A report on Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates

Excavation of a Kassite dye site on Al Khor Island

Anthropomorphic stela (4th millennium BC), sandstone, 57x27 cm, from El-Maakir-Qaryat al-Kaafa (National Museum of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh)

2nd century BCE era jar found in Mleiha Archaeological site in Sharjah.

Abbasid Caliphate at its greatest extent, c. 850.

A 1794 map depicting Catura in the Historical region of Bahrain.

The "Worshipping Servant" statue (2500 BC), above 1 m in height, is much taller than any possible Mesopotamian or Harappan models. Photo courtesy of the National Museum of Korea.

A painting of the Portuguese Empire Doba Fortress in Dibba Al-Hisn in 1620.

A partially restored section of the ruined town of Zubarah.

Qaṣr Al-Farīd, the largest of the 131 rock-cut monumental tombs built from the 1st century BC to the 1st century AD, with their elaborately ornamented façades, at the extensive ancient Nabatean archaeological site of Hegra located in the area of Al-'Ula within Al Madinah Region in the Hejaz. A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2008.

Purple – Portuguese in the Persian Gulf in the 16th and 17th century. Main cities, ports and routes.

Colossal statue from Al-'Ula in the Hejaz (6th–4th century BC), it followed the standardized artistic sculpting of the Lihyanite kingdom, the original statue was painted with white

A painting depicting the burning of the coastal town and port of Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah during the Persian Gulf campaign of 1809.

At its greatest extent, the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) covered 11100000 km2 and 62 million people (29 per cent of the world's population), making it one of the largest empires in history in both area and proportion of the world's population. It was also larger than any previous empire in history.

Dhayah Fort at the hill top. In 1819 it was the last Al-Qasimi stronghold to fall in the Persian Gulf campaign of 1819. The fall of Dhayah was to pave the way for the signing of the General Maritime Treaty of 1820.

Dubai in 1950; the area in this photo shows Bur Dubai in the foreground (centered on Al-Fahidi Fort); Deira in middle-right on the other side of the creek; and Al Shindagha (left) and Al Ras (right) in the background across the creek again from Deira

A British Wilding series stamp, issued 1 April 1957, and overprinted for use in Qatar.

Abdulaziz Ibn Saud, the founding father and first king of Saudi Arabia

Historic photo depicting the first hoisting of the United Arab Emirates flag by the rulers of the emirates at The Union House, Dubai on 2 December 1971

Traditional dhows in front of the West Bay skyline as seen from the Doha Corniche.

Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was the first President of the United Arab Emirates and is recognised as the father of the nation.

Amiri Diwan of the State of Qatar, administrative office of the Emir.

Map of Saudi Arabian administrative regions and roadways

Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani with U.S. President Joe Biden in January 2022.

Map of oil and gas pipelines in the Middle-East

Two Qatari Mirage 2000s fly in formation during Air Defense Exercise.

King Fahd with US President Ronald Reagan and future US President Donald Trump in 1985. The US and Saudi Arabia supplied money and arms to the anti-Soviet mujahideen fighters in Afghanistan.

Roads leading to Jebel Jais, the highest mountain in the UAE (1,892 m), in Ras Al Khaimah.

As many as 500 princes, government ministers, and business people, including Prince Fahd bin Abdullah, were arrested by Saudi Arabian authorities as part of the 2017 Saudi Arabian purge

Acacia trees growing in desert suburbs near Fujairah

Ad Dawhah (Doha), the most populous municipality in Qatar.

Abdullah ibn Muhammad Al ash-Sheikh with Bogdan Borusewicz in the Polish Senate, 26 May 2014

Entrance to Qasr Al Watan, the presidential palace in Abu Dhabi.

Verses from the Quran. The Quran is the official constitution of the country and a primary source of law. Saudi Arabia is unique in enshrining a religious text as a political document.

Emirati Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan (furthest right) at the signing of the Abraham Accords.

U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, 21 May 2017

United Arab Emirates Air Force F-16 Block 60 "Desert Falcon", taking off from the Lockheed Martin plant in Fort Worth, Texas.

U.S. President Barack Obama meets King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, July 2014

Dubai Police helicopter flying at sunset.

Faisal Mosque in Islamabad is named after a Saudi king. The kingdom is a strong ally of Pakistan. WikiLeaks claimed that Saudis are "long accustomed to having a significant role in Pakistan's affairs".

