On Monday morning, the UAE along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, cut ties with Qatar. According to a statement released on the national news agency WAM, UAE airspace and seaports will be closed for all Qataris in 24 hours, “banning all Qatari means of transportation, coming to or leaving the UAE, from crossing, entering or leaving the UAE territories”. Furthermore, all Qatari residents and visitors in the UAE have been given 14 days to leave the country “for precautionary security reasons”. All airlines have already suspended flights between Qatar and the UAE.
Since then, ServiceMarket, the UAE’s leading marketplace for moving companies, has received an influx of calls from customers trying to understand what impact this has on them moving to or from Doha, and what it means for their belongings in transit.
As of Monday evening, no goods are being allowed through the borders. This includes both land and sea. According to one of our moving partners, “Dubai moving companies are currently unable to pass through the borders and all items are being held up. We cannot transport goods into Qatar through the KSA border nor by sea”. It appears that all transportation with Qatar as an origin or destination is affected. International moving companies in Doha are unsure of the long term implications of these border closures, and they are currently looking at what options are available. We will keep updating this article as we learn more, so stay tuned!
