Qatar crisis: The limits of holiness and authority for Islamic religious institutions

Egyptian and Saudi academics are taking aim at Doha - but history teaches that the role of scholars is far from straightforward
Egyptian and Saudi academics are taking aim at Doha - but history teaches that the role of scholars is far from straightforward
The standoff in the Gulf that commenced in May 23 between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) presents the greatest challenge to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
Many states at different times have tried to contain al-Jazeera or force it to tone down its coverage. But with last week’s call to shut the network down, the Saudis and Emiratis have surpassed themselves. The [...]
Any sane person will immediately recognize that the list of demands handed to Qatar was not meant to be accepted The much-awaited list of demands from the countries that have imposed a blockade on Qatar [...]
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and most Gulf states have joined an unprecedented diplomatic and economic attack on Qatar — cutting off the thumb which sticks out in to the Gulf — accusing it of funding terrorism. But at the centre [...]
The American airstrike against Iranian-backed fighters near Al Tanaf base last month represent a major change in the nature of the United States’ use of force in Syria.
The scale, scope and causes of the Gulf crisis have been perplexing even for keen observers of the region's political scene. The architects of the blockade against Qatar are conducting a large-scale campaign of public diplomacy, [...]
In the 1980s and the 1990s, the United Arab Emirates, led by its founding president, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, followed a centrist policy to international affairs that placed mediation in regional disputes at its heart.
On 5 June 2017, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt, in marked succession, cut diplomatic relations with Qatar. Within a matter of hours, it became clear that this was not simply a move to sever ties
The move of Saudi Arabia,the UAE and Bahrain against Qatar was swift. It was launched on the back of a fake news report placed by hackers on the website of Qatar’s official news agency. That [...]