Qatar blowup a ‘Russian op’

Planted fake news: minister

US investigators have reportedly determined that Russian hackers last month breached Qatar’s state news agency and planted a fake news report about the nation’s leader that set off a crisis among some of America’s closest Gulf allies.

Intelligence gathered by US security agencies showed that Russian hackers were behind a May 23 news report on Qatar News Agency that attributed false remarks to the nation’s ruler, CNN reported Tuesday.

The remarks were friendly to Iran and Israel while questioning whether President Trump would last in office.

Qatar’s foreign minister told the network that the FBI has confirmed the Russian hack and the planting of the fake news report.

Meanwhile, The White House sent conflicting messages about Qatar on Tuesday, with the Pentagon praising the nation for its “enduring commitment to regional security,” even as Presi- dent Trump lauded a decision by Arab powers to cut ties to Qatar.

Trump took credit for the decision, saying on Twitter the move followed his demand that Gulf countries stop funding terrorists.

“During my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar — look,” he tweeted.

American officials had said Monday that the US would try to calm the waters between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The Saudis joined Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen and the UAE in cutting ties to the country.

But Trump tweeted that his Middle East trip is “already paying off,” with leaders there taking a hard new line in accusing Qatar of funding extremists.

The Pentagon was unable to reconcile Trump’s support for Qatar’s isolation with its own praise for the country.