Tag: Bahrain

Muslim Asia Caught In The Middle As Diplomatic Row Rocks Middle East

Non-Arab nations in Asia, such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Pakistan, are getting caught in the middle after Saudi Arabia led a clampdown on Qatar, accusing the tiny emirate of supporting pro-Iranian militants.

Malaysia had rolled out the red carpet for Saudi Arabia’s King Salman at the end of February, the first by a Saudi king to Malaysia in more than a decade. Then, the following month, Kuala Lumpur signed a defence cooperation agreement with Qatar.

A source close to the Malaysian government said that the recent efforts to strengthen ties with Qatar, including a visit by the foreign minister last month, will probably now be put on the backburner.

“We have more to lose by siding with Qatar,” said the source, who requested anonymity.

On Monday, a half-dozen countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Bahrain, cut diplomatic ties with the energy-rich emirate, accusing it of backing Tehran and Islamist groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar has said it does not support terrorism and the rupture was founded on “baseless fabricated claims.”

Doha now faces an acute economic plight as it relies on Gulf neighbours for 80 per cent of its food imports.

The diplomatic clamp down on Qatar is seen as an indirect jab at Iran, and leaves non-Arab Muslims countries in an “uncomfortable position”, according to James Dorsey, a senior fellow at Singapore’s S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS).

“The Saudis view Iran as the foremost terrorist threat rather than the Islamic State and a lot of non-Arab Muslims countries … would probably not agree with that,” Dorsey told Reuters.

PAKISTAN’S OFFICIAL SILENCE

Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan are predominantly Sunni-Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia. Jakarta has sometimes tried to play a mediating role when inter-Arab tensions have flared, particularly between Saudi Arabia and predominantly Shi’ite Muslim Iran.

Jakarta’s Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi received a phone call from Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Monday who wanted to discuss the rift, Foreign Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said.

Indonesia has called for reconciliation and dialogue in the latest diplomatic clash.

The dilemmas are particularly acute for nuclear-armed Pakistan, which has the world’s sixth-largest army and the largest military in the Muslim world.

Sunni-majority Pakistan maintains deep links with the establishment in Riyadh, which provided Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with political asylum after he was ousted in a 1999 military coup.

But with a large Shi’ite minority and a shared western border with Iran, Pakistan has a lot to lose from rising sectarian tensions. In 2015, Pakistan declined a Saudi call to join a Riyadh-led military intervention in Yemen to fight Iranian-allied insurgents.

Pakistan has maintained official silence about the latest rift in the Arab world, loathe to be seen taking sides between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Pakistan also has close ties with Qatar itself, including a 15-year agreement signed last year to import up to 3.75 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas a year from the emirate, a major step in filling Pakistan’s energy shortfall.

“Pakistan has to act very carefully. In my opinion, there is only one option for Pakistan: to stay neutral,” said retired army Brigadier Shaukat Qadir, now an independent risk and security analyst.

ISLAMIC MILITARY ALLIANCE

Pakistan’s recently retired army chief, General Raheel Sharif, travelled to Riyadh in April to lead the Saudi-led Islamic Military Alliance. The stated mission of the multinational alliance is to fight terrorism but it is increasingly seen as anti-Iran.

“There are rumours flying around that Raheel Sharif is pulling out of the Saudi-led military alliance. I hope they are true and he comes back soon,” said Qadir.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in January 2016 visited both Riyadh and Tehran along with Shariff, who was then the army chief, in an attempt to bridge the deepening chasm.

Relations between Malaysia and Saudi Arabia have been in the spotlight over the last two years after Saudi Arabia was dragged into a multi-billion dollar corruption scandal at Malaysian state fund lMDB, founded by Najib.

Najib has denied any wrongdoing in the money-laundering case which is now being investigated by several countries including the US, Switzerland and Singapore.

During King Salman’s visit to Malaysia, Saudi oil giant Aramco [IPO-ARMO.SE] agreed to buy a US$7 billion equity stake in Malaysian state energy firm Petronas’ major refining and petrochemical project.

But Qatar has also invested between US$12 billion and US$15 billion in Malaysia, according to media reports.

RSIS’ Dorsey said non-Arab Muslim countries like Malaysia would be “put on the spot” if the Saudis demand that its trade partners pick a side.

“They (Malaysia) can say either I do business with you, or say I’m not going to make that choice. Then the question would be how would the Saudis or Qatar respond to that,” Dorsey said. “But we’re not there yet, and there’s no certainty that it will get there.”

Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com

June 7, 2017
Qatar Calls Decision By Gulf Nations And Egypt ‘Unjustified’; Allegations Against Doha Have ‘No Basis In Fact’

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain say they are severing diplomatic relations with Qatar.

