ICAO told airspace closure to Qatar complies with int'l law

CAIRO - 16 June 2017: Four Arab countries that have closed their airspace to Qatar told the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) head Thursday they do not violate the Convention on International Civil Aviation.

The representatives of the aviation authorities in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and United Arab Emirates met with ICAO President Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu in Montreal, explaining that their anti-Qatar measures comply with the International Law and the Security Council resolutions, including Resolutions 1373 and 2309, on countering terrorism, according to a Friday statement by the Saudi Press Agency.

“The delegation also responded to ICAO’s inquiries and refuted all the Qatari’s allegations and its attempts to mislead organization with false information on the current situation that they still propagate among the members of the Board of Directors and its Secretariat,” the statement said.

“The delegation provided proof of inaccuracies by maps and accurate data that illustrate the air traffic of Qatari planes on international routers and airspace in other states,” the statement added.

The statement emphasized that while the respective countries are happy to cooperate closely with ICAO, they will continue to practice their "sovereign rights" in protecting their airspace.