A man pictured with alcoholic beverages in Dubai. Alcoholic beverages were not widely available in the UAE before 2020

Tourist resort at Banana Island in Qatar

Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir with then British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson (now Prime Minister) in London, 16 October 2016

Dubai Police super-car motorcade at Jumeirah Road

Major Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict locations

Protest against the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, March 2018

A proportional representation of Qatar exports, 2019

Flag of Al-Qaeda, a transnational terrorist group formed by Osama bin Laden, a Saudi Arabian national of Yemeni and Syrian extraction who was stripped of his Saudi passport in 1994.

Two south Asian blue-collar workers posing for a picture with Burj Khalifa on the background.

"The Saudi pilots training in Italy 1935"—a scene from 'Our Eagles', one of four video wall shows made for the Royal Saudi Air Force Museum

Dubai construction workers having lunch break.

Qatar Airways Airbus A380, Qatar Airways, one of the world's largest airlines, links over 150 international destinations from its base in Doha.

Saudi soldiers from the First Airborne Brigade.

Dubai Media City is home to diverse news and tech companies.

Deera Square, central Riyadh. It is a former site of public be-headings.

Burj Khalifa is the tallest human-made structure in the world.

Harrat Khaybar seen from the International Space Station. Saudi Arabia is home to more than 2000 dormant volcanoes. Lava fields in Hejaz, known locally by their Arabic name of harrat (the singular is harrah), form one of Earth's largest alkali basalt regions, covering some 180000 km2, an area greater than the state of Missouri.

A proportional representation of United Arab Emirates exports, 2019

A proportional representation of Saudi Arabia exports, 2019

Office of Saudi Aramco, the world's most valuable company and the main source of revenue for the state

Ruwais Refinery is the fourth-largest single-site oil refinery in the world and the biggest in the Middle East.

The hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims.

The news desk of Al Jazeera English, a Qatari news channel

King Abdullah Financial Center is one of the largest investment centres in the Middle East, located in Riyadh

Al-Hasa is known for its palm trees and dates. Al-Hasa has over 30 million palm trees which produce over 100 thousand tons of dates every year.

A Dubai Metro train. Dubai Metro is the Arabian peninsula's first rapid transit system and was the world's longest driverless metro network until 2016.

Saudi Arabia population density (people per km2)

An Emirati folk dance, the women flip their hair sideways in brightly coloured traditional dress.

Lusail Iconic Stadium with capacity of 80,000 seats.

A band performs Yowlah in an Emirati wedding. Yowlah is a cultural dance derived from Arab tribes sword battles.

Student Center in Education City. Education City houses various educational facilities, including satellite campuses of eight international universities.

The Al-Yamamah Private University in Riyadh

Arabic coffee with lugaimat; a traditional Emirati sweet.

UIS literacy rate Saudi Arabia population, 15 plus, 1990–2015

Historical development of life expectancy in Saudi Arabia

Supplicating pilgrim at Al-Masjid Al-Ḥarām (The Sacred Mosque) in Mecca. The Kaaba is the cubic building in front of the pilgrim.

Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi

Non-Muslims are prohibited from entering the Islamic holy city of Mecca

University City Hall is the largest hall located in University City in Sharjah. Graduation ceremonies of American University of Sharjah, University of Sharjah, and Higher Colleges of Technology are notably held here.

Sarah Attar is a track and field athlete who competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics as one of the first two female Olympians representing Saudi Arabia.

The Masjid al-Haram is the holiest Islamic site, located in Mecca

Residential villas in the Palm Jumeirah palm fronds in Dubai.

The Mosque of the Prophet in Medina containing the tomb of Muhammad

King Abdullah practising falconry, a traditional pursuit in the country

Arabic coffee is a traditional beverage in Arabian cuisine

Uruguay – Saudi Arabia match at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia

The 3000-year-old ancient historical city of Dumat al-Jandal in Al Jawf Province

Jabal Sawda ({{convert|3000|m|ft|abbr=on|disp=or}}) located in the 'Asir subrange of the Sarat Mountains

Abha City, located {{convert|2270|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level in the 'Asir Region

Dhi 'ain village located in Al Bahah Province

The desert of Al-Rub' Al-Khali (The Empty Quarter)

Saad Khader from left and right Mohammad Al-Ali in 1979

It occupies the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and shares its sole land border with neighbouring Gulf Cooperation Council monarchy Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its territory surrounded by the Persian Gulf.

