Dubai/Doha: In a bid to deepen Qatar's isolation, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has shut its airspace to all international flights from Doha. The ban that existed for Qatar Airways has now been extended to other flight companies too.
All Indian flights to Doha will now have to divert routes and fly over Iran. This means that travel time from Kerala will see an increase of 10-15 minutes. However, a senior official has said that there would not be any immediate hike in fares of Qatar Airways.
Meanwhile, the Non-Resident Keralites' Affairs Department (NORKA-ROOTS) officials have said that there was no cause for concern about the situation in Qatar. They informed the media after their meeting with Indian ambassador to Qatar P. Kumaran. However, the officials warned against fake reports being spread on social media.
After Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE cut ties to Doha on Monday, accusing it of supporting militants and Iran, regional allies followed suit and denounced domestic foes as Qatari stooges, undermining reconciliation efforts by foreign powers.
The UAE's national postal service, Emirates Post Group, also suspended all postal services to Qatar, state news agency WAM said on Thursday.
The UAE has also threatened anyone publishing expressions of sympathy toward Doha with up to 15 years in prison and barring entry to Qataris.
“Strict and firm action will be taken against anyone who shows sympathy or any form of bias toward Qatar... whether it be through the means of social media," Gulf News quoted UAE attorney-general Hamad Saif al-Shamsi as saying.
Offenders could also be hit with a fine of at least 500,000 dirhams ($136,000), the newspaper said.
(With inputs from Reuters)