for Qaradawi and other Brotherhood figures to promote the group’s theocratic ideology.
But it also reflected Doha’s strategic considerations: With Brotherhood affiliates winning elections in Egypt and Tunisia, the Brotherhood appeared to be the political wave of the future. And the Brotherhood presented no internal risk to the Qatari regime, because Doha had dissolved the domestic Brotherhood chapter in 1999.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE, however, saw the Muslim Brotherhood’s emergence as severely threatening. After all, the Brotherhood seeks to establish a “global Islamic state” under its own control, which implies toppling those Muslim governments that are not Brotherhood-ruled in the long run.
Both Riyadh and Abu Dhabi feared that the Brotherhood’s success in Egypt, Tunisia, and beyond would energize underground Brotherhood groups within their respective countries. Indeed, the Emirati government had been working to dissolve the local Brotherhood branch, known as al-Islah, since 1994, and it viewed al-Islah’s traditional influence within the state’s educational institutions as particularly worrisome.
Initially, Brotherhood leader Mohammed Morsi attempted to assuage these fears by visiting Riyadh shortly after he won Egypt’s June 2012 presidential elections, and the UAE tried to engage Morsi by inviting him to Abu Dhabi. But Brotherhood leaders’ persistent and vocal criticisms of the UAE, particularly regarding Abu Dhabi’s prosecution of al-Islah in 2013, exacerbated Saudi and Emirati concerns about the Brotherhood’s long-term intentions.
So when Egypt’s military responded to mass protests by ousting Morsi in July 2013, Saudi Arabia and the UAE believed that they had dodged a bullet, and saw the ensuing struggle against the Brotherhood in existential terms. They therefore generously supported then-Defense Minister Abdel Fatah al-Sisi as he brutally repressed the Brotherhood, seeing their own fates as tied to the Brotherhood’s defeat.
Yet despite the lethal threat that its GCC partners saw in the Brotherhood, Qatar continued to chart a pro-Brotherhood course. Following the Egyptian coup, Qatar granted refuge to some Brotherhood leaders who escaped from Egypt, and Al Jazeera housed them in a five-star Doha hotel and granted them regular airtime for promoting their cause.
Al Jazeera also aired the Brotherhood’s ongoing anti-coup protests, and in some cases allegedly paid Muslim Brothers for the footage. In response, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Bahrain withdrew their ambassadors from Doha in March 2014, accusing it of violating the GCC’s principle against interfering in members’ domestic affairs.
The standoff was resolved quietly two months later, and Egyptian Brotherhood leaders left Doha later that year. But from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE’s standpoint, Qatar never lived up to the 2014 agreement and continued to serve as the nexus of the Brotherhood’s regional networks.
After all, Qatar still houses the leadership of Hamas, which has long identified as the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and is a U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Hamas recently distanced itself from the international Brotherhood movement, but its leader affirmed that it remains part of the Brotherhood’s intellectual school and he made this announcement from Doha.
Moreover, Al Jazeera continues to promote Brotherhood voices, and other Qatari-funded outlets and think tanks often employ Brotherhood cadres and allies. For example, until recently, former Brotherhood youth Islam Lotfy was chairman of the satellite network Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Qaradawi still enjoys a platform. So it should come as no surprise that anxiety about the Muslim Brotherhood is at the center of the Gulf crisis—and the list of 13 demands. The second demand orders Doha to cut all ties to terrorist organizations, specifically the Muslim Brotherhood, and to declare the Brotherhood a terrorist organization.
The third demand calls for shutting down Al Jazeera and its affiliate stations, which these countries view as a Brotherhood mouthpiece, and the fourth demand similarly calls for the closure of at least four other outlets that are regarded as staunchly pro-Brotherhood.
The fifth demand calls on Doha to immediately terminate the Turkish military presence currently in Qatar and end any joint military cooperation with Turkey inside Qatar. This reflects the four countries’ concerns regarding Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s vocal sympathy with the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood’s anti-coup cause, and the prospect that Turkish influence within Qatar might consolidate Qatari support for Brotherhood organizations.
The sixth demand orders Doha to stop all means of funding for individuals, groups or organizations that have been designated as terrorists by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, the U.S. and other countries, which includes many Brotherhood affiliates.
The seventh demand asks Qatar to hand over terrorist figures and wanted individuals from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and Bahrain to their countries of origin, a list that includes Brotherhood cadres and supporters, including Qaradawi.
The eighth demand calls on Doha to end interference in sovereign countries’ internal affairs, which encompasses Brotherhood affiliates across the region, and the ninth demand effectively repeats this: Stop all contacts with the political opposition in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and Bahrain.
Hand over all files detailing Qatar’s prior contacts with and support for those opposition groups.What will Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt actually do if Qatar doesn’t bend? The UAE ambassador to Russia threatened secondary sanctions against Qatar.
A column in the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya went much further, warning Doha that its failure to accept the 13 demands may be like Rabaa Square,a reference to Egyptian security forces’ August 14, 2013 massacre of Muslim Brotherhood members and allies, in which hundreds were killed.
In other words, this rift is also existential for the Qatari government. But given the country’s long history of coups and abdications, there are no good answers for Doha. Refusing to comply with the 13 demands will exacerbate the external threat it faces, but yielding to those demands will show weakness domestically, and could make the emir vulnerable.
So what next?
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Showing posts with label Visit Qatar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Visit Qatar. Show all posts
Thursday, 27 July 2017
Wednesday, 5 July 2017
QATAR: Qatar Won't Bow To Gulf Countries Demands, Inspite Of The Economy Feeling The Blockade Pinch
A boycott imposed by four Arab nations that accuse Qatar of supporting terrorism is squeezing the tourism sector and Doha's hotels which would normally be full in the Eid al-Fitr holiday have seen steep falls in their occupancy rates.
Major hotels found average occupancy was around 57 percent at the start of the Eid festival on Sunday which marks the end of the Ramadan fasting month when friends and families eat and pray together and take holidays.
We’re usually packed with Saudis and Bahrainis but not this year, a staff member at a five-star hotel said.
Hamad International Airport, one of the Middle East's busiest, would handle 76 percent as many flights in early July compared with the same period last year, a loss of about 27,000 passengers a day.
The airport does not talk about data on the impact of sanctions.
Visitors from the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council usually account for almost half of all visitors to Qatar. So a decision by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt to cut diplomatic and transport ties on June 5 hit traffic hard.
Doha in early July, assuming the restrictions remain, will have less capacity than a year ago - a confronting figure for a region where every month sets year-on-year records, analysts on Aviation say.
There is no breakthrough in sight for the crisis in which the four Arab nations issued an ultimatum to Doha to close Al Jazeera television, curb ties with Iran, shut a Turkish base and pay reparations.
A defiant Doha has denied accusations of supporting terrorism and says the demands are unrealistic.
Hundreds of weekly flights to and from Qatar have already been cancelled because of the dispute. Hamad airport will lose fees paid by airlines and passengers, as well as terminal revenue from duty free shops and restaurants.
Air blocades by the four Arab states represented around 25 percent of flights by state-owned Qatar Airways, one of the region's big three carriers.
Elsewhere in the tourist sector, hotels, restaurants and other facilities have had to find new sources of services and goods, in some cases, at higher cost, due to the boycott.
A substantial drop in visitor arrivals is likely to force hotel and real estate developers to re-evaluate their strategies and priorities, potentially causing delays to some of the ongoing tourism projects.
Qatar’s World Cup organising committee said sanctions had not affected preparations for the tournament and alternative sources for construction materials had been secured.
Qatar has said 46,000 rooms will be available to host fans by the time of the World Cup. In March, it had 119 hotels with 23,347 rooms, according to the tourism authority.
Developing business and leisure tourism is part of Qatar's drive to develop its economy away from reliance on oil and gas revenue.
Doha aims to raise the tourism sector's contribution to GDP to 5.2 percent by 2030 from around 4.1 percent now, while raising the number of people employed by nearly 70 percent to 127,900.
Qatar's foreign minister has called the Saudi-led blockade of his country a clear aggression and an insult and urged its opponents to act with reason and through dialogue to solve problems in the Middle East.
Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told an audience in London that attempts to silence Qatar's independence would only exacerbate the serious problems experienced in the region and accused Saudi Arabia and its regional allies of demanding that we must surrender our sovereignty as the price for ending the siege.
His speech at the Chatham House think tank comes as the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain met in Cairo to consider its response to Qatar's refusal to give in to 13 demands, including ending alleged support for terrorists and shutting down media organisations.
Qatar's foreign minister said that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were the main drivers of a campaign to isolate it, but added that Qatar was unlikely to be thrown out of the Gulf-Cooperation Council (GCC) regional group.
We believe that this entire campaign is merely driven by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and these are the countries that we need to engage to find out what are the real problems and what are the real grievances, he said.
Bin Abdulrahman also used the London event to call for dialogue and to openly welcome any serious effort to solve the crisis with its Arab neighbours through dialogue not blockade.
He said: Qatar continues to call for dialogue. We welcome any serious efforts to resolve our differences with our neighbours, he said, adding: We don't accept intervention in our own affairs.
But he said Qatar would not take the first step, and declined to disclose the details of a response that Qatar has given to the Arab states' demands. They should not expect from me a first step, I should expect from them a first step for engagement, he said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Saudi foreign ministry said it had received Qatar's response to their demands - which include Doha ending support for the Muslim Brotherhood and closing broadcaster Al Jazeera - and would respond at the right time.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have not said what steps they could take next, but there are fears of a wider embargo that would hurt the Qatari economy, with ratings agency Moody's announcing it was changing Qatar's outlook to negative over the crisis.
A group of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia has severed air, sea and ground links with Qatar, cutting off vital routes for imports including food.
Qatar Fgn Minister tells Chatham House audience '12000 families affected by Arab blockade/siege' on Qatar. pic.twitter.com/QhYVNlNAeP
They also ordered Qatari citizens to leave their territories and took various steps against Qatari firms and financial institutions.
The Qatari foreign minister told the London event that the underlying cause of the conflict was Qatar's different views on wider issues in the Middle East amid concerns over extremism. Why is Qatar's independence a threat to blockading countries? Because we have different views,he said.
The foreign minister said the crux of the issue was differences in approach from the Saudi bloc and Qatar. He said: Here is the crux: we have seen how young people left without hope turn to violence. We have watched as the world blames Islam. As the emir has said, the cause is not Islam. It is hopelessness. There are serious problems in the Middle East. Silencing Qatar will not stop them.
The crisis has raised concerns of growing instability in the region, home to some of the world's largest energy exporters and key Western allies who host US and UK military bases.
Energy-rich Qatar has been defiant throughout the crisis, insisting it can weather action taken against it.
However, the Qatari minister suggested he saw little hope of a rapid reconciliation and that his country was preparing for a more protracted rift.
What we've done in the last few weeks is develop different alternative ways to ensure the supply chain for the country not to be cut off.
He looked ahead to the football world cup that Qatar does not host until 2022
Even if the blockade is lifted, we have to rely on ourselves and ensure we deliver a World Cup that is attractive to the world, he said.
Responding to the accusation that it was now too close to regional rival Iran, he said Doha had to live alongside Tehran since the two states shared a gas field.
In a question and answer session at the Chatham House event the Qatari foreign minister denied Saudi and UAE claims that the country had paid ransom money to a Shia group to free kidnapped hunters in Iraq.
Bin Abdulrahman said the payment was made to the Iraqi government, and not Iran-backed militants.
Qatar's sovereign wealth fund has transferred over $30 billion worth of its domestic equity holdings to the finance ministry and may sell other assets as part of a restructuring drive, people familiar with the matter said.
Stakes in 18 companies were transferred earlier this year, before Qatar's diplomatic rift with other Gulf states.
The stakes include major holdings in some of the country's top firms such as Qatar National Bank, telecommunications operator Ooredoo and Qatar Electricity & Water Co.
The Qatar Investment Authority, one of the world's largest sovereign funds, moved the holdings as part of efforts by the entire government to become more efficient and generate higher returns, the sources said.
The assets were transferred so that the Ministry of Finance could oversee these holdings in a more active manner, one of the sources said.
He added, Under the rule of Sheikh Tamim, Qatar is moving into an era of greater government scrutiny and oversight of funds. The finance ministry has a hands-on approach to public investments.
A second source said an internal restructuring of the QIA had started earlier this year, aiming to ensure the fund focused on its strengths, particularly international investing.
The QIA declined to comment.
The QIA, which rarely discusses its operations publicly, is believed to have over $300 billion of assets around the world.
The holdings transferred to the finance ministry include stakes across the country's banking industry: Islamic lender Masraf al Rayan, Ahli Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, Qatar International Islamic Bank, Doha Bank, Commercial Bank of Qatar and Al Khalij Commercial Bank.
They also include industrial, trading and transport firms: Qatar National Cement, Al Meera Consumer Goods , Qatar Gas Transport, Gulf International Services, Mannai Corp, Mayaza Qatar Real Estate, Qatar Industrial Manufacturing Co and Qatar Oman Investment Co.
The sources did not specify exactly how holdings in these companies would be managed more actively.
They bring to the finance ministry annual dividend revenue estimated at over 3 billion riyals ($824 million) this year.
It has not been decided yet how the revenue from the company dividends will be used.
They could form an additional revenue stream for the government, or the finance ministry holdings could be prepared for privatisations or strategic sales, the first source said.
The restructuring of the QIA was decided months before Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain cut diplomatic and transport ties with Doha this month, accusing it of backing terrorism, a charge which Qatar strongly denies.
The changes at the QIA are part of a country-wide consolidation drive which includes planned mergers of state-owned liquefied natural gas producers Qatargas and RasGas, and Qatar Petrochemical Co with Qatar Vinyl Co.
The second source said assets which the QIA might sell included Hassad Food, the country's top investor in the international food and agri-business sectors.
It was established in 2008 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the QIA. No decision has been made, the source stressed.
Major hotels found average occupancy was around 57 percent at the start of the Eid festival on Sunday which marks the end of the Ramadan fasting month when friends and families eat and pray together and take holidays.
We’re usually packed with Saudis and Bahrainis but not this year, a staff member at a five-star hotel said.
Hamad International Airport, one of the Middle East's busiest, would handle 76 percent as many flights in early July compared with the same period last year, a loss of about 27,000 passengers a day.
The airport does not talk about data on the impact of sanctions.
Visitors from the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council usually account for almost half of all visitors to Qatar. So a decision by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt to cut diplomatic and transport ties on June 5 hit traffic hard.
Doha in early July, assuming the restrictions remain, will have less capacity than a year ago - a confronting figure for a region where every month sets year-on-year records, analysts on Aviation say.
There is no breakthrough in sight for the crisis in which the four Arab nations issued an ultimatum to Doha to close Al Jazeera television, curb ties with Iran, shut a Turkish base and pay reparations.
A defiant Doha has denied accusations of supporting terrorism and says the demands are unrealistic.
Hundreds of weekly flights to and from Qatar have already been cancelled because of the dispute. Hamad airport will lose fees paid by airlines and passengers, as well as terminal revenue from duty free shops and restaurants.
Air blocades by the four Arab states represented around 25 percent of flights by state-owned Qatar Airways, one of the region's big three carriers.
Elsewhere in the tourist sector, hotels, restaurants and other facilities have had to find new sources of services and goods, in some cases, at higher cost, due to the boycott.
A substantial drop in visitor arrivals is likely to force hotel and real estate developers to re-evaluate their strategies and priorities, potentially causing delays to some of the ongoing tourism projects.
Qatar’s World Cup organising committee said sanctions had not affected preparations for the tournament and alternative sources for construction materials had been secured.
Qatar has said 46,000 rooms will be available to host fans by the time of the World Cup. In March, it had 119 hotels with 23,347 rooms, according to the tourism authority.
Developing business and leisure tourism is part of Qatar's drive to develop its economy away from reliance on oil and gas revenue.
Doha aims to raise the tourism sector's contribution to GDP to 5.2 percent by 2030 from around 4.1 percent now, while raising the number of people employed by nearly 70 percent to 127,900.
Qatar's foreign minister has called the Saudi-led blockade of his country a clear aggression and an insult and urged its opponents to act with reason and through dialogue to solve problems in the Middle East.
Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told an audience in London that attempts to silence Qatar's independence would only exacerbate the serious problems experienced in the region and accused Saudi Arabia and its regional allies of demanding that we must surrender our sovereignty as the price for ending the siege.
His speech at the Chatham House think tank comes as the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain met in Cairo to consider its response to Qatar's refusal to give in to 13 demands, including ending alleged support for terrorists and shutting down media organisations.
Qatar's foreign minister said that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were the main drivers of a campaign to isolate it, but added that Qatar was unlikely to be thrown out of the Gulf-Cooperation Council (GCC) regional group.
We believe that this entire campaign is merely driven by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and these are the countries that we need to engage to find out what are the real problems and what are the real grievances, he said.
Bin Abdulrahman also used the London event to call for dialogue and to openly welcome any serious effort to solve the crisis with its Arab neighbours through dialogue not blockade.
He said: Qatar continues to call for dialogue. We welcome any serious efforts to resolve our differences with our neighbours, he said, adding: We don't accept intervention in our own affairs.
But he said Qatar would not take the first step, and declined to disclose the details of a response that Qatar has given to the Arab states' demands. They should not expect from me a first step, I should expect from them a first step for engagement, he said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Saudi foreign ministry said it had received Qatar's response to their demands - which include Doha ending support for the Muslim Brotherhood and closing broadcaster Al Jazeera - and would respond at the right time.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have not said what steps they could take next, but there are fears of a wider embargo that would hurt the Qatari economy, with ratings agency Moody's announcing it was changing Qatar's outlook to negative over the crisis.
A group of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia has severed air, sea and ground links with Qatar, cutting off vital routes for imports including food.
Qatar Fgn Minister tells Chatham House audience '12000 families affected by Arab blockade/siege' on Qatar. pic.twitter.com/QhYVNlNAeP
They also ordered Qatari citizens to leave their territories and took various steps against Qatari firms and financial institutions.
The Qatari foreign minister told the London event that the underlying cause of the conflict was Qatar's different views on wider issues in the Middle East amid concerns over extremism. Why is Qatar's independence a threat to blockading countries? Because we have different views,he said.
The foreign minister said the crux of the issue was differences in approach from the Saudi bloc and Qatar. He said: Here is the crux: we have seen how young people left without hope turn to violence. We have watched as the world blames Islam. As the emir has said, the cause is not Islam. It is hopelessness. There are serious problems in the Middle East. Silencing Qatar will not stop them.
The crisis has raised concerns of growing instability in the region, home to some of the world's largest energy exporters and key Western allies who host US and UK military bases.
Energy-rich Qatar has been defiant throughout the crisis, insisting it can weather action taken against it.
However, the Qatari minister suggested he saw little hope of a rapid reconciliation and that his country was preparing for a more protracted rift.
What we've done in the last few weeks is develop different alternative ways to ensure the supply chain for the country not to be cut off.
He looked ahead to the football world cup that Qatar does not host until 2022
Even if the blockade is lifted, we have to rely on ourselves and ensure we deliver a World Cup that is attractive to the world, he said.
Responding to the accusation that it was now too close to regional rival Iran, he said Doha had to live alongside Tehran since the two states shared a gas field.
In a question and answer session at the Chatham House event the Qatari foreign minister denied Saudi and UAE claims that the country had paid ransom money to a Shia group to free kidnapped hunters in Iraq.
Bin Abdulrahman said the payment was made to the Iraqi government, and not Iran-backed militants.
Qatar's sovereign wealth fund has transferred over $30 billion worth of its domestic equity holdings to the finance ministry and may sell other assets as part of a restructuring drive, people familiar with the matter said.
Stakes in 18 companies were transferred earlier this year, before Qatar's diplomatic rift with other Gulf states.
The stakes include major holdings in some of the country's top firms such as Qatar National Bank, telecommunications operator Ooredoo and Qatar Electricity & Water Co.
The Qatar Investment Authority, one of the world's largest sovereign funds, moved the holdings as part of efforts by the entire government to become more efficient and generate higher returns, the sources said.
The assets were transferred so that the Ministry of Finance could oversee these holdings in a more active manner, one of the sources said.
He added, Under the rule of Sheikh Tamim, Qatar is moving into an era of greater government scrutiny and oversight of funds. The finance ministry has a hands-on approach to public investments.
A second source said an internal restructuring of the QIA had started earlier this year, aiming to ensure the fund focused on its strengths, particularly international investing.
The QIA declined to comment.
The QIA, which rarely discusses its operations publicly, is believed to have over $300 billion of assets around the world.
The holdings transferred to the finance ministry include stakes across the country's banking industry: Islamic lender Masraf al Rayan, Ahli Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, Qatar International Islamic Bank, Doha Bank, Commercial Bank of Qatar and Al Khalij Commercial Bank.
They also include industrial, trading and transport firms: Qatar National Cement, Al Meera Consumer Goods , Qatar Gas Transport, Gulf International Services, Mannai Corp, Mayaza Qatar Real Estate, Qatar Industrial Manufacturing Co and Qatar Oman Investment Co.
The sources did not specify exactly how holdings in these companies would be managed more actively.
They bring to the finance ministry annual dividend revenue estimated at over 3 billion riyals ($824 million) this year.
It has not been decided yet how the revenue from the company dividends will be used.
They could form an additional revenue stream for the government, or the finance ministry holdings could be prepared for privatisations or strategic sales, the first source said.
The restructuring of the QIA was decided months before Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain cut diplomatic and transport ties with Doha this month, accusing it of backing terrorism, a charge which Qatar strongly denies.
The changes at the QIA are part of a country-wide consolidation drive which includes planned mergers of state-owned liquefied natural gas producers Qatargas and RasGas, and Qatar Petrochemical Co with Qatar Vinyl Co.
The second source said assets which the QIA might sell included Hassad Food, the country's top investor in the international food and agri-business sectors.
It was established in 2008 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the QIA. No decision has been made, the source stressed.
Monday, 3 July 2017
QATAR: After 10 Days Ultimatum, Qatar Given Another 48 Hours To Accept Demands By Arab Countries
Foreign ministers of nations boycotting Qatar will meet in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss their next steps.
Saudi Arabia and three allies boycotting Qatar have agreed to a request by Kuwait to extend by 48 hours Sunday's deadline for Doha to comply with a set of demands, according to a joint statement on Saudi state news agency SPA.
Kuwait had received a response by Qatar to a list of 13 demands presented to it by a Saudi-led bloc of Arab countries, Kuwait's state news agency KUNA said on Monday.
Without stating whether Qatar had rejected the ultimatum as was widely expected, Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah asked Saudi Arabia and three other countries that have boycotted Qatar to grant it a 48-hour extension.
Kuwait is mediating in the crisis.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed sanctions on it on June 5, accusing it of supporting "terrorism". The allegation is rejected by Qatar.
After more than two weeks, the four countries gave Qatar a 10-day ultimatum, which expired on Sunday night, to comply with a 13-point demand list in exchange for the end of the anti-Qatar measures.
There was no other information about Qatar's official response, but the Qatari foreign minister has already said that Qatar would not meet the demands, saying the list was meant to be rejected.
Speaking on Saturday, the foreign minister said Qatar offered instead a proper condition for a dialogue to resolve the Gulf crisis.
Everyone is aware that these demands are meant to infringe the sovereignty of the state of Qatar, shut the freedom of speech and impose auditing and probation mechanism for Qatar, he said during a visit to Rome.
We believe that the world is not governed by ultimatums, we believe that the world is governed by the international law, it is governed by an order that does not allow large countries to bully small countries.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have insisted the demands were non-negotiable.
The foreign ministers of the four countries will meet on Wednesday in Egypt's capital, Cairo, to discuss their next steps, according to a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry.
The UAE ambassador to Russia, Omar Ghobash, has previously said that Qatar could face fresh sanctions if it does not comply with the demands.
The demands submitted by the Arab neighbours included that Qatar shut down the Al Jazeera network, close a Turkish military base and scale down ties with Iran.
In the list, the four Arab countries also demand that Qatar sever all alleged ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and other groups, including Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and ISIS, and pay an unspecified sum in compensation for what they claimed to be loss of life and other financial losses caused by Qatar's policies.
