08 June 2017•Update: 08 June 2017
ISTANBUL
A group of Turkish citizens on Wednesday took to Istanbul's Taksim Square to protest Qatar's isolation in the face of several states in the Arab world severing ties with Doha.
"Qatar, you are not alone," the group chanted, before driving to Uskudar district in a convoy.
President of non-profit Qatar's Friends Group, Bekir Cantemir in a speech drew parallels between the 2013 coup in Egypt, the 2016 coup attempt in Turkey and what is happening in Qatar, accusing foreign powers of trying to destabilize the region.
"The coup was successful in Egypt; the Egyptian people could not get themselves out of the international intrigues… We gathered here against the moves of alienation and subversion of Qatar by plots, lies and defamation… Get your hands off Qatar. Your plans have been exposed,” Cantemir said.
#KatarYalnızDeğildir (Qatar is not alone) and #TurkeywithQatar Twitter hashtags went viral on social media in both Turkish and English in a bid to support Doha amid the ongoing rift.
On Wednesday, Turkey’s parliament ratified two deals on deploying troops in Qatar and training the nation's gendarmerie forces.
The deal on deploying troops on Qatari soil to improve the country's army and boost military cooperation was signed in April 2016, in the Gulf country’s capital Doha.
On Monday, five Arab countries -- Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Yemen -- cut ties with Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism.
Qatar denied the accusations, calling the move "unjustified".
The escalation came two weeks after the website of Qatar’s official news agency was allegedly hacked by unknown individuals who reportedly published statements attributed to the country’s Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.
The incident triggered a diplomatic row between Qatar and its neighbors.
Reporting by Selami Kucukoglu;Writing by Sibel Ugurlu
