DOHA (Dispatches) – Qatar says the "illegal” blockade imposed on Doha by the Saudi-led quartet of countries is aimed to force the peninsular Persian Gulf nation to become a "state of trusteeship.”
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani made the remarks in a speech before the United Nations Human Rights Council in the Swiss city of Geneva, strongly denouncing the "illegal siege which clearly violates international laws.”
The widening rift in the region occurred on June 5, when Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt severed ties with Qatar, officially accusing Doha of supporting "terrorism” and destabilizing the Middle East, allegations that Qatar says are unjustified and stem from false claims and assumptions.
To further pressure Qatar, Saudi Arabia totally closed its land border with its tiny neighbor, through which much of the country’s food supply crossed.
Later in June, the four Arab countries urged Qatar to abide by a 13-point list of demands if it wanted the crippling blockade lifted. The demands included shutting down the Doha-based Al Jazeera broadcaster, scaling back cooperation with Iran, closing the Turkish military base in Qatar, and paying an unspecified sum in reparations.
Qatar, however, firmly refused to comply, calling the wide-ranging demands "unrealistic, unreasonable and unacceptable.” In return, the four feuding countries vowed to impose further sanctions on Doha.
On July 21, Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said in a live TV address that the blockade against Doha was "a pre-planned smear campaign.”
"Unfortunately, we have seen - half an hour later - retaliation from their side by issuing a statement that what we have issued is a lie,” Al Thani told reporters on the sidelines of the rights council, adding that his respective country was taken aback when Riyadh disputed a readout of the "positive” call.
However, he expressed his country’s readiness to enter into dialogue with the siege states in a bid to end the crisis.
"We are willing to talk to them, we are ready to engage if it is based on principles, which are not violating the international law and respect the sovereignty of each country,” he added.
A number of attempts to heal the rift have so far been made, but all to no avail, including those of U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Kuwaiti Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber Al Sabah, whose country has been playing the role of a key mediator since the beginning of the crisis.