The Saudis, joined by Egypt, Bahrain and the UAE, have severed diplomatic ties with Qatar and cut off all land, sea and air links, seeking to isolate the tiny country, However, the two other member of the Gulf Co-operation Council, Kuwait and Oman have refused to go along, causing a split in the and threatening the stability in this very unstable region. Why?
Trump tweeted afterwards that " during my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar- Look" ( June 6). Of course the Saudis pointed elsewhere when they are the ones who have been spending billions (recently gave $1 billion to Bangladesh to build 560 mosques.. a country that has recently been seething with terrorism, where extremists have been attacking minorities, journalists and anyone seen as enemy of Islam, demanding Sharia and laws on blasphemy and whose PM has been cultivating them in the run up to elections, rejecting the principle of secularism that was one of the founding basis of its Constitution, drafted by her father Sheik Mujib) .. The Saudis have been spreading its very strict interpretation of Islam.. Wahabbism, through its schools/madrassahs and mosques in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Indonesia etc. and many wealthy Saudis have been accused of funding terrorists groups ( bin Ladin was Saudi and 15 of the 19 attackers of 9/11 were Saudis ).
Trump was conned and used by the Saudis to go after Qatar which has been developing a closer relation with Iran ( gas field exploration... Qatar is the world largest producer of liquefied natural gas), and Turkey ( air base). The Saudis, which has a stranglehold on its media, controlling all information, is angry with Qatar over Al Jazeera and wants it muzzled. Also it accuses Qatar of funding the Muslim Brotherhood, the most popular face of political Islam ( the Egyptian strongman al-Sisi is particularly afraid of this Sunni group ( after he met and was embraced and praised by Trump , al-Sisi, arrested a potential opponent for allegedly making an indecent hand gesture at a rally five months earlier and he has blocked access to the websites of Mada Masr, Egypt's leading liberal newspaper and websites of 20 other media outlets, including Al Jazeera and Huffpost Arabic ( Economist, June 10-16) and so is Bahrain( authorities killed 5 people and arrested 286 more in a raid on the home of a Shia cleric) , thus their support of the Saudis.
The autocrats, religious, military and political have read Trump as being sympathetic and supportive ( Duterte of the Philippines has gone on a rampage) and think that they can persecute "enemies" without hindrance from the USA. However there are other implications. By his words and actions, Trump has unleashed instability in the Middle East and in Europe . His support of the action against Qatar has unsettled the region ( the Americans have one of their largest military bases their, with over 15, 000 military personnel and tons of equipment . Was he aware of this?). He has also unsettled NATO and Europe, refusing to commit to Article 5, to come to the aid of member nation and by his public scolding of members. He has also shown that it can abandon its allies ( Qatar ) and this affect America's credibility.
Leadership is sorely lacking and even the 15,00 camels of Qatar have been deported.
Trump tweeted afterwards that " during my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar- Look" ( June 6). Of course the Saudis pointed elsewhere when they are the ones who have been spending billions (recently gave $1 billion to Bangladesh to build 560 mosques.. a country that has recently been seething with terrorism, where extremists have been attacking minorities, journalists and anyone seen as enemy of Islam, demanding Sharia and laws on blasphemy and whose PM has been cultivating them in the run up to elections, rejecting the principle of secularism that was one of the founding basis of its Constitution, drafted by her father Sheik Mujib) .. The Saudis have been spreading its very strict interpretation of Islam.. Wahabbism, through its schools/madrassahs and mosques in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Indonesia etc. and many wealthy Saudis have been accused of funding terrorists groups ( bin Ladin was Saudi and 15 of the 19 attackers of 9/11 were Saudis ).
Trump was conned and used by the Saudis to go after Qatar which has been developing a closer relation with Iran ( gas field exploration... Qatar is the world largest producer of liquefied natural gas), and Turkey ( air base). The Saudis, which has a stranglehold on its media, controlling all information, is angry with Qatar over Al Jazeera and wants it muzzled. Also it accuses Qatar of funding the Muslim Brotherhood, the most popular face of political Islam ( the Egyptian strongman al-Sisi is particularly afraid of this Sunni group ( after he met and was embraced and praised by Trump , al-Sisi, arrested a potential opponent for allegedly making an indecent hand gesture at a rally five months earlier and he has blocked access to the websites of Mada Masr, Egypt's leading liberal newspaper and websites of 20 other media outlets, including Al Jazeera and Huffpost Arabic ( Economist, June 10-16) and so is Bahrain( authorities killed 5 people and arrested 286 more in a raid on the home of a Shia cleric) , thus their support of the Saudis.
The autocrats, religious, military and political have read Trump as being sympathetic and supportive ( Duterte of the Philippines has gone on a rampage) and think that they can persecute "enemies" without hindrance from the USA. However there are other implications. By his words and actions, Trump has unleashed instability in the Middle East and in Europe . His support of the action against Qatar has unsettled the region ( the Americans have one of their largest military bases their, with over 15, 000 military personnel and tons of equipment . Was he aware of this?). He has also unsettled NATO and Europe, refusing to commit to Article 5, to come to the aid of member nation and by his public scolding of members. He has also shown that it can abandon its allies ( Qatar ) and this affect America's credibility.
Leadership is sorely lacking and even the 15,00 camels of Qatar have been deported.
