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August 7, 2026

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Explainer

Qatar launches diamond exchange as Hormuz crisis chokes LNG exports

Qatar's new diamond exchange is an effort to diversify from the country's main exports, LNG and petroleum products, which have been severely cut as a result of the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

A ship sails off the coast of Ajman on July 10, 2026.

Interview

Why Strait of Hormuz no longer rattles oil markets as much: IMF

The fund's Middle East director, Jihad Azour, told Al-Monitor that the big Gulf energy producers now have more capacity to absorb the shock.

Jihad Azour

Jihad Azour

Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund

Latest News

Oil soars more than 6% as Trump rules out Iran deal, threatens more strikes

A cargo ship is pictured off coast of the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on June 28, 2026.

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

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir (L), UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (2nd-L), Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry (2nd-R), and Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa (R) meet in the Egyptian capital Cairo on July 5, 2017, to discuss the Gulf diplomatic crisis with Qatar, as Doha called for dialogue to resolve the dispute.
The Saudi foreign ministry said on July 5, 2017 that it had received Qatar's response to a 13-point list

Egypt thaws relations with Qatar after long-running feud

Egypt signed a reconciliation agreement with Qatar, along with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, aimed at ending the Gulf blockade imposed on Doha since 2017, but it seems pending issues remain, including the Muslim Brotherhood, preventing full restoration of ties between Cairo and Doha.

Emirati official says Gulf states to work on trade with Qatar before resuming diplomatic ties

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash's comments indicate that healing the Gulf rift may still take more time.

Gulf countries end feud, but Saudi cleric who urged detente still in jail

Salman Aloudah's son says it's ironic that Saudi Arabia is hailing the end of the Gulf rift but silencing a prominent voice who called on the neighbors to mend ties.

Journalists watch the arrival of the Qatar envoy ahead of the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in the city of al-Ula in northwestern Saudi Arabia on January 5, 2021. - Saudi Arabia will reopen its borders and airspace to Qatar, US and Kuwaiti officials said, a major step towards ending a diplomatic rift that has seen Riyadh lead an alliance isolating Doha. The bombshell announcement came on the eve of GCC annual summit in the northwestern Saudi Arabian city of Al-Ula, where the dispute was already

Gulf unity deal further isolates Iran

Healing the Gulf Cooperation Council rift is a parting gift for Trump and a welcome gift for Biden in dealing with the Islamic Republic.

Journalists watch, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman addressing the attendees of the summit, on a screen in the media centre ahead of the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in the city of al-Ula in northwestern Saudi Arabia on January 5, 2021. - Saudi Arabia will reopen its borders and airspace to Qatar, US and Kuwaiti officials said, a major step towards ending a diplomatic rift that has seen Riyadh lead an alliance isolating Doha. The bombshell announcement came on the eve of GCC annual summi

Qatar, Gulf states ink 'solidarity and stability' deal in Saudi Arabia

The agreement was struck a day after Saudi Arabia agreed to reopen its air, land and sea borders to rival Qatar.

A picture taken on December 5, 2019, shows a general view of the headquarters of al-Jazeera Media Network, in the Qatari capital Doha. - Qatar-based broadcaster Al-Jazeera has travelled a long and bumpy road from the early 2000s when it was best known for airing tapes of former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. It now cultivates a loyal youth audience on social media alongside the satellite channels which have won it both acclaim and scorn. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty I

Al Jazeera journalists reportedly hacked with Israeli-made spyware

Thirty-six Al Jazeera staff members were targeted in an attack that some have blamed on Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

A worker inspects bottles of milk on on the producion line at a dairy factory at Baladna farm in the city of al-Khor, 60 kilometers north of the Qatari capital on October 26, 2019. - The cows of Qatar's Baladna farm, housed in climate-controlled farms in the desert, exemplify the lengths to which Qatar has gone to resist what it calls an economic "blockade" enforced by its Saudi-led neighbours. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Gulf economies face major challenges in post-COVID 19 world

Signals indicate the embargo imposed on Qatar could come to an end, but can the Gulf Cooperation Council play a coordinating role vital to diversify Gulf economies post-pandemic?

US treasury secretary to tour Middle East in final push for Abraham Accords

Steven Mnuchin plans to stop in Israel, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Sudan and Qatar.

United Arab Emirates

A picture taken on June 5, 2017 shows a man walking past the Qatar National Bank (QNB) branch in the Saudi capital Riyadh, following a severing of relations between major gulf states and gas-rich Qatar. - Arab nations including Saudi Arabia and Egypt cut ties with Qatar accusing it of supporting extremism, in the biggest diplomatic crisis to hit the region in years. (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Second US lawsuit hits Qatar National Bank over terrorist finances

A new lawsuit filed in the United States naming institutions tied to Qatar's royal family is seeking damages for victims of terrorist attacks in Israel

Doha named 2030 Asian Games host, Riyadh gets 2034

Gulf rivals Qatar and Saudi Arabia were both vying for 2030 hosting rights.

Is Egypt ready to turn page on Gulf crisis with Qatar?

Egypt has welcomed the recent Kuwaiti efforts to end the Gulf crisis pitting a Saudi-led bloc of nations, including Egypt, against Qatar.

A Turkish military M60T battle tank is seen along the M4 highway, which links the northern Syrian provinces of Aleppo and Latakia, before incoming joint Turkish and Russian military patrols (as per an earlier agreed upon ceasefire deal) in the village of al-Nayrab, about 14 kilometres southeast of the city of Idlib and seven kilometres west of Saraqib in northwestern Syria on March 15, 2020. - Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan reached a deal on March 5 to crea

Opposition turns up pressure on Erdogan over defense dealings with Qatar

Turkey’s political opposition has stepped up pressure on the government over its often-opaque dealings with Qatar as the country’s tank production contract, awarded to a Turkish-Qatari joint venture, remains bogged down.