Turkey's Erdogan slams isolation of Qatar: 'It is inhumane and un-Islamic'

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But Jason Tuvey, Middle East economist at London-based Capital Economics, said that as long as the other Gulf countries did not interfere with Qatar's LNG exports, which would be a major escalation of the crisis, the tiny state would probably be able to carry on without a serious recession.

Saudi Arabia and Iran have clashed over several issues, including Iran's nuclear program and what Saudis see as Tehran's growing influence in the region - especially in Syria, Lebanon and neighboring Yemen.

He says Saudi Arabia has allowed families to move between countries. British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson warned against any further escalation during the mediation efforts, but also played up the Saudi narrative, insisting that Qatar "urgently need to do more to address support for extremist groups".

The Amnesty chief said a delegation from the body, which had earlier visited Qatar, documented around 700 instances in which the Saudi-led measures had resulted in rights violations. The measures have also made family visits hard.

"It's not about Iran or Al Jazeera", he said.

The crisis has put Turkey in a hard position as it views Qatar as one of its chief allies in the region, but Ankara also seeks to avoid damaging relations with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states.

As the Qatari crisis unfolded, Erdogan nearly immediately announced "full support" for Doha, stating that "we don't find sanctions against Qatar right".

Meanwhile al-Baker has appealed to the International Civil Aviation Organization, a United Nations agency which regulates international air travel under the Chicago Convention, to declare the airspace closure as illegal.

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Al-Baker also criticised US President Donald Trump for comments he has made linking Qatar to supporting terror.

What's behind Qatar-Gulf freeze?

"A lot of people think we're the only ones to lose in this", the minister said.

Vladimir Putin met Saudi Arabia's King Salman on Tuesday, following a meeting with Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdelrahman Al Thani over the weekend. Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, one of the world's largest, controls stakes in companies including Glencore PLC and Barclays PLC.

On Sunday, Iran had sent five planes of vegetables to Qatar.

The curbs placed on gas-rich Qatar have ranged from bans on flag-carrier Qatar Airways using airspace of the countries involved to Saudi Arabia suspending subscription sales and renewals to a Qatar-linked sports broadcaster.

Three ships carrying 350 tonnes of food were also set to leave Iran for the emirate.

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