TRUMP BACKS MOVE TO ISOlATE QATAR
Trump, however, says Doha funding extremism
UNITED States intelligence officials believe Russian hackers planted a false news story that led Saudi Arabia and several allies to sever relations with Qatar, prompting a diplomatic crisis, CNN reported on Tuesday.
Federal Bureau of Investigations experts visited Qatar late last month to analyse an alleged cyber breach that saw the hackers place the fake story with Qatar’s state news agency, the US broadcaster said.
Saudi Arabia then cited the false item as part of its reason for instituting a diplomatic and economic blockade against Qatar, the report said.
Qatar ’s government said the May 23 news report attributed false remarks to the emirate’s ruler that appeared friendly to Iran and Israel, and questioned whether US President Donald Trump would last in office, according to CNN.
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman alThani told the broadcaster that the FBI has confirmed the hack and the planting of fake news.
“Whatever has been thrown as an accusation is all based on misinformation and we think that the entire crisis is being based on misinformation,” he told CNN.
“It was started based on fabricated news, being wedged and being inserted in our national news agency, which was hacked and proved by the FBI,” he added.
If accurate, the allegations would indicate Russian efforts to undermine US foreign policy.
However, President Donald Trump threw his weight behind efforts to isolate Qatar on Tuesday, backing Saudi Arabia and its allies after they cut ties with Doha over claims it supports extremism.
In a surprise move against a key US ally, Trump suggested Qatar — home to the largest American airbase in the Middle East — was funding extremism as he tacitly backed the diplomatic blockade of the emirate.
“So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off,” Trump tweeted, in reference to his trip to Riyadh last month.
“They said they would take a hard line on funding... extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!”
Trump’s broadside came as Kuwait’s ruler flew to Saudi Arabia in a bid to resolve the worst diplomatic crisis to hit the Arab world in years.
Saudi Arabia and allies including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain announced on Monday, they were severing diplomatic relations and closing air, sea and land links with Qatar.
They accused the tiny Gulf state of harbouring extremist groups and suggested Qatari support for the agenda of Saudi Arabia’s regional arch-rival Iran.
Speaking to the BBC, Abdulrahman Al-Thani gave the first response to Trump’s tweets, denying any Qatari funding “of terrorism”.
He said there was not any “evidence that the Qatar government is supporting radical Islamists”.
But another Arab nation, Jordan, on Tuesday announced that after studying the causes of the crisis with Qatar, it was downgrading its diplomatic representation in Doha, said Mohammed al-Momani, media affairs minister.
Amman has also withdrawn the licences for a bureau of Doha-based TV news channel AlJazeera.
Al-Momani said Jordan hoped that the Arab countries overcome this “regrettable stage” and resolve the crisis on solid ground, the news agency said.
The rift comes less than a month after Trump visited Saudi Arabia and called for Muslim nations to unite against extremism.
It was already having tangible effects, with dozens of flights cancelled, Qatari planes barred from regional airspace, and panic buying in Doha amid fears of food shortages.
Kuwait did not join fellow Gulf countries in taking measures against Doha, and its Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad AlSabah went to the Saudi city of Jeddah for talks to resolve the crisis with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Another voice of support for Qatar came from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who criticised the sanctions and vowed to maintain and develop ties with Doha. “Efforts to isolate Qatar... will not solve any problem,” said Erdogan, praising Doha’s “coolheadedness” and “constructive approach”.
Qatar has said it is open to talks, but Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Qatar must “change their policies” and stop supporting “extremist groups”.
French President Emmanuel Macron called for Gulf unity, saying he was ready to back “all initiatives to encourage calm”. AFP