RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – The secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council on Saturday condemned remarks by Germany’s interior minister on the World Cup due to be hosted in Doha.
Qatar on Friday summoned Germany’s ambassador to protest against comments made by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser casting doubt on whether the Gulf state should host the football World Cup.
GCC chief Nayef al-Hajraf on Saturday expressed support for Qatar in a statement published on the council’s website.
The six-member Gulf bloc backs Doha in “addressing any interference in its internal affairs by publishing allegations that do not serve the establishment of normal relations between the two countries”, he said.
“Qatar is heading toward making new successes, and hosting the 2022 World Cup is a source of deserved pride,” he said.
Faeser had said, in an interview with the ARD network aired on Thursday, that Qatar’s hosting of the World Cup next month was “very tricky” for Germany.
“There are criteria that must be adhered to and it would be better that tournaments are not awarded to such states,” she added.
In a separate statement released ahead of her visit with the head of the German football federation Bernd Neuendorf, she said that rights would be raised in talks.
“No World Cup takes place in a vacuum. Human rights always apply everywhere – and now the whole world is paying special attention,” Faeser said.
This is the first time Qatar has summoned a foreign ambassador over such comments.
Qatar has come under increasing scrutiny over its treatment of foreign laborers and human rights record since it earned the right to host world football’s biggest event.
The country has highlighted widespread reforms to its labor and industrial safety record in recent years that have been hailed by international labor unions.