ICJ dismisses Qatar suit against UAE over racial discrimination

The World Court yesterday dismissed a case brought by Qatar against the UAE alleging it had imposed measures that amounted to racial discrimination, Reuters reports.

But in an 11-6 decision, the court, formally known as the International Court of Justice, upheld objections raised by UAE that the measures it and other Gulf States imposed on Qatar were based on nationality, and not racially motivated.

The court found that Qatar’s attempts to base its complaint on the United Nations’ 1965 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination lacked merit and so the court had no jurisdiction in the dispute.

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a land, air and sea blockade on Qatar, accusing the latter of supporting terrorism, which Doha denies.

They included the banning of work and travel by Qatari citizens through their territory.

The Arab countries ended the boycott on 5 January.

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