Dubai: The Qatari government’s reaction to the recalling of three Gulf states’ ambassadors from the country was short and simple, expressing disappointment and refusing to reciprocate. The country’s newspapers, however, compensated the next day by publishing bold headlines lashing out at the Gulf trio: Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Every major paper splashed their front pages with the story, largely echoing the government line that the decision was not based on intra-GCC disputes but an external issue: Egypt.
Qatar is the only Gulf state that has wholeheartedly supported the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and is believed to have extended that support beyond that country. The Gulf trio has welcomed the new military backed regime in Cairo that ousted the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohammad Mursi in July.
Qatar’s Al Raya ran a front-page editorial with the headline: “We don’t follow anyone ... This is Qatar”, over a picture of the emir, Shaikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The piece argued that Qatar would not be dictated by any state, alleging that “those who have lost their bets in Egypt” are trying to create conflict with Qatar. The paper continued that the ambassadors’ recall was a “hasty step based on flimsy grounds and vague allegations”.
Al Watan daily ran a full page opinion piece by its editor in chief Mohammad Hamad Al Marri, with the headline: “O Gentlemen, Qatar is a sovereign nation”. The subheading read: “States are not governorates ... that do not have the right to choose their own foreign policy,” hinting at the perceived attempt at hegemony by its neighbours.
“Cheap media has been spreading ‘stories’ created by those who are spiteful and published by those who have been paid,” the article said, adding that the Gulf’s security is Qatar’s “red line”.
“This decision is a historical service for those in our countries who incite against us and seek to cause us harm, and it threatens the stability of every Gulf nation — without exceptions.”
Al Sharq had a significantly more toned-down opinion piece on its front page by the editor in chief Jaber Al Harmi expressing his “surprise” at the decision, arguing that the GCC’s security was a priority for Qatar, and that it would do all it can to protect it. He said Qatar was “open for dialogue on all issues, and had nothing to hide”.
Unlike many other newspapers that ran editorials or opinion pieces on their front page, Al Arab ran with news, reporting the government’s position that the decision to recall ambassadors was based on issues external to the Gulf, in reference to Egypt. In a full page opinion piece inside, the editor in chief Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Rumaihi said Qatar’s policies were driven by principles, not interests.
