Bahraini FM: “Qatar is a gateway for terrorists”

CAIRO - 4 November 2017: Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid Al Khalifa described on Friday Qatar as a “gateway for terrorists” to enter the GCC region, according to the News of Bahrain website.

This comes in light of Qatar’s decision to waive visa entry requirements for Lebanese citizens, as Lebanon is one of the countries that hosts terrorist organizations which would facilitate entry for terrorists to Gulf countries.

“By allowing visa-free entry for the Lebanese, Qatar is opening the door for followers of the terrorist group Hezbollah to enter Qatar and the Gulf area,” Khalifa wrote on his official Twitter account on Tuesday.

إسقاط قطر للتأشيرة عن مواطني لبنان ، مع احترامي لشعب لبنان الشقيق ، فتح الباب على مصراعيه لدخول اتباع حزب الله الإرهابي الى قطر و الخليج

— خالد بن ‏أحمد (@khalidalkhalifa) ١ نوفمبر، ٢٠١٧

Earlier, Khalifa called for suspending Qatar’s membership in the Gulf Cooperation Council. He wrote on Twitter, saying, “Qatar’s membership in the Gulf Cooperation Council should be suspended since it does not deserve the honor of belonging to the alliance.”

الخطوة الصحيحة للحفاظ على مجلس التعاون هي تجميد عضوية قطر في المجلس حتى تحكم عقلها و تتجاوب مع مطالب دولنا و الا فنحن بخير بخروجها من المجلس

— خالد بن ‏أحمد (@khalidalkhalifa) ٢٩ أكتوبر، ٢٠١٧

Khalifa stressed in another tweet that “if the situation remains as it is, Bahrain would not attend the upcoming GCC conference,” which is scheduled in Kuwait in December.

لن تحضر البحرين قمة و تجلس فيها مع قطر و هي التي تتقرب من ايران يوم بعد يوم و تحضر القوات الأجنبية و هي خطوات خطيرة على أمن دول مجلس التعاون

— خالد بن ‏أحمد (@khalidalkhalifa) ٢٩ أكتوبر، ٢٠١٧

On June 5, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed diplomatic ties with Qatar over accusations of sponsoring terrorist groups. The quartet demanded that Doha halts funding to terrorists in the region and meets a list of 13 demands the quartet have earlier outlined, in order for dialogue to begin.