The Blockade of Qatar: Between Legal Justice and Political Arbitrariness

Abstract

On June 5, 2017, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Kingdom of Bahrain, and Egypt issued statements against the State of Qatar announcing the severance of ties, including diplomatic relations, with Qatar. The Qatari diplomatic mission was given 48 hours to leave those countries. Qatari nationals were banned to travel to KSA, UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt and Qatari residents and visitors were given 14 days to leave. The four countries also imposed in just 24 hours a land, air and sea blockade on Qatar claiming this a precaution due to security reasons and accusing Qatar of supporting “terrorist groups” such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, the Taliban, ISIS and Al-Qaeda.This study highlights the “unjust” and “oppressive” aspect of the blockade on or the boycott of Qatar. It includes four parts: the first part showcases the statements of the blockading countries and Qatar’s response to them, the second part highlights the crisis generated by the statements of the blockading countries, the third part discusses the legal irregularities of these statements, and the fourth part explores the reasons behind the actions of the blockading countries.