Mubasher: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, and the UAE on Monday announced approving the request of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah to extend the grace period for Qatar by 48 hours, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
GCC and Arab countries that had cut ties with Qatar last month determined the grace period in order to allow Qatar to respond to Saudi Arabia’s list of 13 sweeping demands. Demands included, but were not limited to closing down Qatari broadcaster AlJazeera and limiting cooperation with Iran, as the diplomatic rift was based on allegations that Qatar supports terrorism in the region.
The period came to an end on Sunday, 2 July, but the extension was approved after Kuwait’s Emir met Qatar’s foreign minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, the SPA added.
Al-Thani had stated before the grace period expired on Sunday that the demands are bound to be rejected, adding that negotiations are possible, but need to comply to certain conditions.
