On 5 June, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE announced a break in diplomatic relations with Qatar. Later they were joined by Yemen, Libya, Maldives, Mauritius, and Mauritania. The statement on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain said that such measures were introduced because of the Qatari authorities' support of "terrorism and financial assistance to terrorist groups." The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar does not agree with the accusations.

What is Qatar accused of?

The main complaint of the countries that severed diplomatic relations is the support of Islamic terrorists by the Qatari authorities, against which the coalition of states, led by the United States, is fighting.

Bahrain accuses Qatar of seeking to disrupt the stability and security of Bahrain, intervening in its internal affairs, incitement to the media, supporting terrorism and providing financial assistance to groups associated with Iran.

The governments of the UAE and Egypt noted that the breakdown of relations was referred to the spread of Qatar's ideology of Al Qaeda and Islamic state groups, the support of the Sinai acts of terrorism, the continued interference of Qatar in the internal affairs of Egypt and the countries of the region, which jeopardized the national security of the Arab countries and sowed a split in Arab society.

What are the prerequisites for the conflict?

Saudi Arabia, the leader of the Sunni world, has long been having tense relations with Shiite Iran and created a "Sunni coalition" in the region to contain its influence. The United States supports the Saudis. Qatar is also home to mainly Sunnis and is a member of the coalition, but this country has close economic ties with Iran, including the exchange of large gas reserves on the shelf.

According to the Financial Times, in April Qatar paid a billion dollars of ransom for the members of the royal family to groups linked to Al-Qaeda and to Iran's security services, who were abducted during the hunt in Iraq. The authorities of Qatar wanted to release 26 members of the royal family from captivity, as well as 50 people captured by militants in Syria.

A source close to the government of Qatar acknowledged that such payments had indeed been made.

Last week, Emir Al-Thani excited the Saudis when he called Iranian President Hassan Rohani with congratulations on his re-election.

What do the Russian hackers have to do with it?

Two weeks ago, Qatar issued a statement in which Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called Iran "a regional and Islamic force that can not be ignored." Later Qatar denied the statement, explaining it by saying that his state news agency QNA and Twitter accounts were hacked.

In response, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt blocked access to Al-Jazeera, which was based in Qatar, and its website. Egypt accused Al Jazeera and another 20 sites in supporting terrorism and spreading "fake" news.

Reuters, referring to sources in the Egyptian security agencies, wrote that the reason for the websites blocking was their connection with the forbidden Muslim Brotherhood movement in Egypt, supported by Qatar. Qatar is also the main financial sponsor of the Gaza Strip, controlled by Hamas, which is considered terrorist in the United States and a number of other countries.

American investigators believe that there were Russian hackers who hacked the server who hacked the server and posted false information on the website of the Qatar news agency, CNN reports citing the US officials. Also, the US and Qatari government sources of the publication reported that the FBI sent a team of experts to Doha to help the Qatari government in investigating the incident with the QNA hacking.

In their view, the goal of the hacker attack was to cause disagreements between the US and its allies in the Middle East.

How did Qatar react?

Qatar denied allegations of supporting terrorism. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar regret the decision of neighboring countries to sever diplomatic relations. "These measures are unfounded, they are adopted, based on groundless statements," the report said.The Foreign Ministry of Qatar stressed that they would prevent any attempt to influence the society and economy of Qatar. Also, the department was assured that such decisions "will not affect the ordinary life of citizens."

On June 6, Qatar Airways airline suspended flights to Egypt, the UAE and the Kingdom of Bahrain for an indefinite period.

However, the airline assures that its branches will continue to operate in a normal mode in these countries until further notice. Passengers who have air tickets from June 5 to July 6 can rebook them within a month after the current date of departure.

What are the consequences?

The countries that severed diplomatic relations with Qatar not only recall the staff of their embassies and require the diplomatic representatives of Qatar to leave their countries. Citizens of Qatar, who are in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, are also required to leave them within two weeks, after which they will not be able to entry to this territory. The subjects of the kingdoms are now also prohibited from visiting Qatar.

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bahrain closed their airspace for Qatari airplanes. The Civil Aviation Authority of Saudi Arabia revoked the license from Qatar Airways and ordered the closure of their offices within 48 hours. All passengers who bought tickets for the airline's flights were advised to contact their tour operator for compensation.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia also reported on the prohibition of the use of Qatar's territorial waters of the Kingdom and the closure of the only land border with Qatar. Through this border, there are cargo deliveries of food for the Qatar citizens - more than 2.5 million people. Individual countries also broke economic relations with Qatar.

Because of that, residents of the capital of the emirate of Doha began to massively buy food in supermarkets in the case of a deficit.

The Philippines temporarily banned the working trips of its citizens to Qatar, where at least 250,000 Filipinos worked. Minister of Labor Sylvester Bello said that the decision was made to the authorities to assess the current situation. On June 7, the government of Jordan decided to reduce the level of its diplomatic mission in Qatar, and also revoked the license for the activities of the Qatari television channel Al Jazeera.

In the United Arab Emirates, the authorities banned the public display of sympathy for Qatar. In particular, the expression of such a position in social networks was equated with cyber crime.

Attorney General Hamad Saif Al-Shamsi said that such statements would be punished with a prison term of 3 to 15 years or a fine of 500 thousand dirhams (136 thousand dollars).

How will the conflict affect the World Cup-2022?

Due to the severance of diplomatic relations between a number of countries with the emirate, the holding of the World Cup in Qatar in 2022, the right to which Qatar selected in 2010, was threatened with disruption. Qatar is a state in the eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. After breaking diplomatic relations with Qatar, these countries closed ground routes to the country, and also prohibited Qatar from using its seaports and airspace.

Now in Qatar, a number of large-scale objects connected with the mundialya are being built, in particular, nine stadiums and infrastructure.

The UEFA Champions League-2022 did not comment on the football situation, while in FIFA they said that they "are in constant contact with the local organizing committee."

How did other countries react?

A number of countries in the world offered mediation in the diplomatic conflict between Qatar and some countries that severed diplomatic relations with it. For example, the Sudan declared its readiness to become an arbiter and "do everything necessary to promote peace and reconciliation in the interests of the population." The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kuwait also announced readiness to mediate in the conflict.

Presidents of Russia and Turkey Vladimir Putin and Recep Erdoğan spoke in a telephone conversation for dialogue and compromise solutions "with a view to maintaining stability in the Persian Gulf region." Erdogan said that Turkey does not support the isolation of Qatar.

According to him, Turkey is ready to do everything possible to overcome the crisis. "These events, which take place at a time when we need solidarity and cooperation more than ever, will not bring any good to any of the countries in the region," the Turkish president said.

The Turkish Anadolu agency, citing sources in Erdogan's circle, said that he had already discussed during a phone call the situation around Qatar with French President Emmanuel Macron, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak, King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King Jordan Abdullah II and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

The White House said that President Donald Trump will make efforts to overcome the Qatari crisis.

The United States has close ties with countries on both sides of the conflict. Saudi Arabia is the closest US ally in the region, while in Qatar there is an American air base and there are almost 10,000 US troops.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said that the US is in close contact with all interested parties to resolve this issue and resume cooperation. At the same time, he stressed the need to combat the terrorism financing and added that for a while the tension among Qatar's neighbors was reported through the appropriate diplomatic channels.
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