On the Gulf diplomatic crisis scene

    Abed Al-Bari Atwan is a political analyst and editor-in-chief of Al-Quds Al-Arabi Newspaper based in the UK. He recently set up a political campaign in Arabic to back up Qatar in this diplomatic strife. 

Abd Al-Bari Atwan

In this episode, he said, "In the name of God the merciful. Ladies and gentlemen welcome to this weekly meeting. At first, there is a Tunisian proverb says, "When you come to understand, you get fainted." 

In fact, I'm dizzy and I don't want to make you all dizzy with me. In any case, if we take a look at the region and what's going on in is absolutely unconscionable. To assert this irrationality, there are many things to show, overnight the Egyptian People Council suddenly held the parliament and decided that Tiran and Sanafir are Saudi islands. But, how come! where the court's decisions? How did it come about? Egypt is supposedly earning because it's joined up in the alliance against the great Qatari State. It, therefore, supposed to take not give. It's the first point anyway.

The second point, Monther Makhos -spokesperson of the High Negotiating Commission, of course, for the Syrian negotiation, said,"In Syria, there is neither a political solution nor a military one. For the issue, it is being resolved in the field." What's the field? I don't know.

The third thing, at the Palestinian sphere, after talks about the electricity crisis and all other problems, including deducting salaries, a meeting was held in Cairo between two grave foes, the representative Mohammed Dahlan and Yahya Al-Sinwar -The head of Hamas movement in Gaza- They agreed on opening up the  checkpoint, financial aids, financing electrical power plant in Gaza by fuel, increasing the Egyptian share of the electricity to Gaza, and opening up Rafah crossing point for longer hours. 

What's going on? I've never seen Gulf States' leaders more active as nowadays like Adel Jubair left for Washington and then to Moscow. The Qatari foreign minister Mohammed Ibn Abed Al-Rahman to Washington, Moscow, Berlin, London, and Paris. And then Shiekh Abdullah Ibn Zayed the foreign minister headed to the same capitals. It's an unnatural movement. What's going on in the region? What's the problem exactly? 

This is the basic story we hear about food-loaded airplanes taking off from Ankara, Tehran, and Al-Dar Al-Bayda -the White House, the Morrocan capital- to Qatar in order to break the siege down. What's the siege are we talking about? The annual income is 100.000 $ per capita in Qatar. Thank God! The graces are much.

And more than 100 billion annual income in the Qatari Treasury and the national fund has 320 billion $. What's going on? Why this food? 

Of course, it's nice to sympathize with people? I'm against blocking Qatar neither Gaza nor Yemen as well.

But, in Yemen, if we have that nobility, there about 17 millions of Yemenis at the brink of famine. We have more than 1000 have died because of cholera. So, siege, hunger, fasting, cholera, and airstrikes to send out food to Qatar!"

Atwan astonishingly continued, "Where is the nation heading to? It's really a big disaster! Donald Trump came to Riyad. Then, tweeting began that Qatar supports terrorism. So, isolating Qatar is the beginning of the end to eliminate terrorism. Qatar committed a big mistake when backed up terror. It must be sued and sanctioned. It's a green light to set off on a confrontation. Al-Eded base -U.S. military base in Qatar- won't take part in protecting Qatar in case it has exposed to invasion or occupation. Turkey sent out 5 thousand soldiers to the base there and says is stands up for Qatar. 

Suddenly, everything has changed after the Qatari defense minister traveled to Washington and undersigned a 32 F15s deal valued 12 billions $. Afterward, Trump stopped tweeting that Qatar supports terrorism. More than that, the U.S.A. has sent out two warships to Doha to participate in a military maneuver with the Qatari fleet that I suppose has two or three warships in the south of Doha. 

Consequently, there is no talk about changing the regime, replacing the prince at all. But, of course, media campaigns are still running. Searching for old files has begun now as we say when the government fails, it goes back to the old files -reckoning-

We, therefore, unexpectedly hear about recordings about assassination attempts and Qadhaffi, Shiekh Hamad Ibn Khalifa and about what they agreed on destroying Saudi Arabia internally, as well as, the attempt of assassinating the Saudi King Abdullah. Why these decisions suddenly resurfaced? Isn't there Gulf's brotherhood? Isn't there Gulf Cooperation Council that we have been saying it's the most important regional council in the region?

The whole plan is well-cooked in Washington, London, and in Paris. They laugh at us as Arabs and Muslims. In short, there are Arab national funds come out of oil revenues, when the cost of one barrel has reached 140$. The West must take them by any means, the warplanes deal, for instance.
When Trump went to Saudi Arabia, he left with 460 billion $ of such deals. There was a national fund valued more than 800 billion $, it decreased to more than 400 billion $. So, there are deficiencies in the budget that will lead to eroding the rest. As a result, Saudi Arabia will end up lending from international markets. 
The same thing with Emirati (UAE) national fund valued 900 billion $. It'll be eroded. It must go out to those who deserve it according to the Western expressions, to the West, to Washington specifically, to Trump who once stated that "they must pay for the protection, there is nothing free of charge."
All this uproar because Qatar has a treasury of 320 billion $. It said that "we don't want to pay any tribute," they replied, "you must forcefully pay."
Qatar is incrementally paying now. Today paid 12 billion $, tomorrow will be increased to 21 billion $ and next will be reached 50 billion and so on and so forth. It's apparently forbidden to own money, these amounts of money should go out to the West. Recycling the assets and national funds back and forth to end up in the U.S.A.
This is the truth, there is no sovereignty, they create wars and enemies for us. Today our enemy is Iran, tomorrow we'll wake up to see that Trump is negotiating with Tehran and their leaders Khamenei, Hasan Ruhani, Mohammed Dharif in the closed rooms. We are the victim, not Iran, they use us against each other, they used three Gulf States against other three, and tomorrow they'll use us against Iran so that we should have to buy weapons and stock up weapons. 
At the end, the USA will tell us "checkmate!"
The required thing is our wealth, this is the fact we have become tools are used and employed against one another. We should sit down together. Why are the Gulf foreign ministers roaming here and there? Why don't they sit down together to negotiate and resolve the problems? What's the problem? Where is the problem? Is it Al-Jazeera channel? But, you have dozens of channels. Is it Muslim Brotherhood? But, you cooperate with Muslim Brotherhood.
The Yemeni Reformatory Party is in Riyad, it's the political wing of Yemeni Brotherhood Movement. Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmar was vice president in Yemen, he is a Muslim Brotherhood member. 
Where is the problem? Hamas will be put on the terror list because it fights the Israeli enemy, and Hezbollah does so on the other hand, it liberated its homeland in 2000 and in 2006 and withstood in front of the Israeli enemy. Is it terrorism?
I don't know where are we going? Let's sit down and understand each other. Why should we starve? Why should Yemeni people starve? And our people in Gaza and Sudan, including other areas. Why Libya has to be divided? They had told us that Seif Al-Islam is a terrorist and his hands are blood-stained. He has been released afterward. He might return to the trial again. What have we done? What has Qatar done? What has Saudi Arabia done in backing up militias? Yesterday they were revolutionaries, today have become terrorists. And who supports them should be sued and punished.
We are the victim, we are used as tools against each other. The goal is our wealth and billions. 
In the past we were talking about millions, now the millions are pennies. Today we are talking about billions. Because talking about 20, 50 million is nothing, they are very small. It's the truth.
Will we wake up of this weakness? I really doubt! They laugh at us. We have become laughable.
I wish you the best and see you next time."

The whole text above is available audiovisual on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOwNPkMZGOM   

Translator Nasser Al-Qadi