The United Nations on Friday offered to step in to help resolve a deepening crisis in the Gulf after Qatar was confronted with a list of demands from its neighbors, including the closure of Al-Jazeera television. Tensions escalated, however, after Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates presented a list of demands to Qatar overnight. Qatar is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council with Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. On June 5, Saudi Arabia and the UAE led a severing of all links with Qatar for allegedly supporting groups, including some backed by Iran. Other allies, including Bahrain and Egypt, followed.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer June 23, 2017 18:22 UTC