THE PERSIAN GULF CRISIS OVER QATAR, EXPLAINED

Sourced : The Washington Post

The Arab states of the Persian Gulf are in the grip of an unprecedented regional crisis. In Monday’s early hours, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt released coordinated statements, announcing a diplomatic break with the tiny-yet-wealthy peninsular nation of Qatar. They cut air, sea and land links and ordered Qatari officials and nationals stationed in their countries to return home.

Qatar, with just over 300,000 citizens, has played an outsize role on the world stage because of its great wealth of oil and natural gas. Global oil prices wobbled Monday as both sides dug in their heels. Already, as my colleagues reported, panic over a Saudi blockade of Qatar’s only land border prompted spooked residents to clean out supermarket shelves in Doha.

The move is a reflection of long-running frustrations with the Qataris, who the Saudis and Emiratis claim are supporting terrorist groups as well as being far too cordial with Iran, their regional archrival. A complicated and uncertain state of affairs is playing out, with far-reaching stakes — Qatar, after all, is home to a crucial forward base for the U.S. Central Command. Here’s our attempt at a quick primer on what you need to know.

Read more at : https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/06/06/the-persian-gulf-crisis-over-qatar-explained/?utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer05597&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_term=.7ebe9a59634a

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