Qatar denies allegations about regional ambitions

Doha: Qatar’s Prime Minister Shaikh Hamad Bin Jabr Al Thani has refuted charges that his country was looking for an outsized role in the Arab world by supporting the Muslim Brotherhood or Islamist leaders in countries going through transition.

Qatar inked deals with Tunisia and Egypt well before Islamists won in the legislative or presidential elections in those countries, he said at a press conference held here late on Tuesday evening.

Shaikh Hamad, also Qatar’s foreign minister, said that the reports claiming that Qatar wanted to lease the pyramids of Egypt for five years, or to purchase the Suez Canal, were ridiculous, baseless and lacked credibility.