Qatar joins military exercise in Saudi Arabia

Qatari armed forces participated in the conclusion of the Gulf Shield 1 military exercise in Saudi Arabia earlier this week.

The Qatari army said in a statement issued yesterday that Qatari Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Ghanem Al-Ghanim, participated in the final day of the Gulf Shield 1 exercise on Monday at the invitation of his Saudi counterpart, General Fayyadh Al Ruwaili.

According to the statement, the exercise took place in the area of ​​Jubail, east of Saudi Arabia, with the participation of a number of Qatari officers, led by Brigadier General Khamis Al-Dablan.

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Training for the command centres, field exercise and regular and non-regular warfare exercises with live ammunition were included in the training as well as a military parade which included forces from the 25 countries that participated in the drill, the statement continued.

On 5 June last year, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed a blockade, alleging that it sponsors terrorism. The government in Doha denies the charges.