A US state department official said on Sunday that Washington encourages all parties to exercise restraint to allow for productive diplomatic discussions. We are not going to get ahead of those discussions. We fully support Kuwaiti mediation.
Saudi Arabia has reiterated that its demands to Qatar to end the standoff in the Gulf were non-negotiable.
Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi foreign minister, said on Twitter on Saturday that demands on Qatar to stop funding terrorism are non-negotiable.
Restrictions on Qatar show zero tolerance for terrorism, Jubeir said, claiming that Qatar had failed to keep previous pledges of stopping funding terrorism and interfering in other countries' affairs. Qatar denies all allegations.
Jubeir made a similar statement last week in Washington, DC, when asked by reporters if the 13 point list of demands that are widely denounced as unrealistic was non-negotiable.
We made our point, we took our steps and it's up to the Qataris to amend their behaviour and once they do, things will be worked out, but if they don't they will remain isolated, he said.
The demands issued with a 10-day deadline last week include downgrading ties with Iran, shutting down Al Jazeera Media Network and Turkish military base in Doha.
The exact time of the deadline was not discussed but it is expected to become void at the end of the ten day ultimatum.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed sanctions on the country on June 5, accusing it of supporting terrorism.
The four Arab countries have not provided any evidence for their claim.
On Friday, Qatar's Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani asked members of UN's Security Council to urge a Saudi-led bloc of states to lift their blockade on the Gulf country.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries that have cut ties to Qatar have reportedly issued a list of demands to end a major Gulf crisis, insisting that Qatar shut down the Al Jazeera network, close a Turkish military base and scale down ties with Iran.
In the 13-point list, the countries also demand that Qatar sever all alleged ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and with other groups, including Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain cut ties to Qatar this month over allegations that the country funds terrorism,an accusation that Qatar denies.
According to the list, Qatar must refuse to naturalise citizens from the four countries and revoke Qatari citizenship for existing nationals where such citizenship violates those countries' laws.
Earlier this week, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson insisted that Qatar's neighbours provide a list of demands that was reasonable and actionable.
About Iran,Qatar must shut down diplomatic posts in Iran, expel any members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, and only conduct trade and commerce with Iran that complies with US sanctions.
On Al Jazeera state that Qatar must also shut down all affiliates and other news outlets that Qatar funds, including Arabi21, Rassd, Al Araby Al Jadeed and Middle East Eye.
If Qatar agrees to comply, the list asserts that it will be audited once a month for the first year, and then once per quarter in the second year after it takes effect.
For the following 10 years, Qatar would be monitored annually for compliance.
The document does not specify what the countries will do if Qatar refuses to comply.
Demands imposed on Qatar
- Scale down diplomatic ties with Iran and close the Iranian diplomatic missions in Qatar, expel members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and cut off military and intelligence cooperation with Iran. Trade and commerce with Iran must comply with US and international sanctions in a manner that does not jeopardise the security of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
- Immediately shut down the Turkish military base, which is currently under construction, and halt military cooperation with Turkey inside of Qatar.
- Sever ties to all terrorist, sectarian and ideological organisations, specifically the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIL, al-Qaeda, Fateh al-Sham formerly known as the Nusra Front and Lebanon's Hezbollah. Formally declare these entities as terror groups as per the list announced by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE and Egypt, and concur with all future updates of this list.
- Stop all means of funding for individuals, groups or organisations that have been designated as terrorists by Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, US and other countries.
- Hand over terrorist figures, fugitives and wanted individuals from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain to their countries of origin. Freeze their assets, and provide any desired information about their residency, movements and finances.
- Shut down Al Jazeera and its affiliate stations.
- End interference in sovereign countries' internal affairs. Stop granting citizenship to wanted nationals from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain. Revoke Qatari citizenship for nationals where such citizenship violates those countries' laws.
- Pay reparations and compensation for loss of life and other financial losses caused by Qatar's policies in recent years. The sum will be determined in coordination with Qatar.
- Align Qatar's military, political, social and economic policies with the other Gulf and Arab countries, as well as on economic matters, as per the 2014 agreement reached with Saudi Arabia.
- Cease contact with the political opposition in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain. Hand over files detailing Qatar’s prior contact with and support for opposition groups, and submit details of their personal information and the support Qatar has provided them.
- Shut down all news outlets funded directly and indirectly by Qatar, including Arabi21, Rassd, Al Araby Al Jadeed, Mekameleen and Middle East Eye, etc.
- Agree to all the demands within 10 days of list being submitted to Qatar, or the list will become invalid.
- Consent to monthly compliance audits in the first year after agreeing to the demands, followed by quarterly audits in the second year, and annual audits in the following 10 years.
Fikri Isik, Turkey's defence minister, said his country had no plans to review its military base in Qatar and that any demand for its closure would represent interference in the country's relations with the Gulf state.
Isik said that he had not yet seen a demand for the base to be shut.
The base in Qatar is both a Turkish base and one that will preserve the security of Qatar and the region, Isik said.
Re-evaluating the base agreement with Qatar is not on our agenda.
Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra said the list will be rejected by Qatar.
Qatar has said it will only look into the demands once the sanctions are lifted, he said, adding that Qatar had already said that closing Al Jazeera was off the table.
It is a matter of national sovereignty. Anything that is presented to the Qataris which it considers to be interference in its internal affairs is going to be dismissed, Ahelbarra said.
Just yesterday the general sentiment we had was that perhaps the international community and GCC will turn toward restoring ties. But at this particular moment, I believe that there will be further escalation, mounting tension because of these demands.
To ask for compensation, you have to have the Qatari government say;Sorry, I've made mistakes, and look into every single instance where Qataris made mistakes.
This is unprecedented in the Arab world. What if the Qataris say the Saudis have to pay compensation for every single civilian killed or innocent life taken all over the world. This is really surreal, Ahelbarra added.
Tourism Observer
www.tourismobserver.com
Saudi Arabia and three allies boycotting Qatar have agreed to a request by Kuwait to extend by 48 hours Sunday's deadline for Doha to comply with a set of demands, according to a joint statement on Saudi state news agency SPA.
Kuwait had received a response by Qatar to a list of 13 demands presented to it by a Saudi-led bloc of Arab countries, Kuwait's state news agency KUNA said on Monday.
Without stating whether Qatar had rejected the ultimatum as was widely expected, Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah asked Saudi Arabia and three other countries that have boycotted Qatar to grant it a 48-hour extension.
Kuwait is mediating in the crisis.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed sanctions on it on June 5, accusing it of supporting "terrorism". The allegation is rejected by Qatar.
After more than two weeks, the four countries gave Qatar a 10-day ultimatum, which expired on Sunday night, to comply with a 13-point demand list in exchange for the end of the anti-Qatar measures.
There was no other information about Qatar's official response, but the Qatari foreign minister has already said that Qatar would not meet the demands, saying the list was meant to be rejected.
Speaking on Saturday, the foreign minister said Qatar offered instead a proper condition for a dialogue to resolve the Gulf crisis.
Everyone is aware that these demands are meant to infringe the sovereignty of the state of Qatar, shut the freedom of speech and impose auditing and probation mechanism for Qatar, he said during a visit to Rome.
We believe that the world is not governed by ultimatums, we believe that the world is governed by the international law, it is governed by an order that does not allow large countries to bully small countries.
Saudi Arabia and its allies have insisted the demands were non-negotiable.
The foreign ministers of the four countries will meet on Wednesday in Egypt's capital, Cairo, to discuss their next steps, according to a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry.
The UAE ambassador to Russia, Omar Ghobash, has previously said that Qatar could face fresh sanctions if it does not comply with the demands.
The demands submitted by the Arab neighbours included that Qatar shut down the Al Jazeera network, close a Turkish military base and scale down ties with Iran.
In the list, the four Arab countries also demand that Qatar sever all alleged ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and other groups, including Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and ISIS, and pay an unspecified sum in compensation for what they claimed to be loss of life and other financial losses caused by Qatar's policies.
A US state department official said on Sunday that Washington encourages all parties to exercise restraint to allow for productive diplomatic discussions. We are not going to get ahead of those discussions. We fully support Kuwaiti mediation.
Saudi Arabia has reiterated that its demands to Qatar to end the standoff in the Gulf were non-negotiable.
Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi foreign minister, said on Twitter on Saturday that demands on Qatar to stop funding terrorism are non-negotiable.
Restrictions on Qatar show zero tolerance for terrorism, Jubeir said, claiming that Qatar had failed to keep previous pledges of stopping funding terrorism and interfering in other countries' affairs. Qatar denies all allegations.
Jubeir made a similar statement last week in Washington, DC, when asked by reporters if the 13 point list of demands that are widely denounced as unrealistic was non-negotiable.
We made our point, we took our steps and it's up to the Qataris to amend their behaviour and once they do, things will be worked out, but if they don't they will remain isolated, he said.
The demands issued with a 10-day deadline last week include downgrading ties with Iran, shutting down Al Jazeera Media Network and Turkish military base in Doha.
The exact time of the deadline was not discussed but it is expected to become void at the end of the ten day ultimatum.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed sanctions on the country on June 5, accusing it of supporting terrorism.
The four Arab countries have not provided any evidence for their claim.
On Friday, Qatar's Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani asked members of UN's Security Council to urge a Saudi-led bloc of states to lift their blockade on the Gulf country.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries that have cut ties to Qatar have reportedly issued a list of demands to end a major Gulf crisis, insisting that Qatar shut down the Al Jazeera network, close a Turkish military base and scale down ties with Iran.
In the 13-point list, the countries also demand that Qatar sever all alleged ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and with other groups, including Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain cut ties to Qatar this month over allegations that the country funds terrorism,an accusation that Qatar denies.
According to the list, Qatar must refuse to naturalise citizens from the four countries and revoke Qatari citizenship for existing nationals where such citizenship violates those countries' laws.
Earlier this week, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson insisted that Qatar's neighbours provide a list of demands that was reasonable and actionable.
About Iran,Qatar must shut down diplomatic posts in Iran, expel any members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, and only conduct trade and commerce with Iran that complies with US sanctions.
On Al Jazeera state that Qatar must also shut down all affiliates and other news outlets that Qatar funds, including Arabi21, Rassd, Al Araby Al Jadeed and Middle East Eye.
If Qatar agrees to comply, the list asserts that it will be audited once a month for the first year, and then once per quarter in the second year after it takes effect.
For the following 10 years, Qatar would be monitored annually for compliance.
The document does not specify what the countries will do if Qatar refuses to comply.
Demands imposed on Qatar
- Scale down diplomatic ties with Iran and close the Iranian diplomatic missions in Qatar, expel members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard and cut off military and intelligence cooperation with Iran. Trade and commerce with Iran must comply with US and international sanctions in a manner that does not jeopardise the security of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
- Immediately shut down the Turkish military base, which is currently under construction, and halt military cooperation with Turkey inside of Qatar.
- Sever ties to all terrorist, sectarian and ideological organisations, specifically the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIL, al-Qaeda, Fateh al-Sham formerly known as the Nusra Front and Lebanon's Hezbollah. Formally declare these entities as terror groups as per the list announced by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE and Egypt, and concur with all future updates of this list.
- Stop all means of funding for individuals, groups or organisations that have been designated as terrorists by Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, US and other countries.
- Hand over terrorist figures, fugitives and wanted individuals from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain to their countries of origin. Freeze their assets, and provide any desired information about their residency, movements and finances.
- Shut down Al Jazeera and its affiliate stations.
- End interference in sovereign countries' internal affairs. Stop granting citizenship to wanted nationals from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain. Revoke Qatari citizenship for nationals where such citizenship violates those countries' laws.
- Pay reparations and compensation for loss of life and other financial losses caused by Qatar's policies in recent years. The sum will be determined in coordination with Qatar.
- Align Qatar's military, political, social and economic policies with the other Gulf and Arab countries, as well as on economic matters, as per the 2014 agreement reached with Saudi Arabia.
- Cease contact with the political opposition in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain. Hand over files detailing Qatar’s prior contact with and support for opposition groups, and submit details of their personal information and the support Qatar has provided them.
- Shut down all news outlets funded directly and indirectly by Qatar, including Arabi21, Rassd, Al Araby Al Jadeed, Mekameleen and Middle East Eye, etc.
- Agree to all the demands within 10 days of list being submitted to Qatar, or the list will become invalid.
- Consent to monthly compliance audits in the first year after agreeing to the demands, followed by quarterly audits in the second year, and annual audits in the following 10 years.
Fikri Isik, Turkey's defence minister, said his country had no plans to review its military base in Qatar and that any demand for its closure would represent interference in the country's relations with the Gulf state.
Isik said that he had not yet seen a demand for the base to be shut.
The base in Qatar is both a Turkish base and one that will preserve the security of Qatar and the region, Isik said.
Re-evaluating the base agreement with Qatar is not on our agenda.
Al Jazeera's Hashem Ahelbarra said the list will be rejected by Qatar.
Qatar has said it will only look into the demands once the sanctions are lifted, he said, adding that Qatar had already said that closing Al Jazeera was off the table.
It is a matter of national sovereignty. Anything that is presented to the Qataris which it considers to be interference in its internal affairs is going to be dismissed, Ahelbarra said.
Just yesterday the general sentiment we had was that perhaps the international community and GCC will turn toward restoring ties. But at this particular moment, I believe that there will be further escalation, mounting tension because of these demands.
To ask for compensation, you have to have the Qatari government say;Sorry, I've made mistakes, and look into every single instance where Qataris made mistakes.
This is unprecedented in the Arab world. What if the Qataris say the Saudis have to pay compensation for every single civilian killed or innocent life taken all over the world. This is really surreal, Ahelbarra added.
Tourism Observer
www.tourismobserver.com
Wednesday, 28 June 2017
QATAR: Forgive Qatar, Do Not Shut Al Jazeera, It Is Simply The Best
Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries that have cut ties to Qatar issued a steep list of demands to end the crisis, insisting that Doha curb diplomatic ties with Iran and sever all ties terrorist organisations, specifically the Muslim Brotherhood.
In a 13-point list presented to the Qataris by Kuwait, which is helping mediate the crisis, the countries also demand an end to Turkey’s military presence in Qatar and for it to close Al Jazeera and its affiliate stations.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain broke ties with Qatar this month over allegations Doha funds terrorism,an accusation that US president Donald Trump has echoed. Those countries have now given Qatar 10 days to comply with all of the demands, which include paying an unspecified sum in compensation.
Qatari officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But the list included conditions that Doha had already insisted would never be met, including shutting down Al Jazeera.
Qatar’s government has said it will not negotiate until Arab nations lift their restrictions.
Only a day earlier, US secretary of state Rex Tillerson had warned the demands must be "reasonable and actionable."
The US issued that litmus test amid frustration at how long it was taking Saudi Arabia and others to formalise a list of demands, complicating US efforts to bring about a resolution to the worst Gulf diplomatic crisis in years.
According to the list, Qatar must refuse to naturalize citizens from the four countries and expel those currently in Qatar, in what the countries describe as an effort to keep Qatar from meddling in their internal affairs.
They are also demanding that Qatar hand over all individuals who are wanted by those four countries for terrorism; stop funding any extremist entities that are designated as terrorist groups by the US; and provide detailed information about opposition figures that Qatar has funded, ostensibly in Saudi Arabia and the other nations.
Qatar vehemently denies funding or supporting extremism. But the country acknowledges that it allows members of some extremist groups such as Hamas to reside in Qatar, arguing that fostering dialogue with those groups is key to resolving global conflicts.
Qatar’s neighbours have also accused it of backing Al Qaeda and ISIL’s ideology throughout the Middle East.
Those umbrella groups also appear on the list of entities whose ties with Qatar must be extinguished, along with Lebanon’s Hizbollah and the Al Qaeda branch in Syria.
More broadly, the list demands that Qatar align itself politically, economically and otherwise with the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The Iran provisions in the document say Qatar must shut down diplomatic posts in Iran, kick out any members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard in Qatar, and only conduct trade and commerce with Iran that complies with US sanctions.
Under the 2015 nuclear deal, nuclear-related sanctions on Iran were eased but other sanctions remain in place.
Cutting ties to Iran would prove incredibly difficult.
Qatar shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Iran which supplies the small nation that will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup its wealth.
In a 13-point list presented to the Qataris by Kuwait, which is helping mediate the crisis, the countries also demand an end to Turkey’s military presence in Qatar and for it to close Al Jazeera and its affiliate stations.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain broke ties with Qatar this month over allegations Doha funds terrorism,an accusation that US president Donald Trump has echoed. Those countries have now given Qatar 10 days to comply with all of the demands, which include paying an unspecified sum in compensation.
Qatari officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But the list included conditions that Doha had already insisted would never be met, including shutting down Al Jazeera.
Qatar’s government has said it will not negotiate until Arab nations lift their restrictions.
Only a day earlier, US secretary of state Rex Tillerson had warned the demands must be "reasonable and actionable."
The US issued that litmus test amid frustration at how long it was taking Saudi Arabia and others to formalise a list of demands, complicating US efforts to bring about a resolution to the worst Gulf diplomatic crisis in years.
According to the list, Qatar must refuse to naturalize citizens from the four countries and expel those currently in Qatar, in what the countries describe as an effort to keep Qatar from meddling in their internal affairs.
They are also demanding that Qatar hand over all individuals who are wanted by those four countries for terrorism; stop funding any extremist entities that are designated as terrorist groups by the US; and provide detailed information about opposition figures that Qatar has funded, ostensibly in Saudi Arabia and the other nations.
Qatar vehemently denies funding or supporting extremism. But the country acknowledges that it allows members of some extremist groups such as Hamas to reside in Qatar, arguing that fostering dialogue with those groups is key to resolving global conflicts.
Qatar’s neighbours have also accused it of backing Al Qaeda and ISIL’s ideology throughout the Middle East.
Those umbrella groups also appear on the list of entities whose ties with Qatar must be extinguished, along with Lebanon’s Hizbollah and the Al Qaeda branch in Syria.
More broadly, the list demands that Qatar align itself politically, economically and otherwise with the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The Iran provisions in the document say Qatar must shut down diplomatic posts in Iran, kick out any members of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard in Qatar, and only conduct trade and commerce with Iran that complies with US sanctions.
Under the 2015 nuclear deal, nuclear-related sanctions on Iran were eased but other sanctions remain in place.
Cutting ties to Iran would prove incredibly difficult.
Qatar shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Iran which supplies the small nation that will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup its wealth.
Tuesday, 27 June 2017
QATAR: Qatar Tourism Authority Requests Hotels To Standby Tourists Affected By Gulf Crisis
Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has urged hotels in the country to “extend a helping hand” to tourists and visitors irrespective of their origin or nationality.
The circular sent to hotel establishments yesterday aims to provide domestic and overseas visitors to Qatar “the best of our nation’s hospitality regardless of background.”
In pursuit of excellence and as we go through the current exceptional circumstances, we are certain that you will continue to adhere to professional standards of conduct when dealing with tourists and visitors, QTA said.
Such kind gesture and assistance in accordance with the ‘Global Code of Ethics for Tourism’ by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation will ensure that all visitors’ rights are respected and protected, QTA has reminded.
In the same circular, QTA also requested hotels to provide support to guests who need to change or cancel their reservations due to the ongoing situation.
QTA expressed confidence that hotels will continue to fulfil their role as ambassadors to Qatar and the traditional values of hospitality that our people are renowned for.
QTA also thanked hotels for their efforts on supporting the tourism sector, which has achieved international industry recognition for its authentic hospitality and impeccable service.
Article 1 of the Code cites tourism’s contribution to mutual understanding and respect between peoples and societies.
The understanding and promotion of the ethical values common to humanity, with an attitude of tolerance and respect for the diversity of religious, philosophical and moral beliefs, are both the foundation and the consequence of responsible tourism, the provision said.
Stakeholders in tourism development and tourists themselves should observe the social and cultural traditions and practices of all peoples, including those of the minorities and indigenous peoples and to recognise their worth, it added.
The host communities, on the one hand, and local professionals, on the other, should acquaint themselves with and respect the tourists who visit them and find out about their lifestyles, tastes and expectations; the education and training imparted to professionals contribute to a hospitable welcome, the provision continued.
The Code also stresses the role of tourism in attaining sustainable development, especially in safeguarding the environment.
It also cites tourists’ rights in going to various places of the host country without being subject to excessive formalities or discrimination.
The circular sent to hotel establishments yesterday aims to provide domestic and overseas visitors to Qatar “the best of our nation’s hospitality regardless of background.”
In pursuit of excellence and as we go through the current exceptional circumstances, we are certain that you will continue to adhere to professional standards of conduct when dealing with tourists and visitors, QTA said.
Such kind gesture and assistance in accordance with the ‘Global Code of Ethics for Tourism’ by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation will ensure that all visitors’ rights are respected and protected, QTA has reminded.
In the same circular, QTA also requested hotels to provide support to guests who need to change or cancel their reservations due to the ongoing situation.
QTA expressed confidence that hotels will continue to fulfil their role as ambassadors to Qatar and the traditional values of hospitality that our people are renowned for.
QTA also thanked hotels for their efforts on supporting the tourism sector, which has achieved international industry recognition for its authentic hospitality and impeccable service.
Article 1 of the Code cites tourism’s contribution to mutual understanding and respect between peoples and societies.
The understanding and promotion of the ethical values common to humanity, with an attitude of tolerance and respect for the diversity of religious, philosophical and moral beliefs, are both the foundation and the consequence of responsible tourism, the provision said.
Stakeholders in tourism development and tourists themselves should observe the social and cultural traditions and practices of all peoples, including those of the minorities and indigenous peoples and to recognise their worth, it added.
The host communities, on the one hand, and local professionals, on the other, should acquaint themselves with and respect the tourists who visit them and find out about their lifestyles, tastes and expectations; the education and training imparted to professionals contribute to a hospitable welcome, the provision continued.
The Code also stresses the role of tourism in attaining sustainable development, especially in safeguarding the environment.
It also cites tourists’ rights in going to various places of the host country without being subject to excessive formalities or discrimination.
Friday, 23 June 2017
QATAR: Eid Al-Fitr Holiday To Begin On June 25th
The Eid Al-Fitr holiday will begin on Sunday (June 25), which means tomorrow will be the last working day for public sector employees before the break, the Emiri Diwan has announced.
Ministries, government departments and other public entities will be closed for 11 days including weekends, in line with previous years.
They will re-open on Tuesday, July 4.
The exact date of Eid has yet to be announced, pending the sighting of the new moon, but it is expected to begin on Sunday, June 25.
Eid Al Fitr is the festival that marks the end of Ramadan and is usually celebrated with a morning prayer, and family events in malls and public spaces around town later on in the day and evening.
Employees working for private companies typically get around three days’ holiday for this Eid.
However, with shops, cafes and restaurants open throughout the break, service sector staff may be expected to work.
The governor of Qatar Central Bank will set the holidays for those working in Qatar’s financial sector – including QCB staff, QCB-supervised financial institutions and employees of Qatar Financial Markets Authority.
What are you planing for the Eid holiday?
Ministries, government departments and other public entities will be closed for 11 days including weekends, in line with previous years.
They will re-open on Tuesday, July 4.
The exact date of Eid has yet to be announced, pending the sighting of the new moon, but it is expected to begin on Sunday, June 25.
Eid Al Fitr is the festival that marks the end of Ramadan and is usually celebrated with a morning prayer, and family events in malls and public spaces around town later on in the day and evening.
Employees working for private companies typically get around three days’ holiday for this Eid.
However, with shops, cafes and restaurants open throughout the break, service sector staff may be expected to work.
The governor of Qatar Central Bank will set the holidays for those working in Qatar’s financial sector – including QCB staff, QCB-supervised financial institutions and employees of Qatar Financial Markets Authority.
What are you planing for the Eid holiday?
Thursday, 22 June 2017
QATAR: Mondrian Doha Opening September 2017, US $240 Per Room
Mondrian Doha has confirmed it will have a soft opening in Q2 2017, marking its debut in the Middle East.
The 270-room property designed in collaboration with Marcel Wanders is set to feature eight restaurants and bars, and will have its grand opening in September 2017 after the Q2 soft launch, with room rates set to start from US $240.
Guests can choose from five room categories including penthouse suites, studio suites, one and two bedroom suites and a range of standard guestrooms.