The Saudi kingdom made the announcement via its state-run Saudi Press Agency early on Monday, saying it was taking action for what it called the protection of national security.

The three Gulf states gave Qatari visitors and residents two weeks to leave their countries, Reuters news agency reported.

Saudi also closed the border and halted air and sea traffic with Qatar, urging “all brotherly countries and companies to do the same”.

The statement appeared to be timed in concert with an earlier announcement by Bahrain, which was similarly cutting ties and halting air and sea traffic between the two countries.

‘Unjustified’

Qatar’s foreign ministry said it regretted the measures by the Arab nations, calling the decisions “unjustified”.

“The measures are unjustified and are based on claims and allegations that have no basis in fact,” the statement said, adding that the decisions would “not affect the normal lives of citizens and residents”.

“The aim is clear, and it is to impose guardianship on the state. This by itself is a violation of its (Qatar’s) sovereignty as a state,” it added.

Bahrain’s foreign ministry issued a statement saying it would withdraw its diplomatic mission from the Qatari capital, Doha, within 48 hours and that all Qatari diplomats should leave Bahrain within the same period.

Egypt also announced the closure of its airspace and seaports for all Qatari transportation “to protect its national security”, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Etihad Airways, the UAE’s flag carrier, said it would suspend flights to and from Qatar beginning Tuesday morning.

It was not immediately clear how Monday’s announcement would affect other airlines.

A Saudi-led coalition which for more than two years has been fighting Iran-backed rebels in Yemen separately announced that Qatar was no longer welcome in the alliance.

A senior Iranian official said the measures by the Arab nations would not help end the crisis in the Middle East.

“The era of cutting diplomatic ties and closing borders … is not a way to resolve crisis … As I said before, aggression and occupation will have no result but instability,” Hamid Aboutalebi, deputy chief of staff of Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, tweeted, referring to the coalition’s involvement in Yemen.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson gave a statement on Monday while on state visit in Australia, urging the Gulf states to stay united.

“We certainly would encourage the parties to sit down together and address these differences,” he said in Sydney.

“If there’s any role that we can play in terms of helping them address those, we think it is important that the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) remain united.”

Tillerson said despite the impasse, he did not expect it to have “any significant impact, if any impact at all, on the unified fight against terrorism in the region or globally”.

“All of those parties you mentioned have been quite unified in the fight against terrorism and the fight against Daesh, ISIS, and have expressed that most recently in the summit in Riyadh,” he added, using alternative names for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group.

Hacking dispute

The dispute between Qatar and the Gulf’s Arab countries escalated after a recent hack of Qatar’s state-run news agency. It has spiralled since.

Following the hacking on Tuesday, comments falsely attributed to Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, were broadcast in Qatar.

Qatar’s government categorically denied that the comments, in which the country’s leader expressed support for Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah and Israel – while suggesting that US President Donald Trump may not last in power, were ever made.

“There are international laws governing such crimes, especially the cyberattack. [The hackers] will be prosecuted according to the law,” Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday.

UAE-based Sky News Arabia and Al Arabiya kept running the discredited story, despite the Qatari denials.

Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/

June 5, 2017
Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia And The UAE Cut Diplomatic Ties With Qatar

The Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Yemeni rebels also announced it was ending Qatar’s membership.

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced on Monday (Jun 5) they were severing diplomatic ties with Qatar, as they accused the Gulf state of supporting terrorism.

Saudi Arabia’s official state news agency, citing an official source, said the kingom decided to sever diplomatic and consular relations with Qatar “proceeding from the exercise of its sovereign right guaranteed by international law and the protection of national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism”.

Saudi Arabia said it has cut all land, air and sea contacts with Qatar and “urges all brotherly countries and companies to do the same.”

The “decisive” measure was due to the “gross violations committed by authorities in Qatar over the past years”, the Saudi statement said, as the UAE made an announcement to cut ties as well.

The UAE accused its Gulf Arab neighbour Qatar of supporting extremism and undermining regional stability.

The Emirates cut ties and gave diplomats 48 hours to leave the country, citing their “support, funding and embrace of terrorist, extremist and sectarian organisations”, WAM said.

Egypt’s foreign ministry also accused Doha of supporting “terrorism” in a statement as it announced the severing of ties.

The statement said all Egyptian ports and airports would be closed to Qatari vessels.

Bahrain news agency said the kingdom was cutting ties with Doha over its insistence on “shaking the security and stability of Bahrain and meddling in its affairs”.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Yemeni rebels also announced it was ending Qatar’s membership as most Gulf countries severed ties with Doha amid heightened tension between the neighbouring states.

The coalition said the measure was due to Qatar’s “practices that strengthen terrorism, and its support to (terrorist) organisations in Yemen, including Al-Qaeda and Daesh, as well as dealing with the rebel militias,” according to a statement carried by SPA Saudi official news agency.

