Terror blacklist ramps up pressure on Qatar

Dubai: Arab states rampued up pressure on Qatar on Friday by putting dozens of figures with links to the country on terrorism blacklists.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Bahrain added 59 people to terrorist blacklists, among them 18 Qataris, including Abdullah Bin Khalid Al Thani, a former interior minister and member of Qatar’s royal family.

“Publishing the list is a good opportunity for Qatar to reconsider its policy and change its direction away from escalation and arrogance,” UAE Minister of State and Foreign Affairs Anwar Mohammad Gargash, tweeted on Friday.

“The root cause of the crisis is Qatar’s support for terrorism and and its extremist agenda.”

Gargash added that diplomacy was needed to bring about a solution—“not by resorting to Iran and Turkey” but by addressing the root issues of concern voiced by GCC states numerous times.

Qatar has been chasing the mirage of position, influence and strength, but true leadership begins with correcting mistakes, he explained.

“Our policy is not one of escalation but of eradicating evil targeting our region,” he said.

Meanwhile, Qatar’s foreign minister Shaikh Mohammad Bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani said the list “reinforced baseless allegations that hold no foundation in fact”.

Many on the list are figures associated with the Muslim Brotherhood who have made Qatar a base, including Brotherhood spiritual leader Yousuf Al Qaradawi.

Others are prominent Islamist militants who have fought in Libya and Syria.

Qatar has angered its neighbours for years by supporting the Brotherhood, a decades-old movement that calls for rule based on Islamic principles.

Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have labeled the Brotherhood a terrorist movement.

It was voted into power in Egypt in 2012 but toppled a year later by the military.