Hadramout21:Thenational
Dr Anwar Gargash described an attempt by Doha to prevent Qatari citizens from performing Hajj as “disgraceful” and said its rulers had shown mistrust in its own people
In a strongly worded statement on Twitter on Friday, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs suggested that with time Qatar’s move will not be forgotten. Doha is believed to have blocked a website set up by the Saudi Ministry for Hajj and Umrah for those wishing to make the holy pilgrimage to Makkah from Qatar
“As soon as the Qatar crisis subsides and years pass by, the Qatari government’s call to restrain its citizens from performing hajj will remain pinned because such a perverse and unorthodox call is widely unsupported by states which find it disgraceful to their year-long stand and political approach,” Dr Gargash said
In a separate tweet, he questioned Qatar’s priorities and ability to distinguish between political matters and the wishes of its citizens to visit Saudi Arabia to fulfill their religious duties
“The Qatari government’s decision bars its citizens from performing the rituals of hajj, and regardless of all the justifications it touted, it shows a clear absence of informed vision that can differentiate between what is political and what is more important. Not to mention that the politicisation and enticing fear against your own citizens’ performance of hajj is a sign of mistrusting them, their priorities and their choices,” he said
Last month Saudi Arabia relaunched an online portal for Qataris to register for Hajj after Doha appeared to block local access to the old one
The site is intended to help Qataris perform the holy pilgrimage despite Saudi Arabia being embroiled in a diplomatic standoff with its neighbour
Saudi Arabia, along with the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt, cut relations with Qatar last year and have since barred its citizens entering the country without special permission
The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said last month that despite the Qatari government attempting to block it citizens from performing the religious duty it “welcomes the Qatari people to perform Umrah rituals following a completion of registering their legal information”
The statement continued: “The ministry affirms that the citizens and residents in Qatar can come by air through King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah via all airlines companies except Qatar Airways”