- Qatar

It is located at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula and shares borders with Oman and Saudi Arabia, while having maritime borders in the Persian Gulf with Qatar and Iran.

- United Arab Emirates

It is bordered by the Red Sea to the west; Jordan, Iraq, and Kuwait to the north; the Persian Gulf, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to the east; Oman to the southeast; and Yemen to the south.

- Saudi Arabia

Regional disputes, however, persuaded Qatar and Bahrain to withdraw from the talks and become independent states separate from the Trucial States, which went on to become the United Arab Emirates.

- Qatar

15 related topics with Alpha

Arabian Peninsula

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Peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate.

The geographical and political boundaries of the Arabian Peninsula

The Haraz Mountains in western Yemen include Arabia's highest mountain, Jabal An-Nabi Shu'ayb or Jabal Hadhur near Sanaa

Ancient coins from Failaka Island, Kuwait

Sabaean inscription addressed to the god Almaqah, mentioning five Ancient Yemeni gods, two reigning sovereigns and two governors, 7th century BC

Ottoman territories on the Arabian Peninsula acquired between 1517 and 1590 (See: list of territories)

The peninsula in right before World War I.

Jebel Hafeet on the border of Oman and the UAE, near the city of Al Ain. It can be considered an outlier of Al Hajar Mountains.<ref name="Gardner 01-2004"/>

The northeastern Hajar Mountains, shared by Oman and the UAE, as seen from the desert of Sharjah

The Dhofar mountainous region in southeastern Oman, where the city of Salalah is located, is a tourist destination known for its annual khareef season

The Hadhramaut Mountains of eastern Yemen, contiguous with the Omani Dhofar range, as seen from the city of Al-Mukalla

Terraced fields in the Harazi subrange of the Sarawat Mountains in western Yemen

Jabal Sawdah of the 'Asir range in southwestern Saudi Arabia, in Asir Region near the border with Yemen

The Faifa mountains in the Jazan Region, southwestern Saudi Arabia.

The Midian Mountains of Tabuk Province, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, near the border with Jordan

The Aja subrange of the Shammar Mountains in the region of Ha'il, northern Saudi Arabia

The Tuwaiq Escarpment or Tuwayr mountainous region in the Najd, southwest of the Saudi capital city of Riyadh

The old city of Sanaa, Yemen. Peninsular Arabs trace their lineage to Qahtan, who was reportedly based in Yemen.

A map of the peninsula made in 1720 by the German publisher Christoph Weigel

Ain Zubaydah was built to water the pilgrims in Mecca by order of Zubaidah bint Ja'far

Omar Mosque in Dumat al-Jandal, Saudi Arabia.

The facade of a tomb with its details and architectural elements.

Qasr al Farid, tomb in Archeological site Mada'in Saleh, Al-`Ula, Saudi Arabia

Diriyah the capital of the first Saudi state

The ruins of Umayyad city in the historic Jumeirah district of Dubai.

Bull's head, made of copper in the early period of Dilmun (ca. 2000 BC), Bahrain.

The head and body of a Saluki is made of stone from the Al-Magar civilization, in the Neolithic period, (about 8000 BC).

Geographically, the Arabian Peninsula includes Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Yemen, as well as the southern portions of Iraq and Jordan.

Arab world

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The Arab world (العالم العربي '), formally the Arab homeland (الوطن العربي '), also known as the Arab nation (الأمة العربية '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states''', consists of the 22 Arab countries which are members of the Arab League.

Salah Zulfikar and Faten Hamama in the premiere of Bain Al-Atlal ("Among the Ruins") in Cairo, 1959

The Great Mosque of Kairouan (also called the Mosque of Uqba) was founded in 670 by the Arab general and conqueror Uqba ibn Nafi. The Great Mosque of Kairouan is located in the historic city of Kairouan in Tunisia.

In Saudi Arabia, Ismailite pockets are also found in the eastern Al-Hasa region and the southern city of Najran.

These Arab states only gained their independence during or after World War II: the Republic of Lebanon in 1943, the Syrian Arab Republic and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1946, the Kingdom of Libya in 1951, the Kingdom of Egypt in 1952, the Kingdom of Morocco and Tunisia in 1956, the Republic of Iraq in 1958, the Somali Republic in 1960, Algeria in 1962, and the United Arab Emirates in 1971.

In terms of GDP per capita, Qatar is the richest developing country in the world.

