© Al JazeeraUnited Arab Emirates' ambassador to Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba
As
tensions between Qatar and the Saudi-led block grow, the sides use more and more diplomatic and media tools each against others.
The Qatari state-run media outlet Al Jazeera released a lare article based on leaked emails revealing the hidden Emirati diplomacy in the Middle East.
The latest email leaks from the Hotmail account of the United Arab Emirates' ambassador to Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba, could threaten Emirati diplomacy and strain regional relations, analysts say.
"If the leaked emails are proved to be genuine, they could become a source of stress for the UAE," Khalil Jahshan, executive director of the Arab Center Washington DC, told Al Jazeera.
On Saturday, hackers released what they claimed was the first in a series of emails taken from the inbox of Otaiba. The leaks have revealed a strong relationship between the UAE and think-tanks closely allied to Israel, along with Emirati efforts to tarnish the images of Qatar and Kuwait; Emirati involvement in the failed coup attempt in Turkey; and the UAE's fight against Islamist movements, particularly Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
Speaking to Al Jazeera, legal expert Mahmoud Refaat said the leaked emails serve as living proof of what he described as "the Emirates' heinous crimes" in the region.
"The UAE has destroyed entire populations, including the Libyan and the Yemeni people, under the banner of fighting the Muslim Brotherhood," Refaat said.
Some of the leaked emails include a detailed agenda for a meeting scheduled later this month between officials from the UAE government and representatives of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a pro-Israel think-tank. The agenda includes a joint assessment of the changes that have taken place in Saudi Arabia, which proposes a plan to support Saudi stability and its new policy directions.
The agenda also includes a review of internal Saudi policies, domestic challenges faced by the Saudi leadership, foreign policy and the kingdom's role in stripping legitimacy from worldwide 'jihad'," Al Jazeera's article reads.
According to the article, the emails also
revealed communications between the UAE and the US aimed at preventing a meeting by the Islamic resistance movement, Hamas, in the Qatari capital, Doha.
Comment: If the email innuendo worked so well in the US for sloppy politicians...copy, adapt and apply. Does Israel benefit in picking off ME regimes one-by-one? And, who would you think has the 'dirt' on each and every source it needs to mastermind this level of disruption?
According to Al-Jazeera:
Otaiba is a well-known figure in US national security circles - he has been called "the most charming man in Washington" - and has participated in Pentagon strategy meetings at the invitation of defence officials.
...the emails, released by a group called "Global Leaks", show a close relationship between al-Otaiba and a pro-Israel, neoconservative think-tank - the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). The hacked emails, some of which date back to 2014, reveal a high level of backchannel cooperation between the FDD, which is funded by pro-Israel billionaire Sheldon Adelson, and the UAE.
They also appear to show clear collaboration between the FDD and the UAE on a campaign to downgrade the image and importance of Qatar as a regional and global power, including collusion with journalists who have published articles accusing Qatar and Kuwait of supporting "terrorism". ...the emails support previous allegations "that there is a growing axis between some of the Gulf countries, like Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and Israel".
The agenda includes in-depth discussions specifically on Qatar, including Qatar-based Al Jazeera, and its links to the Muslim Brotherhood. One item on the agenda is: "Al Jazeera as an instrument of regional instability". "They actually discussed recasting Al Jazeera as a disruptive network, a network that is causing instability and chaos, rather than recognised good journalism".
A large portion of the emails focus on "U.S./UAE policies to positively impact Iranian internal situation" and to "contain and defeat Iranian aggression." In early March, Dubowitz [CEO of FDD] emailed Otaiba a list of non-US businesses operating in Saudi Arabia or the UAE "looking to invest in Iran. This is a target list for putting these companies to a choice, as we have discussed," Dubowitz wrote.
Hearst, of the Middle East Eye, told Al Jazeera he believed the leaked emails showed a clear "agenda" by ruling figures in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt. They have "seized" on Donald Trump's presidency in the US, "and now they're using him as a way of getting the job done, which includes getting rid of Al Jazeera... and also muffling Qatar".
Comment: If the email innuendo worked so well in the US for sloppy politicians...copy, adapt and apply. Does Israel benefit in picking off ME regimes one-by-one? And, who would you think has the 'dirt' on each and every source it needs to mastermind this level of disruption?
According to Al-Jazeera: