Western countries, including the US, have pleaded with Israel to hold back from attacking the southern city, which is sheltering more than a million Palestinians
mena1 hour ago
The speech delivered by the Amir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, before the United Nations in New York has disappointed watchdogs and observers in the region.
In his speech, Sheikh Tamim pinpointed that Doha turned to Iran rather than its Arab neighbours, to discuss a solution to a crisis that his regime brought about when it supported and financed terrorism.
The Amir of Qatar called on countries in the region for "holding a dialogue with Iran, respect the sovereignty of countries, and not to interfere in their domestic affairs".
Observers described Sheikh Tamim's address as 'disappointing', after he affirmed that he would continue his relations with Iran, which is considered the major supporter of terrorism in the region, because Iran constantly intervene in the domestic affairs of its neighbours, and supports various terror groups.
Speaking to Sky News Arabia, Qatari opposition figure Ali Al Dahneem said the speech of Shaikh Tamim was "trivial and disappointing to the GCC peoples in general and the Qatari people in particular".
Al Dahneem said Sheikh Tamim spoke about terrorism as if Doha is a victim, not a major funder of terrorism.
He denounced Sheikh Tamim's speech when he described what he called the persistence of the Qatari people against what he described as 'blockade' by the four Arab boycotting countries.
He said that the Qatari people resent the internal situation in Qatar, which pushed expatriate labourers to move out of the country.
Columnist AbdulAziz Al Khamis, described Sheikh Tamim's address before the UN as 'contradictory and unconvincing'. He said Sheikh Tamim talked about the demands of the four boycotting countries saying they damage the interests of Qatar, while in fact the Qatari policy has never stopped intervening in the sovereignty of many courtiers.
Al Khamis said Sheikh Tamim tackled the destabilisation of Qatar and forgot to mention that he and his regime are the masters of destabilisation in the Arab world and other regions.
"The Qatari role in supporting terrorism has been publicly slammed by major powers such as the US, which was very clear in the speech given by President Donald Trump, not only by the four boycotting countries," Al Khamis added.
For his part, editor-in-chief of Al Ain news portal Ali Al Nuaimi said that Sheikh Tamim was supposed to send real messages to the world in general and his people in particular regarding a change in his current policies that back terrorism.
"Sheikh Tamim's address is continuity to the policy of dodging and misleading, which Doha has adopted for the past 20 years," Al Nuaimi pointed out.
reporters@khaleejtimes.com
Western countries, including the US, have pleaded with Israel to hold back from attacking the southern city, which is sheltering more than a million Palestinians
mena1 hour ago
The event follows on from the successful hosting of the Ultimate Golf Challenge in January this year
sports1 hour ago
The city is placed 11th globally; this was revealed at an international report launched recently in Singapore
uae2 hours ago
More than 300 staff would stop working for four days at terminals 2, 3, 4 and 5
world3 hours ago
Begging is a crime in the UAE punishable by a Dh5,000 fine and three-months imprisonment
uae3 hours ago
Set to be five times the size of DXB, Al Maktoum International will span 70 square-km
aviation4 hours ago