
© REUTERS/ Naseem Zeitoon
Qatar may face tougher sanctions on the part of the four Arab states, but the escalation of the diplomatic conflict into a military one is unlikely, Egyptian political experts told Sputnik.
On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt, Yemen and Libya cut diplomatic ties with Qatar, accusing the Gulf nation of supporting terrorists and militant groups with ties to Iran.
Saudi Arabia closed the crossing at Qatar's only land border, which Qatar uses to import about 40 percent of its food supplies.
Qatar's Arab neighbors also denied permission for the national carrier Qatar Airways to use their airspace, and airline carriers from the UAE canceled all flights to Doha.
Iran, with which Qatar shares a natural gas field in the Persian Gulf, and Turkey, which has a military base in Qatar, have sent deliveries of food and other supplies to Qatar by sea.
Comment: Also read: Qatar may face more sanctions, but definitely not a military conflict