Sam Nazarian, founder & CEO, sbe (which acquired Morgans Hotel Group) commented in a press statement: We are delighted to open our first hotel in the Middle East in Doha, Qatar which is one of the most dynamic cities in the region.
We’re additionally set to open two more hotel properties in Dubai in 2017 and 2018 and a number of restaurants.
I know that Mondrian Doha will be an incredible destination for international and local travellers alike. It will be also a fantastic destination for the locals to experience all our culinary venues.
The hotel will incorporate bespoke Marcel Wanders design features with influences from local patterns, ornate Arabic writing and historic souks.
Standout elements include giant columns with golden eggs, a ‘tree of life’ comprising flowers, falcon video art, giant shisha, patterned carpets, ornate stained glass and intricate mosaic tiling.
Structurally, the building of Mondrian Doha is shaped like a falcon, with many references to the national bird of Qatar also found inside; from paintings and portraits to falcon headpieces and ornaments.
There will also be a stained glass dome skylight on the 27th floor, along with a four-level high spiral staircase which leads guests up to a viewing platform.
The location of the hotel next to Lagoona Mall in the West Bay area also acts as a gateway to the new Lusail City development.
The eight restaurants and bars include a partership with Wolfgang Puck, bringing his concept Cut by Wolfgang Puck to Qatar for the first time.
Japanese Chef Masaharu Morimoto is set to introduce Morimoto Doha - the first eponymous Morimoto outpost to open in the Middle East. Moreover, the hotel will host a Magnolia Bakery located in the lobby, and a number of other concepts including a Qatari restaurant and a burger restaurant, cigar lounge and shisha terrace.
Mondrian Doha will also offer an ESPA spa, with over 2,000m2 sqm of space. Features include separate areas for men and women, 11 treatment rooms, a 'spa within the spa' and hammam facilities as well as specialised areas for disabled guests.
The property offers a grand and spacious wedding and multi-purpose ballroom with over 2,000m2, that can hold up to 1,500 guests.
The ballroom has ornate plaster ceiling domes with crystal chandeliers, as well as a hidden VIP Bridal suite with 15 metre high columns, and a grand staircase entrance.
Mondrian Doha also has a standalone meeting floor with meeting and conference facilities.
Mondrian Doha has confirmed that it will have additional hotel facilities including an entertainment floor complete with a nightclub, an indoor pool and skybar, plus a flower and retail store.
The 270-room property designed in collaboration with Marcel Wanders is set to feature eight restaurants and bars, and will have its grand opening in September 2017 after the Q2 soft launch, with room rates set to start from US $240.
Guests can choose from five room categories including penthouse suites, studio suites, one and two bedroom suites and a range of standard guestrooms.
Sam Nazarian, founder & CEO, sbe (which acquired Morgans Hotel Group) commented in a press statement: We are delighted to open our first hotel in the Middle East in Doha, Qatar which is one of the most dynamic cities in the region.
We’re additionally set to open two more hotel properties in Dubai in 2017 and 2018 and a number of restaurants.
I know that Mondrian Doha will be an incredible destination for international and local travellers alike. It will be also a fantastic destination for the locals to experience all our culinary venues.
The hotel will incorporate bespoke Marcel Wanders design features with influences from local patterns, ornate Arabic writing and historic souks.
Standout elements include giant columns with golden eggs, a ‘tree of life’ comprising flowers, falcon video art, giant shisha, patterned carpets, ornate stained glass and intricate mosaic tiling.
Structurally, the building of Mondrian Doha is shaped like a falcon, with many references to the national bird of Qatar also found inside; from paintings and portraits to falcon headpieces and ornaments.
There will also be a stained glass dome skylight on the 27th floor, along with a four-level high spiral staircase which leads guests up to a viewing platform.
The location of the hotel next to Lagoona Mall in the West Bay area also acts as a gateway to the new Lusail City development.
The eight restaurants and bars include a partership with Wolfgang Puck, bringing his concept Cut by Wolfgang Puck to Qatar for the first time.
Japanese Chef Masaharu Morimoto is set to introduce Morimoto Doha - the first eponymous Morimoto outpost to open in the Middle East. Moreover, the hotel will host a Magnolia Bakery located in the lobby, and a number of other concepts including a Qatari restaurant and a burger restaurant, cigar lounge and shisha terrace.
Mondrian Doha will also offer an ESPA spa, with over 2,000m2 sqm of space. Features include separate areas for men and women, 11 treatment rooms, a 'spa within the spa' and hammam facilities as well as specialised areas for disabled guests.
The property offers a grand and spacious wedding and multi-purpose ballroom with over 2,000m2, that can hold up to 1,500 guests.
The ballroom has ornate plaster ceiling domes with crystal chandeliers, as well as a hidden VIP Bridal suite with 15 metre high columns, and a grand staircase entrance.
Mondrian Doha also has a standalone meeting floor with meeting and conference facilities.
Mondrian Doha has confirmed that it will have additional hotel facilities including an entertainment floor complete with a nightclub, an indoor pool and skybar, plus a flower and retail store.
Wednesday, 21 June 2017
QATAR: 12,000 Camels And Sheep New Victims Of Gulf Diplomatic Crisis.
Around 12,000 camels and sheep have become the latest victims of the Gulf diplomatic crisis, being forced to trek back to Qatar from Saudi Arabia, a newspaper reported Tuesday.
Qatar has so far provided temporary shelter, as well as water and fodder, to 7,000 camels and 5,000 sheep returning from the kingdom, Qatari newspaper The Peninsula said.
On June 5, Saudi Arabia and its allies cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar and gave its citizens a two-week deadline to leave the kingdom.
This has forced Qatari farmers with livestock in Saudi Arabia to move their animals back to the emirate, The Peninsula said.
Qatar is home to around 22,000 racing camels, but the animals are also farmed for meat and milk.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have accused Qatar of supporting extremism, charges Doha firmly denies.
Qatar has so far provided temporary shelter, as well as water and fodder, to 7,000 camels and 5,000 sheep returning from the kingdom, Qatari newspaper The Peninsula said.
On June 5, Saudi Arabia and its allies cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar and gave its citizens a two-week deadline to leave the kingdom.
This has forced Qatari farmers with livestock in Saudi Arabia to move their animals back to the emirate, The Peninsula said.
Qatar is home to around 22,000 racing camels, but the animals are also farmed for meat and milk.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have accused Qatar of supporting extremism, charges Doha firmly denies.
Tuesday, 20 June 2017
QATAR: Emirates And Etihad Gain From Gulf Airspace Shut On Qatar
Besieged by a lack of airspace after being shut out of neighbouring Gulf countries last week, Qatar Airways is having to take unsustainably long routes to continue on long-haul network commitments.
Flight radar graphics show its B777s enroute to Sao Paolo stopping in Athens because they can’t carry enough fuel to fly nearly 17 hours in a single trip; the airline now needs to bear Northwest, deep into Iran before crossing into Europe.
Challenging for the Doha-based airline will be the loss of nearly 52 Gulf flights every week, accounting for 30 percent of its revenue.
The airline derives 18 percent of its capacity from feeder markets in the UAE, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, before ferrying them to long-haul destinations throughout its network.
For an industry that celebrates when it manages a profit margin of 7 percent over costs, the weekly loss of contribution puts it at a big disadvantage compared to Emirates’ and Etihad’s gain as they look to recoup traffic from home markets looking for shorter long-haul flights which Qatar was expanding aggressively on.
Until March, Qatar Airways’ traffic to the US was growing at 45.6% compared to Emirates’ 15.4% and Etihad’s 6.6%.
The laptop ban derailed that growth.
Emirates–which reported an 84% loss in revenue this year–has yet to find routes for the 13 airlines it has pulled from US routes.
If we do not find homes for them, we’ll put them on the ground,CEO Clark had earlier said.
Etihad, beleaguered after souring investments in struggling European carriers, will also be grateful about retaining its crucial top-tier service advantage which Qatar Airways was bent on under cutting.
Among the airline’s more promising investments was its stake in Indian Airline Jet Airways–an airline that had been growing increasingly mortified at the prospect of Qatar Airways’ impending investment in the country following India’s relaxation of foreign direct investment airline rules.
