UAE says Qatari fighter jets 'intercepted' passenger plane

The UAE on Monday claimed fighter jets belonging to rival Qatar of 'intercepting' a passenger plane en route to Bahrain

2 min read

15 January, 2018

UAE claims one of its civilian planes intercepted en route to Bahrain [Getty illustrative photo]

The UAE on Monday claimed fighter jets belonging to rival Qatar of "intercepting" a passenger plane en route to Bahrain, in an ongoing row over alleged airspace violations.

"Qatari fighter jets intercept an Emirati civilian aircraft during a routine flight to Manama in a flagrant threat to civil aviation safety and in a clear violation of international law," the UAE General Authority of Civil Aviation alleged in a statement published by the state news agency.

Qatar denied the UAE's claim in a tweet by the foreign ministry.

"The state of Qatar announces that the claims of Qatari fighter planes intercepting a UAE civil aircraft (are) completely false," foreign ministry spokeswoman Lulwa al-Khater said on Twitter.

On Friday, Qatar filed a complaint to the United Nations about an alleged violation of its airspace in December by an Emirati military aircraft.

Qatari authorities said the violation on 21 December, which the UAE denied, lasted one minute.

On 5 June, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and economic ties with gas-rich Qatar, accusing it of links to extremist groups.

Saudi Arabia then issued Qatar with a list of demands, including shutting down media outlets Al Jazeera and London-based The New Arab, curbing relations with Iran, and closing a Turkish military base in the emirate.

Qatar has denied the allegations and repeatedly called for dialogue to end the crisis.