Regional leaders, analysts welcomes restoration of UAE-Qatar diplomatic ties

News Network

June 20, 2023

Doha, June 20: Qatar and the UAE have announced the reopening of their respective embassies and consulates with immediate effect. The detente was broadly welcomed by regional leaders and analysts.

Qatar’s embassy in Abu Dhabi and its consulate in Dubai, as well as the UAE’s embassy in Doha, will reopen on Monday, according to the Qatar News Agency (QNA).

Both sides stressed that the significant step reflects the determination of the leadership of both countries and contributes to the advancement of joint Arab initiatives, fulfilling the aspirations of the two brotherly people, QNA said.

In a phone conversation on Monday, Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, and UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan congratulated each other on the resumption of their diplomatic representation, according to a separate QNA report.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) also welcomed the restoration between the two member states, Xinhua news agency reported.

GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi praised the “blessed step which embodies … the unity of the GCC countries and the support for the joint Gulf action,” QNA reported.

Kheir Diabat, a professor from the International Affairs Department of Qatar University, said the decision to restore diplomatic ties signifies that both sides have pushed their relations a step forward to normalisation and cooperation.

“It means there is an opportunity for the two parties to coordinate their positions and political visions towards Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Sudan. In addition, this rapprochement will also be reflected in the strength of the GCC, which has suffered in recent years from apparent weakness due to the Gulf crisis,” he said.

The thaw is yet another fruit of the wave of regional de-escalation since the Al-ula summit, Adel Abdel Ghafar, director of the Foreign Policy and Security Program of the Middle East Council on Global Affairs in Doha, told Xinhua.

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt announced the severing of diplomatic ties with Qatar, citing Qatar’s alleged support for terrorism and destabilisation of the region. Qatar has denied these accusations.

In 2021, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt announced the restoration of diplomatic relations with Qatar on the sidelines of the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia.

However, due to a lack of consensus on certain issues, the process of full normalisation has been delayed.

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India issues travel advisory for citizens amid escalating Iran-Israel tensions

News Network

October 2,2024

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has issued a travel advisory for Indian citizens in light of the escalating tensions in the Middle East, specifically advising against non-essential travel to Iran.

"We are closely monitoring the recent escalation in the security situation in the region. Indian nationals are advised to avoid all non-essential travel to Iran. Those currently residing in Iran are requested to remain vigilant and stay in contact with the Indian Embassy in Tehran," the Ministry of External Affairs said.

For those already residing in the country, the MEA advised vigilance and recommended staying in close contact with the Indian Embassy in Tehran for any assistance. The situation continues to be under observation as tensions in the region unfold.

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Israel abducted 108 Palestinian journalists including women in violent raids amidst genocidal war

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October 8,2024

A Palestinian prisoners’ rights group says Israeli forces have abducted a total of 108 journalists during violent raids across the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip ever since the regime’s onslaught on the besieged coastal territory started more than a year ago.

The Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, which is also known as Addameer, said in a statement on Monday that at least 58 journalists remain in Israeli custody, including six female journalists and 22 journalists from Gaza whose identities have been confirmed.

Addameer added that at least 16 of the journalists are being held under administrative detention.

An overwhelming majority of Palestinian prisoners are arrested under a quasi-judicial process known as administrative detention, under which Palestinians are initially jailed for six months. Their detentions can then be repeatedly extended for an indefinite period without charge or trial.

Neither the administrative detainees, who include women and children, nor their lawyers are allowed to see the “secret evidence” that Israeli forces say form the basis for their arrests.

Addameer noted that more than 9,000 orders of administrative detention have been issued since October 7 last year, ranging between new orders and renewals, including orders against children and women.

The report comes as another Palestinian journalist was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip on Sunday, bringing the total death toll of journalists killed since October 7 last year to 175.

The government media office in the Gaza Strip in a statement identified the victim as Hassan Hamad, without giving details about the circumstances of his death.

“We condemn in the strongest terms the targeting, killing, and assassination of Palestinian journalists by the Israeli occupation,” it said.

The media office also called on the international community and international organizations to “deter the occupation and prosecute it in international courts for its ongoing crimes.”

Journalists operating in the Palestinian territory are faced with increased dangers as they report on the conflict amidst Israeli ground assaults and airstrikes, disrupted communications, supply shortages, and power outages.

Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7 last year, after Palestinian resistance groups carried out a surprise retaliatory operation into the occupied territories.

So far, the Israeli war on Gaza has killed at least 41,909 Palestinians, most of them women, children, and adolescents, and injured 97,303 others.

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