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Tribune News Network
Doha
Qatar has fostered a vision of the Middle East (ME) that supports people over tyrants, a top Qatari official has said.
“What our region needs now are leaders that remain steadfast in the pursuit of a vision that empowers and supports the needs of people. Qatar is determined to pursue this vision, we look to our neighbours to cease their propaganda and underhanded methods and join us in this pursuit,” Jassim bin Mansour al Thani, media attache for the government of Qatar, said in a report published by Washington Times.
“Two years ago, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain imposed an illegal blockade on Qatar because they find our approach to be a threat to their authoritarian vision of the region. Their collective vision seeks to subjugate through the repression of their populations and the maintenance of an unstable status quo. Our vision seeks to empower agents of change, and support leaders who are responsive to the demands of their people,” he said.
He said these countries have done everything in their power to stifle the fundamental freedoms of any person or country that dares to challenge their archaic ways. As the years have progressed, their actions to keep people under the thumb of autocratic rule have chipped away at their credibility to lead.
“They have attempted to make Qatar subservient to their will by imposing a two-year air, land and sea blockade, ripping apart families in the process. They have waged a war in Yemen claiming to be supportive of the internationally-recognised government, yet they also back a warlord who reignited Libya’s civil war and waged a campaign against the internationally recognised government in Libya,” he added.
They also wage a digital war. Online they spread misinformation, unsubstantiated claims and inflammatory rhetoric about those that oppose them, he added.
“Their actions have had consequences for their targets — activists jailed, reputations sullied and fake news presented as fact in our region. They have made divisions worse, created rifts that will not soon heal, and fostered instability in the region. All this begs an important question — what is the end game of the UAE and Saudi Arabia?”
He said while the UAE and Saudi Arabia are energised by the possibility of dominating large swaths of the Middle East and North Africa, their actions should give American policymakers pause as to whether these regimes’ adventurism could bring order and stability.
“These countries spend fortunes on bot armies and fake narratives instead of investing in the infrastructure necessary to fight terrorism and extremism within their own communities. They should not be rewarded with greater power and responsibility for their reckless behavior that is destabilizing the region,” he said.
For two years, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have attacked Qatar’s sovereignty and reputation, while attempting to bring back autocrats against the will of peoples across the Middle East and North Africa. These actions set a precedent for malign actors across the globe that will only propagate instability and inspire future dictators and warlords.
Doha
Qatar has fostered a vision of the Middle East (ME) that supports people over tyrants, a top Qatari official has said.
“What our region needs now are leaders that remain steadfast in the pursuit of a vision that empowers and supports the needs of people. Qatar is determined to pursue this vision, we look to our neighbours to cease their propaganda and underhanded methods and join us in this pursuit,” Jassim bin Mansour al Thani, media attache for the government of Qatar, said in a report published by Washington Times.
“Two years ago, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Bahrain imposed an illegal blockade on Qatar because they find our approach to be a threat to their authoritarian vision of the region. Their collective vision seeks to subjugate through the repression of their populations and the maintenance of an unstable status quo. Our vision seeks to empower agents of change, and support leaders who are responsive to the demands of their people,” he said.
He said these countries have done everything in their power to stifle the fundamental freedoms of any person or country that dares to challenge their archaic ways. As the years have progressed, their actions to keep people under the thumb of autocratic rule have chipped away at their credibility to lead.
“They have attempted to make Qatar subservient to their will by imposing a two-year air, land and sea blockade, ripping apart families in the process. They have waged a war in Yemen claiming to be supportive of the internationally-recognised government, yet they also back a warlord who reignited Libya’s civil war and waged a campaign against the internationally recognised government in Libya,” he added.
They also wage a digital war. Online they spread misinformation, unsubstantiated claims and inflammatory rhetoric about those that oppose them, he added.
“Their actions have had consequences for their targets — activists jailed, reputations sullied and fake news presented as fact in our region. They have made divisions worse, created rifts that will not soon heal, and fostered instability in the region. All this begs an important question — what is the end game of the UAE and Saudi Arabia?”
He said while the UAE and Saudi Arabia are energised by the possibility of dominating large swaths of the Middle East and North Africa, their actions should give American policymakers pause as to whether these regimes’ adventurism could bring order and stability.
“These countries spend fortunes on bot armies and fake narratives instead of investing in the infrastructure necessary to fight terrorism and extremism within their own communities. They should not be rewarded with greater power and responsibility for their reckless behavior that is destabilizing the region,” he said.
For two years, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have attacked Qatar’s sovereignty and reputation, while attempting to bring back autocrats against the will of peoples across the Middle East and North Africa. These actions set a precedent for malign actors across the globe that will only propagate instability and inspire future dictators and warlords.
