Inside Story

Was Qatar a victim of fake news?

The United Arab Emirates denies hacking Qatar’s news agency with false stories which triggered the Gulf crisis.

The Washington Post says US intelligence agencies have confirmed that the United Arab Emirates was behind the hacking of Qatar News Agency.

The newspaper says the UAE arranged for false quotes to be attributed to the emir of Qatar, including describing Iran as an “Islamic power” – as well as praising Hamas.

Within days, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain accused Qatar of supporting “terrorism” – and cut diplomatic ties and closed their borders.

Qatar has consistently denied the allegations and said the false remarks were posted by hackers – an explanation rejected by the quartet.

What does the latest revelation mean for this dispute?

Presenter: Richelle Carey

Guests:

Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Ali Al-Thani, former Vice Chairman of the Qatar National Food Security Programme.

Andreas Krieg, Assistant Professor, Defense Studies Department. King’s College London.

Bruce Fein, Former U.S. Associate Deputy Attorney General.