Qatar’s emir urges Gulf security and wartime preparedness

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called for stronger protection of Gulf shipping routes and critical infrastructure, warning that citizens and institutions must prepare for worst-case scenarios as the country responds to wartime disruption. Speaking on October 13 at the opening of the Shura Council’s annual session in Doha, Sheikh Tamim urged greater efforts to secure navigation in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz. He also called for protection of energy and water facilities and civilian infrastructure, and for cooperation among Gulf Cooperation Council states. The emir said Qatar had been attacked by Iran and described the attack as a violation of the country’s sovereignty. Iran has maintained that it targeted U.S. interests among its neighbors, according to one report. The supplied accounts do not independently establish the attack or its circumstances. Sheikh Tamim said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and damage to facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City disrupted a significant portion of Qatar’s exports. Those consequences, too, were presented as claims in his speech rather than independently verified in the supplied reporting.