Egypt, Qatar Plan Reconciliation Summit

Local Editor

Egyptian and Qatari intelligence officials have met to arrange talks between leaders of the two countries to end a row over the ouster of president Mohamed Mursi, a diplomatic source said Wednesday.

The planned summit is part of reconciliation efforts brokered by Saudi Arabia after Qatar this month pledged its "full support" for Egypt.

Qatar's earlier backing of Morse and his Muslim Brotherhood movement left it isolated in the region.

"Talks are under way to organize a meeting between the Egyptian president and the emir of Qatar," an Arab diplomatic source said.

He further clarified that "the talks took place in Cairo over the past two days between the head of Qatari intelligence and his Egyptian counterpart for arranging such a meeting in Riyadh."

He said there was a possibility that a meeting between President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani "could be held on Sisi's way back from China".
Al-Sisi is expected to return from China on Wednesday after a two-day trip.
A foreign ministry official when contacted said he had no idea that intelligence officials of the two countries had met in Cairo.

A regional summit in November hosted by Riyadh, Qatar joined its Gulf neighbors in supporting Egypt under Sisi.

"Egypt looks forward to a new era that ends past disagreements," Sisi's office said after he held a meeting with a special envoy of Qatar's emir on Saturday -- his first with a Doha representative since becoming president in June.
The Qatari envoy was accompanied by a special representative of Saudi King Abdullah.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team