MP demands establishing of Arab military coalition

CAIRO – 29 May 2017: Parliamentarian Mohamed Maher Hamed urged the government on Wednesday to consider forming an Arab military coalition. The coalition would include the Egyptian, Saudi, Emirati and Bahraini armies.

“It would be the first step towards defending the Arab and Gulf States, as war nears especially after the establishment of a Turkish military base in Qatar.” Hamed said in his statement.

He added that this is the right timing for this kind of announcement between the four Arab countries, and that any further delay will increase "the regional ambitions in the Gulf states". “The common forces should be based on the borders with Qatar, Turkey and Iran” the statement added.

Qatar’s relations with several Arab and Gulf States have been strained since May 24. The chain of events began when Qatari state-run news agency reported Sheikh Tamim Al Thani’s statements regarding Gulf foreign policy with Iran, describing it as “unwise.”

On Monday June 5, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Libya and Yemen decided to cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar citing the reason as its “continuous support for terrorism.” All airspace and seaports to Qatari transportation were closed.

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

No official details were published about the results of the meetings; however, according to Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa’s statements to Saudi newspaper Makkah on June 8, Kuwait’s attempts at reconciliation had “failed.”

On June 23, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Bahrain sent a list of 13 demands to the Qatari government. The demands included closing Al Jazeera television, reducing ties with Iran and the closing of a Turkish military base in Qatar.