UAE drags Qatar to court over crisis

THE HAGUE: The United Arab Emirates asked the UN´s top court on Tuesday to stop Qatar "severely aggravating" the two-year-old crisis that snapped ties between Doha and Gulf states.

The International Court of Justice in The Hague ordered Abu Dhabi last July to protect the rights of Qatari citizens following the blockade launched in 2017 by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and other allies.

But in a tit-for-tat case, the UAE accused Qatar of blocking a key website and using its state-controlled news channels and fake documents to hamper Abu Dhabi´s own efforts to obey the order. The Emirates also accused Qatar of backing terrorist groups including the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda, echoing one of the original allegations by the Gulf allies against Doha. "Qatar has continued to aggravate the dispute and make it more difficult to resolve," Hissa Abdulla Ahmed Al-Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to the Netherlands.

She urged the court to take urgent measures to stop Qatar´s alleged actions, warning of "irreparable harm" to the UAE´s own legal rights otherwise.