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June 24, 2026

Doha 3:09 pm

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Qatar's Energy Minister and CEO of QatarEnergy Saad Sherida al-Kaabi speaks during a press conference in Doha on June 22, 2026.

Explainer

Qatar blast underscores challenges in race to restart Gulf energy flows

The deadly explosion marks an early test of Gulf efforts to revive oil and gas production following a historic energy supply shock caused by the US-Israel-Iran war.

A picture taken on June 5, 2017, shows a man walking past the Qatar National Bank branch in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Gulf investment to turn inward to rebuild postwar infrastructure: QNB

Charles-Emmanuel de Beauregard, Qatar National Bank’s head of corporate and institutional banking, said that the Gulf countries will need to rebuild their logistics capabilities after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Latest News

Analysis

Gulf aluminum pursues global deals as Hormuz crisis accelerates shift

Aluminum from Dubai sits in the BMW Landshut factory on Oct. 25, 2024 in Ergolding, Germany.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

Turkey pushes Iraq, Syria trade routes as Hormuz crisis disrupts Gulf shipping

Vessels are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off the port city of Khasab on Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula, on May 17, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Karen Young

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy

Reve Chaaban

In Doha reporting on culture

How did Turkey end up with VIP plane it didn’t need?

A Qatar leader's VIP plane that had first been put up for sale ended up as a gift for Erdogan, causing a major stir in Turkey.

United Arab Emirates

U.S. President Donald Trump (L) waits for the start of an event with Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (2-R) and Gulf Cooperation Council leaders at their summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 21, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC17B78F1020

Trump shelves Gulf talks until next year

The White House has once again postponed a Gulf Cooperation Council summit aimed at bringing together the fragmented alliance to counter Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with the Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah at the White House in Washington, U.S., September 5, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RC1CF8BD1230

Qatar crisis looms over Trump meeting with Kuwait emir

In a quiet visit overshadowed by domestic US political turmoil, Kuwait’s emir visited the White House on Wednesday.

Will Hamas, Israel call Qatar-brokered truce?

Qatar has been increasingly involved in talks between Hamas and Israel in what raises questions about its exploitation of the Gaza card in the Gulf crisis.

What Israel wants from Qatar

By signing an arrangement with Hamas, and meeting Qataris, Israel opens the door for Qatari and Iranian influence in the Gaza Strip, and even in the West Bank.

Israel-Hamas talks isolate Abbas

Israel negotiates with Hamas, despite its ideology of destroying the Jewish state, while ignoring Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, its only security partner against terror.

Can Qatar and Germany save Turkey’s economy?

The Turkish lira was up a few points after Qatar's leaders pledged to help Turkey and German Chancellor Angela Merkel made some positive statements, but will this be enough to get Turkey through its currency crisis?

Qatari envoy to Gaza rouses Hamas' ire

Palestinians have expressed their anger at the Qatari ambassador’s statements in which he claimed that Hamas and Israel are conducting secret negations to avoid war.

A Palestinian waits for his relatives to return into Gaza after the Egyptian Authority opened the Rafah Border Crossing for one day, in the southern Gaza Strip February 19, 2018. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa - RC179BE19FB0

How Israel and Egypt are coordinating on Gaza

By threatening to close the Gaza Rafah crossing point, Egypt signals to Hamas that it must reconcile with Fatah.

Is the GCC dead?

The Gulf Cooperation Council is broken and may not be fixable.

Does latest Gulf aid to Jordan come with strings?

Analysts wonder whether a Gulf aid package to help Jordan deal with its current economic crisis is in fact an attempt to pressure the kingdom into accepting the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan being developed by the United States.

Saudi Arabia bails out Jordan

In light of Jordan's latest protests that toppled the prime minister, Saudi Arabia initiated a summit June 10 where a $2.5 billion five-year aid program was agreed on to help the Hashemite Kingdom regain a position of stability in the region.