Former Qatari Emir hails coup response by Turkey’s ex-president

The former Emir of Qatar has praised Turkey’s ex-President Abdullah Gul over his courageous response to last month’s failed coup attempt, Anadolu reported on Friday.

Shaikh Hamad Bin-Khalifa Al-Thani made particular mention of Gul’s remarks to the media when he did not hesitate to describe the move by the military as a coup, criticise it and call for the people to support the democratically-elected leader of the country. According to Shaikh Hamad, Gul’s stance played an important role in the failure of the military takeover attempt. His remarks were made during a meeting between the two former leaders in Gul’s residence in Istanbul.

The people of Qatar stand side by side with Turkey, said the former emir. He expressed his confidence that Turkey will overcome its difficulties very soon.

Gul, 65, was president between August 2007 and August 2014. He served as prime minister, deputy prime minister and foreign minister between 2002 and 2007.