Qatar Airways Group has launched 4 worldwide funding arbitrations in opposition to the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Since 2017, the 4 states have imposed an “unlawful air, sea and land blockade in opposition to Qatar,” the service mentioned.
The arbitrations search redress for the blockading states’ actions to take away Qatar Airways from their markets and to forbid the airline from flying over their airspace.
Qatar Airways is in search of a complete of at the very least US$5 billion from the blockading states as compensation for his or her “illegal actions”.
The service argues it has made substantial investments within the 4 international locations over the previous 30 years in an effort to serve lots of of 1000’s of passengers.
The blockage of Qatar – which additionally consists of Yemen – began in 2017, with the Center Jap international locations accusing Doha of supporting militant teams together with so-called Islamic State and al-Qaeda.
Qatar denies the allegations.
Commenting on the launch of the funding arbitrations, Akbar Al Baker, chief govt of Qatar Airways, mentioned: “The choice by the blockading states to stop Qatar Airways from working of their international locations and flying over their airspace is a transparent breach of civil aviation conventions and a number of other binding agreements they’re signatories to.
“After greater than three years of efforts to resolve the disaster amicably by way of dialogue yielded no outcomes, we’ve taken the choice to challenge notices of arbitration and pursue all authorized cures to guard our rights and safe full compensation for the violations.
“The blockading states have to be held accountable for his or her unlawful actions within the aviation sector, which features a failure to adjust to their obligations below bilateral agreements, multilateral agreements and worldwide legislation.”
Qatar Airways is in search of compensation below three separate treaties, particularly: the OIC Funding Settlement; the Arab Funding Settlement; and the bilateral funding treaty between Qatar and Egypt.
The notices of arbitration search to show that, by imposing the measures in opposition to Qatar Airways, the blockading states have violated their obligations below the agreements.
