06 June, 2017
Analysts say President Donald Trump's recent visit to Saudi Arabia emboldened hawkish Saudi royals by positioning America squarely with Sunni Arab countries against Iran.
Among the nations set to take part include Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, who all cut diplomatic ties on Monday.
Qatar Airways - one of the region's major carriers that flies through Saudi airspace - posted a list of suspensions on its website, affecting flights to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the UAE.
The cabinet reassured the citizens and residents of the State of Qatar that the government has taken long ago all the necessary measures to guarantee the normal course of life and to prevent any impact from the consequences of the decisions made by the three countries.
All the nations also said they planned to cut air and sea traffic.
Saudi Arabia also shut the office of Qatar's Al-Jazeera global news channel in Riyadh, accusing it of promoting "terrorist groups", while in the UAE a subsidiary satellite network, beIn Sports, went offline.
"One of its pitches (to secure the World Cup) was that Qatar is one of the most stable countries in the Middle East", he told AFP.
Along with Egypt, however, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are potentially vulnerable, being highly dependent on Qatar for liquified natural gas.
In a written statement, Qatar's Foreign Ministry responded by saying that the measures were "unjustified and based on false claims and assumptions", while claiming that there was "a campaign of lies" underway meant to "undermine the State of Qatar".
Economic disturbances loomed immediately, as Abu Dhabi's state-owned Etihad Airways said it would suspend all flights to and from Doha from Tuesday morning until further notice.
Israel Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said the split in the Gulf "without a doubt, opens possibilities for cooperation in the battle against terrorism" as it shows "that even in the Arab states they understand that the danger is not Zionism but terrorism".
Saudi Arabia also said Qatari troops would be pulled from the ongoing war in Yemen.
Qatar, the host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, criticized the move as a "violation of its sovereignty".
It has provided a base for the leadership of Palestinian militant organisation Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood which has always been a thorn in the side of Egypt's military dictatorship.
In Sydney, Tillerson said he didn't believe the diplomatic crisis would affect the war against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.
"We certainly would encourage the parties to sit down together and address these differences, and we - if there's any role that we can play in terms of helping them address those, we think it is important that the GCC remain unified", Tillerson said.
A State Department spokesperson reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to Qatar Monday, saying that the USA "relationship with Qatar is strong ... all of our partnerships in the Gulf are incredibly important and we count on the parties to find a way to resolve their differences sooner rather than later".
Most of Qatar's food comes from Saudi Arabia across the peninsular nation's only land border, which the Saudis have now closed.
Winning the right to host the 2022 World Cup was a major coup for Qatar, which has used its natural gas riches to promote its worldwide profile. Trade sources pointed to the likelihood of shortages growing in Qatar until the crisis eased.
Qatar-based TV channel Al Jazeera has always been an irritant for the undemocratic elites who run that world. The restrictions will mean that people connecting from countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain, will no longer be able to do so through Doha's Hamad International Airport. Eight months later, they returned their ambassadors as Qatar forced some Brotherhood members to leave the country and quieted others.
Qatar denied it was interfering in the affairs of others.
