Qatar denies warplanes intercepted UAE airliner

Qatar’s Civil Aviation Authority issued a statement on Monday, commenting on an incident that Abu Dhabi said took place a day earlier.
 
The UAE had said a plane with 86 passengers on board was heading to Bahrain when it was menaced by Qatari military planes, forcing the pilot to try to avoid a collision.
 
As stated by the Qatari Civil Aviation Authority, the military planes were on a routine flight when a UAE military aircraft entered Qatar's airspace without permission in the same area as the UAE civilian plane.
 
Doha said the UAE was actually manipulating facts about an incident, wherein an Emirati warplane waded into the Qatari skies.

    "The United Arab Emirates has unfortunately been manipulating the facts to inflame and mislead the international community. The latest statement is proof of this," it said.
 
Since last June, Doha has reported many instances of aggressive behavior by Emirati and Bahraini aircraft and vessels.
 
That month, the two countries alongside Egypt followed Saudi Arabia’s lead and imposed a trade and diplomatic embargo on Qatar. The quartet accused Doha of supporting terrorism, a charge it strongly denies.
 
In March, Doha complained to the United Nations about an incident, in which a UAE vessel had hijacked a Qatari fishing boat with eight crewmen.
 
A series of leaked documents revealed in November 2017 that the UAE had a detailed plot to launch an economic war on Qatar.
 
In February, Qatar’s Defense Minister Khalid bin Mohammad al-Attiyah said Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had planned a military invasion of his country at the beginning of the diplomatic crisis that erupted last year.