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UAE welcomes Qatari decision to amend anti-terrorism laws

July 21, 2017 at 3:08 pm

Qatari forces [Omar Chatriwala/Flickr]

The United Arab Emirates today welcomed Qatar’s decision to amend its anti-terrorism laws which were announced yesterday.

In a move to counter their accusations of supporting terrorism, which it denies, Qatar has set rules for defining terrorism, acts of terrorism, freezing funding and terrorism financing a week after it signed an agreement with the US aimed at combating the financing of terrorism.

It has also established national terrorism lists with rules for listing individuals and groups.

“The Qatari decree to amend the anti-terrorism law is a positive step to deal seriously with the 59 terrorists,” UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said on Twitter.

Read: Where is the flaw in the Gulf’s security?

Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain designated dozens of people with alleged links to Qatar as terrorists, including Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Yousef Al-Qaradawi, and 12 entities, among them Qatari-funded charities.

#QatarGate 

“The pressure of the crisis has started to bear fruits, and the wiser course would be changing the whole orientation,” Gargash added.

The four countries led a diplomatic and economic campaign to pressure and isolate the small Gulf state, which is a critical global supplier of gas and hosts the biggest US military base in the Middle East.