Abu Dhabi’s state-owned Etihad Airways said it will suspend all flights to and from Doha from Tuesday morning until further notice.

The last flight from Abu Dhabi to Doha will depart at 02:45 local time on Tuesday, the airline’s spokesman said in an email to Reuters.

Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/

June 5, 2017
Film ‘Noah’, Blockbuster Starring Russell Crowe Banned in Arab Countries

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OSaJE2rqxU

God’s messenger: Noah, said to have built an ark (pictured) which saved the human and animal worlds from a great flood, features in Christianity, Judaism and Islam, but depicting Allah’s messengers is banned

One of the world’s most respected Islamic institutions has issued a fatwa against a Hollywood epic about Noah’s Ark because it ‘contradicts the teachings of Islam’.

Russell Crowe’s £75million film Noah has also been banned in three Arab countries after religious leaders complained that it depicted the Biblical figure – who is also a holy messenger in the Koran.

Due to premiere later this month, the blockbuster will not show in Qatar, Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates and several other countries are expected to follow suit.

Islam forbids representing holy figures in art, instead using conceptual line patterns and lettering to adorn the walls of mosques.

A whole chapter of the Koran is devoted to Noah, who legend tells built an ark which saved himself, his family and many pairs of animals from a great flood.

He also features prominently in the Biblical book of Genesis and is revered by Christians and Jews.

Fatwa: Cairo’s al-Azhar (which includes the mosque pictured left) issued a fatwa, which is a ruling under Islamic law, saying the film starring Russell Crowe (right) as Noah was a ‘clear violation’ of their teachings. The film is due to premiere in the U.S. on March 28 and was due to air in Egypt in the near future.

The fatwa – a ruling or injunction under the laws of Islam – was made by the influential Al-Azhar institution in Egypt’s capital Cairo, a centre of Sunni Islam thought which was founded in around AD970 and includes a university and a mosque.

‘Al-Azhar… renews its objection to any act depicting the messengers and prophets of God and the companions of the Prophet (Mohammad), peace be upon him,’ it announced in a statement.

The fatwa added that the depictions ‘provoke the feelings of believers… and are forbidden in Islam and a clear violation of Islamic law’.

The film also stars Anthony Hopkins and Emma Watson and will premiere in the U.S. on March 28.

Depictions of the Prophet Mohammad in European and North American media have repeatedly sparked deadly protests in Islamic countries over the last decade, fanning cultural tensions with the West.

The worst riots were triggered after the Prophet Mohammad was depicted in a Danish newspaper in 2006. It sparked protests in the Middle East, Africa and Asia in which at least 50 people died.

A spokesman for Paramount Pictures said: ‘Censors for Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE (United Arab Emirates) officially confirmed this week that the film will not release in their countries.

‘The official statement they offered in confirming this news is because “it contradicts the teachings of Islam”,’ the representative said, adding the studio expected a similar ban in Egypt, Jordan and Kuwait.

Noah, whose trailer depicts Crowe wielding an axe and computer-animated geysers swamping an army of sinners hoping to board his ark, has also stoked religious controversy at home.

Stars: Russell Crowe as Noah with Jennifer Connelly, who plays his wife Naameh and won an Oscar for best supporting actress for her appearance alongside Crowe in A Beautiful Mind.

Last year angry reactions at test screenings reportedly stoked tensions between the studio and director Darren Oronofsky.

Perhaps wisely the filming took place nowhere near the Middle East, instead being carried out in New York State and in Southern Iceland.

Harry Potter star Emma Watson plays the adopted daughter of the prophet, while screen legend Anthony Hopkins stars as his sagely grandfather.

Jennifer Connelly will play Naameh, Noah’s wife. She won an Oscar for best supporting actress for her appearance alongside Crowe in A Beautiful Mind (2001).

The title role was reportedly offered to Michael Fassbender and Christian Bale – both of whom declined.

Jerry A. Johnson, president of a conservative National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) group, said last month he wanted to ‘make sure everyone who sees this impactful film knows this is an imaginative interpretation of Scripture, and not literal.’

Paramount responded by agreeing to issue a disclaimer on advertising for the film.

‘While artistic license has been taken, we believe that this film is true to the essence, values and integrity of a story that is a cornerstone of faith for millions of people worldwide,’ it reads.

The film is not the first to stoke controversy among Muslims.

Mel Gibson’s 2004 film The Passion of the Christ, showing Jesus’s crucifixion, was widely screened in the Arab World despite objections by Muslim clerics.

A 2012, an amateur Youtube video deriding the Prophet Mohammad which was produced in California stoked protests throughout the region, and may have contributed to a deadly militant raid in Libya which killed the U.S. ambassador and three other American staff.

Source: Daily Mail

March 10, 2014