Riots in Qatar due to delay in foreign workers’ salaries

CAIRO – 21 July 2017: Riots broke out in Qatar Friday due to a strike of foreign workers, according to ON Live television channel.

The foreign workers’ salaries were reported to be delayed, sources told the channel. It was added that this escalation came as a result of the “stubbornness of the al Thani regime, and that the country started to face a real economic crises.”

On June 5, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Libya and Yemen decided to cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar, hurling allegations that the state supports terrorism. Ports and airspace were cut off to Qatari vessels. However, several Qatari media outlets denied the existence of any economic crisis in Doha.


Buses damaged amid riots erupted in Qatar - photo obtained by Egypt Today

On June 6, Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Ahmad Al-Sabah started a tour that included Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar in an attempt to mediate between the three countries.

A list of 13 demands was given to Doha’s government by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain for reconciliation which includes the closing of Al Jazeera broadcasting; however, Qatar’s response was described as “negative” by the four countries’ foreign ministers in a joint statement released after holding a summit in Cairo July 5.

Friday July 7, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain said in another joint statement that the ultimatum that had been given to Qatar is now void, leading to further legal, political and economic measures against the government of Qatar.

“The Qatari government has purposely thwarted all diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis and has rejected any settlements, reflecting its intention to continue with its destabilizing policies against the interests of the Qatari people,” the Arab quartet said in the statement.

They also condemned Qatar’s “lack of tact and respect” towards the Kuwaiti mediation, as it leaked the list of demands in an attempt to condemn the initiative to failure.


Buses damaged amid riots erupted in Qatar - photo obtained by Egypt Today