The Qatari government on Tuesday announced the removal of the requirement for an entry document to the country for citizens of Gulf Arab states, amid a rapprochement in the region following a blockade imposed on Doha between 2017 and 2021.
The Qatari Interior Ministry has announced the cancellation of the requirement to obtain the ‘hajjah’ for citizens and residents of countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC).
Thus, it has stressed that these people will be able to enter the country through all border crossings without having to present this document, a measure that comes into force this Tuesday, as reported by the Qatari state news agency, QNA.
Qatar amended its entry requirements in November to allow entry to people who did not have tickets to watch World Cup soccer matches. The ‘hayya’ was an entry permit to Qatar that continues to be required to gain access to stadiums.
The announcement came a day after a visit by United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan, his first since a boycott led since 2014 by four countries in the region that accused Doha of «supporting terrorism.»
Qatar has recently upgraded its ties with the countries that led the boycott–Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE–following the end of the boycott in January 2021, shortly before U.S. President Joe Biden was sworn in.
These countries announced in January 2021 an agreement with Qatar to reopen borders and end the blockade of Qatar. These countries had previously suffered ups and downs in their relations, especially over the Qatari authorities’ support for the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization outlawed in most Gulf countries, and the role of the Al-Jazeera network in covering the so-called ‘Arab Spring’.
However, and despite the fact that tensions rebounded in 2014 and involved the withdrawal of ambassadors, in the case of 2017 they entailed a battery of much harsher measures that included the expulsion of citizens from the country and the closure of roads to means of transport arriving from Qatar.
