Unjust to alienate countries allegedly supporting extremists - Expert

Actions taken by Saudi Arabia and four other Gulf states to sever diplomatic ties with Qatar is deemed to be unjustified.

Head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research of Singapore, Prof Rohan Gunaratna, said rather than accusing Qatar of allegedly supporting terrorism and extremism, the Arab states should bring this issue to a roundtable discussion to persuade Qatar to refuse the ideology of terrorism as a whole.

“Saudi Arabia ought to be careful in making accusations that other countries are involved in embracing terrorism.

“The most ideal strategy is to discuss and try to influence them to no longer continue cooperating with terrorist groups.

“It is of great importance that this issue is handled diplomatically without isolating them” Rohan said.