Middle East

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Geopolitical term that commonly refers to the region spanning Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (European part of Turkey), Egypt, Iran, the Levant (including Ash-Shām and Cyprus), Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), and the Socotra Archipelago (a part of Yemen).

Map of the Middle East between Africa, Europe, Central Asia, and Southern Asia.

Middle East map of Köppen climate classification.

Western Wall and Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem

Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem

The Kaaba, located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Islam is the largest religion in the Middle East. Here, Muslim men are prostrating during prayer in a mosque.

Oil and gas pipelines in the Middle-East

Some henges at Göbekli Tepe were erected as far back as 9600 BC, predating those of Stonehenge, England, by over seven millennia. The site of the oldest known man-made religious structure.

1911 Ottoman calendar shown in several different languages such as: Ottoman Turkish (in Arabic script), Greek, Armenian, Hebrew, Bulgarian, and French.

The most populous countries in the region are Egypt, Iran, and Turkey, while Saudi Arabia is the largest Middle Eastern country by area.

In 1958, the State Department explained that the terms "Near East" and "Middle East" were interchangeable, and defined the region as including only Egypt, Syria, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar.

Mass production of oil began around 1945, with Saudi Arabia, Iran, Kuwait, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates having large quantities of oil.

Arab League

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Regional organization in the Arab world, which is located in Northern Africa, Western Africa, Eastern Africa, and Western Asia.

Arab League of states establishment memorial stamp. Showing flags of the 8 establishing countries: Kingdom of Egypt, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (North Yemen), Syrian Republic, Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Lebanese Republic and Palestine

Joining dates of member states; the Comoros (circled) joined in 1993.
1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s

Administrative divisions in the Arab League.

Recognition of both Israel and Palestinian State
Recognition of Palestinian State only

The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945 initially with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan (renamed Jordan in 1949), Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria.

On 9 September 2020, the Arab League refused to condemn the UAE's decision to normalize ties with Israel.

As of 2013, a significant difference in economic conditions exist between the developed oil states of Algeria, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE, and developing countries like the Comoros, Djibouti, Mauritania, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

Persian Gulf

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Mediterranean sea in Western Asia.

Map of the Persian Gulf. The Gulf of Oman leads to the Arabian Sea. Detail from [[:File:MiddleEast.png|larger map of the Middle East]].

A historical map of the Persian Gulf in a Dubai museum with the word Persian removed

Picture depicting extent of early civilizations around the Persian Gulf, including Lackhmids and Sassanids.

Picture depicting the Achaemenid Persian empire in relation to the Persian Gulf.

A painting depicting the British Expeditionary Force off the coast of Ras Al Khaimah in 1809.

The Portuguese Castle on Hormuz Island (Gaspar Correia. "Lendas da Índia", c. 1556)

Operation Earnest Will: Tanker convoy No. 12 under US Navy escort in October 1987

Dugong mother and her offspring in shallow water

Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins off the southern shore of Iran, around Hengam Island

Spinner dolphins leaping in the Persian gulf

Critically endangered Arabian humpback whales (being the most isolated, and the only resident population in the world) off Dhofar, Oman

Its length is 989 km, with Iran covering most of the northern coast and Saudi Arabia most of the southern coast.

Countries with a coastline on the Persian Gulf are (clockwise, from north): Iran; Oman's Musandam exclave; the United Arab Emirates; Saudi Arabia; Qatar, on a peninsula off the Saudi coast; Bahrain, an island nation; Kuwait; and Iraq in the northwest.

Arabic

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Semitic language that first emerged in the 1st to 4th centuries CE.

The Namara inscription, a sample of Nabataean script, considered a direct precursor of Arabic script.

Arabic from the Quran in the old Hijazi dialect (Hijazi script, 7th century AD)

The Qur'an has served and continues to serve as a fundamental reference for Arabic. (Maghrebi Kufic script, Blue Qur'an, 9th-10th century)

Coverage in Al-Ahram in 1934 of the inauguration of the Academy of the Arabic Language in Cairo, an organization of major importance to the modernization of Arabic.

Taha Hussein and Gamal Abdel Nasser were both staunch defenders of Standard Arabic.

Flag of the Arab League, used in some cases for the Arabic language

Flag used in some cases for the Arabic language (Flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz 1916–1925).The flag contains the four Pan-Arab colors: black, white, green and red.

Arabic calligraphy written by a Malay Muslim in Malaysia. The calligrapher is making a rough draft.

