Dubai: The UAE will lodge a complaint with the International Civil Aviation Organisation after Qatari jets intercepted two UAE passenger flights, its civil aviation chief said on Tuesday.
“Today we will file our complaint to the International Civil Aviation Organization about the two serious incidents, along with the evidence that we’ve gathered, and ask for the intervention of the council to stop Qatar from repeating the act,” Saif Al Suwaidi, head of the general civil aviation authority, told AFP.
On Monday Qatari fighter jets intercepted two passenger flights headed for Bahrain.
The UAE is also looking at re-routing flights to Bahrain to avoid Qatari airspace.
“We are now studying changing the route to another one which is very far from Qatar,” Al Suwaidi said.
“However that will take some time as we have to reach an agreement with Bahrain.”
Bahrain and the UAE have no diplomatic ties with Qatar.
In June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt broke diplomatic relations and most trade links with Qatar, accusing it of ties to Islamist extremists and Iran.
Saudi Arabia condemns interception
In Riyadh, an official source at the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned Monday's interception by Qatari fighter planes of two UAE civilian planes bound for Bahrain's capital, Manama, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
The agency said that, "The source considered that this action constitutes a threat to the safety of civil aviation and in violation of relevant international laws and conventions, taking into consideration that the statements of the General Authority of Civil Aviation of the UAE confirmed that the flights were "regular, scheduled, with well-known route and meet the approvals and internationally recognised necessary permits."