Flight radar graphics show its B777s enroute to Sao Paolo stopping in Athens because they can’t carry enough fuel to fly nearly 17 hours in a single trip; the airline now needs to bear Northwest, deep into Iran before crossing into Europe.
Challenging for the Doha-based airline will be the loss of nearly 52 Gulf flights every week, accounting for 30 percent of its revenue.
The airline derives 18 percent of its capacity from feeder markets in the UAE, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, before ferrying them to long-haul destinations throughout its network.
For an industry that celebrates when it manages a profit margin of 7 percent over costs, the weekly loss of contribution puts it at a big disadvantage compared to Emirates’ and Etihad’s gain as they look to recoup traffic from home markets looking for shorter long-haul flights which Qatar was expanding aggressively on.
Until March, Qatar Airways’ traffic to the US was growing at 45.6% compared to Emirates’ 15.4% and Etihad’s 6.6%.
The laptop ban derailed that growth.
Emirates–which reported an 84% loss in revenue this year–has yet to find routes for the 13 airlines it has pulled from US routes.
If we do not find homes for them, we’ll put them on the ground,CEO Clark had earlier said.
Etihad, beleaguered after souring investments in struggling European carriers, will also be grateful about retaining its crucial top-tier service advantage which Qatar Airways was bent on under cutting.
Among the airline’s more promising investments was its stake in Indian Airline Jet Airways–an airline that had been growing increasingly mortified at the prospect of Qatar Airways’ impending investment in the country following India’s relaxation of foreign direct investment airline rules.
Tuesday, 6 June 2017
QATAR: Qatar Desparately Begs Kuwait To Mediate Gulf Crisis
Kuwait is trying to mediate a Gulf crisis in which Arab countries have cut diplomatic ties to Qatar and moved to isolate the energy-rich travel hub from the outside world, Qatar's foreign minister said early Tuesday.
The biggest diplomatic crisis in the Persian Gulf since the 1991 U.S.-led war against Iraq pits several nations against Qatar, which is home to some 10,000 American troops and a major U.S. military base.
Airlines suspended flights and residents nervous about the peninsula's lone land border closing cleaned out grocery store shelves.
In an interview with Doha-based satellite news network Al-Jazeera, Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Kuwait's ruler had asked Qatar's ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to hold off on giving a speech about the crisis late Monday night.
He received a call from the emir of Kuwait asking him to postpone it in order to give time to solve the crisis, Sheikh Mohammed said.
Still, the minister struck a defiant tone, rejecting those trying to impose their will on Qatar or intervene in its internal affairs.
Kuwaiti ruler Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah spoke with Qatar's emir Monday evening and urged him to give a chance to efforts that could ease tensions.
The call came after a senior Saudi royal arrived in Kuwait with a message from the Saudi king. An Omani diplomat traveled to Qatar on Monday.
Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates announced Monday they would cut diplomatic ties.
Yemen's internationally backed government, which has lost the capital and large portions of the war-torn country, also cut relations with Qatar, as did the Maldives and one of conflict-ridden Libya's competing governments.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab powers severed diplomatic ties Monday with Qatar and moved to isolate the energy-rich nation that is home to a major U.S. military base, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and backing Iran.
The move came just two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia and vowed to improve ties with both Riyadh and Cairo to combat terrorism and contain Iran. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the move was rooted in longstanding differences and urged the parties to resolve them.
Soccer's governing body FIFA said it remained in regular contact with Qatar, which will host the 2022 World Cup. It did not elaborate.
Saudi Arabia said it was cutting ties due to Qatar's embrace of various terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at destabilizing the region, including the Muslim Brotherhood, al-Qeida, the Islamic State group and militants supported by Iran in the kingdom's restive Eastern Province.
Egypt's Foreign Ministry accused Qatar of taking an antagonist approach toward Cairo and said all attempts to stop it from supporting terrorist groups failed.
Qatar long has denied funding extremists, though Western officials have accused it of allowing or even encouraging funding of Sunni extremists like al-Qeida's branch in Syria, once known as the Nusra Front.
The Gulf countries ordered their citizens out of Qatar and gave Qataris abroad 14 days to return home to their peninsular nation, whose only land border is with Saudi Arabia.
The countries also said they would eject Qatar's diplomats.
The nations also said they planned to cut air and sea traffic. Doha-based satellite news network Al-Jazeera reported trucks carrying food had begun lining up on the Saudi side of the border, apparently stranded.
The Qatar Stock Exchange fell more than 7 percent in trading Monday.
Qatar Airways, one of the region's major long-haul carriers, has suspended all flights to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain until further notice.
On its website, the carrier said the suspension of its flights would take effect Tuesday and customers are being offered a refund.
The route between Doha and Dubai is popular among business travelers and both are major transit hubs for travelers between Asia and Europe.
FlightRadar24, a popular airplane tracking website, said Qatar Airway flights already had started to be affected.
Many of Qatar Airways flights to southern Europe and Africa pass through Saudi Arabia, the site said.
Flights to Europe will most likely be rerouted through Iran and Turkey.
The biggest diplomatic crisis in the Persian Gulf since the 1991 U.S.-led war against Iraq pits several nations against Qatar, which is home to some 10,000 American troops and a major U.S. military base.
Airlines suspended flights and residents nervous about the peninsula's lone land border closing cleaned out grocery store shelves.
In an interview with Doha-based satellite news network Al-Jazeera, Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Kuwait's ruler had asked Qatar's ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, to hold off on giving a speech about the crisis late Monday night.
He received a call from the emir of Kuwait asking him to postpone it in order to give time to solve the crisis, Sheikh Mohammed said.
Still, the minister struck a defiant tone, rejecting those trying to impose their will on Qatar or intervene in its internal affairs.
Kuwaiti ruler Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah spoke with Qatar's emir Monday evening and urged him to give a chance to efforts that could ease tensions.
The call came after a senior Saudi royal arrived in Kuwait with a message from the Saudi king. An Omani diplomat traveled to Qatar on Monday.
Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates announced Monday they would cut diplomatic ties.
Yemen's internationally backed government, which has lost the capital and large portions of the war-torn country, also cut relations with Qatar, as did the Maldives and one of conflict-ridden Libya's competing governments.
Saudi Arabia and other Arab powers severed diplomatic ties Monday with Qatar and moved to isolate the energy-rich nation that is home to a major U.S. military base, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and backing Iran.
The move came just two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia and vowed to improve ties with both Riyadh and Cairo to combat terrorism and contain Iran. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the move was rooted in longstanding differences and urged the parties to resolve them.
Soccer's governing body FIFA said it remained in regular contact with Qatar, which will host the 2022 World Cup. It did not elaborate.
Saudi Arabia said it was cutting ties due to Qatar's embrace of various terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at destabilizing the region, including the Muslim Brotherhood, al-Qeida, the Islamic State group and militants supported by Iran in the kingdom's restive Eastern Province.
Egypt's Foreign Ministry accused Qatar of taking an antagonist approach toward Cairo and said all attempts to stop it from supporting terrorist groups failed.
Qatar long has denied funding extremists, though Western officials have accused it of allowing or even encouraging funding of Sunni extremists like al-Qeida's branch in Syria, once known as the Nusra Front.
The Gulf countries ordered their citizens out of Qatar and gave Qataris abroad 14 days to return home to their peninsular nation, whose only land border is with Saudi Arabia.
The countries also said they would eject Qatar's diplomats.
The nations also said they planned to cut air and sea traffic. Doha-based satellite news network Al-Jazeera reported trucks carrying food had begun lining up on the Saudi side of the border, apparently stranded.
The Qatar Stock Exchange fell more than 7 percent in trading Monday.
Qatar Airways, one of the region's major long-haul carriers, has suspended all flights to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain until further notice.
On its website, the carrier said the suspension of its flights would take effect Tuesday and customers are being offered a refund.
The route between Doha and Dubai is popular among business travelers and both are major transit hubs for travelers between Asia and Europe.
FlightRadar24, a popular airplane tracking website, said Qatar Airway flights already had started to be affected.
Many of Qatar Airways flights to southern Europe and Africa pass through Saudi Arabia, the site said.
Flights to Europe will most likely be rerouted through Iran and Turkey.
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