Gulf Arabic, spoken by around four million people, predominantly in Kuwait, Bahrain, some parts of Oman, eastern Saudi Arabia coastal areas and some parts of UAE and Qatar. Also spoken in Iran's Bushehr and Hormozgan provinces. Although Gulf Arabic is spoken in Qatar, most Qatari citizens speak Najdi Arabic (Bedawi).

Ethnoreligious groups in 2002. Zaydi Shi'a followers make up between 35% and 42.1% of Muslims in Yemen.

Saudi Arabian–led intervention in Yemen

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King Salman of Saudi Arabia and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir meet with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in September 2015

Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir announced a five-day ceasefire in Yemen, 8 May 2015

Protest against the military intervention in Yemen on 14 August 2020

Saudi Arabia's UK-supplied Eurofighter Typhoons are playing a central role in Saudi-led bombing campaign in Yemen.

The US Navy has actively participated in the Saudi-led naval blockade, which humanitarian organizations argue has been the main contributing factor to the outbreak of famine in Yemen.

Yemeni capital Sanaa after airstrikes, 9 October 2015

Protest against the military intervention in Yemen, New York City, December 2017

Protest outside 10 Downing Street against a visit by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, London, March 2018

The conflict is exacerbating Yemen's water scarcity, Sanaa, 21 May 2015

An airstrike in Sanaʽa on a textile factory in July 2015 left more than 1,300 people unemployed (photo: A. Mojalli/VOA, November 2015)

Apartment building destroyed by a strike in Sanaa on 5 September 2015

Development of the number of IDPs and IDP returnees (January 2010 – June 2018)

"Let Yemen Live" protest at US and Saudi missions to the UN, New York City, December 2017

Yemen's former president Ali Abdullah Saleh was initially allied with Houthis, until they assassinated him on accounts of treason.

Yemen's President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 7 May 2015

Foreign Ministers of the U.S., the U.K., Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, before a working dinner focused on Yemen, 19 July 2016

Protesters against the US-backed Saudi-led war on Yemen were led away handcuffed by New York police outside the US mission to the UN on 11 December 2017

Registration of Indian citizens evacuating from Yemen, March 2015

On 26 March 2015, Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of nine countries from West Asia and North Africa, launched an intervention in the Yemeni Civil War in response to calls from the president of Yemen Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi for military support after he was ousted by the Houthi movement.

The Saudi-led coalition has attacked the positions of the Houthi militia, and loyalists of the former President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, supported by Iran (see Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict), Fighter jets and ground forces from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Academi (formerly called Blackwater) took part in the operation.

Eastern Arabia

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A dhow, a common item depicting the culture of seafaring in Eastern Arabia. It is displayed in the coat of arms of Kuwait and Qatar.

Asia in 600 CE, showing the Sassanid Empire before the Arab conquest

Phoenicians men their ships in service to Assyrian king Sennacherib, during his war against the Chaldeans in the Persian Gulf, c. 700 BC

Facsimile of a letter sent by Muhammad to Munzir ibn-Sawa al-Tamimi, governor of Bahrain in AD 628

Map of eastern and central Arabia in the 9th–10th centuries

Eastern Arabia (اَلْبَحْرَيْنِ) is a historical region stretching from Southern Iraq along the Persian Gulf coast and included regions in Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, Eastern Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Northern Oman.

Saudi Arabia is often considered a Gulf Arab state although most of the country's inhabitants do not live in Eastern Arabia with the exception of the Bahrani people who live in Qatif and al-Hasa oases and who historically inhabited the entire region of Eastern Arabia before the establishment of the modern day political borders.

Gulf Arabic

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Gulf Arabic (خليجي Ḵalījī local pronunciation: or اللهجة الخليجية il-lahja il-Ḵalījīya, local pronunciation: ) is a variety of the Arabic language spoken in Eastern Arabia around the coasts of the Persian Gulf in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, southern Iraq, eastern Saudi Arabia, northern Oman, and by some Iranian Arabs.

Gulf Cooperation Council

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Rail transport map of Saudi Arabia. The GCC Railway, a proposed railway system to connect all six GCC member states, can be seen in yellow.

Euler Diagram for the Arab League, which contains members of the Gulf Cooperation Council

The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (مجلس التعاون لدول الخليج العربية), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; مجلس التعاون الخليجي), is a regional, intergovernmental, political, and economic union comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.