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Saudi, Egypt, UAE, Bahrain cut links with Qatar over 'terrorism' support

Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have cut diplomatic ties with Qatar over the accusation.

Syrian government forces fire artillery during a battle against the Islamic State group on May 16, 2017 in the town of Maskana, on the edge of Lake Assad in the eastern part of the Aleppo province

According to a report by BBC, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have cut diplomatic ties with Qatar over the accusation.

The countries reportedly said Qatar is supporting terrorist groups including the Muslim Brotherhood.

While Saudi said Riyadh had closed its borders, severing land, sea and air contact with Qatar, Egypt's foreign ministry also said it has also closed its airspace and ports for all Qatari transportation.

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The Saudi State News Agency, it was reported, cited officials as saying it was to "protect its national security from the dangers of terrorism and extremism".

In the same vein, the United Arab Emirates has given Qatari diplomats 48 hours to leave the country as Abu Dhabi reportedly accuses Doha of "supporting, funding and embracing terrorism, extremism and sectarian organisations."

For Bahrain, the state news agency reportedly said the country was cutting ties with Qatar because Doha was "shaking the security and stability of Bahrain and meddling in its affairs".

The report further revealed that the Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Yemen's Houthi rebels have also expelled Qatar from its alliance because of Doha's "practices that strengthen terrorism" and its support to groups "including al-Qaeda and Islamic State.

While is yet to make public comment on the latest development, it was reported that Qatar has provided its warplanes to carry out air strikes against the Houthi rebels.

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