Qatar could face further sanctions by Arab states as a deadline to accept a series of demands from its Gulf neighbours, including closing down the television network al-Jazeera, passes on Sunday night. Rex Tillerson, the US secretary of state, was working the phones to see whether a compromise could be reached but Qatari leaders have effectively rejected the 13 demands tabled 10 days ago by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain.

Qatar’s foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, said on Saturday that the demands to shut down al-Jazeera, close a Turkish military base and cut relations with Iran had been framed to be rejected. The demands were made by the Saudi-led allies over allegations of Qatari support for terrorism, which it denies. It has called the demands an attack on its sovereignty. The four anti-Qatar states have only hinted at how they will respond if their ultimatum is spurned and not detailed any immediate penalties.(theguardian)…[+]