Saudi Arabia and Qatar are reportedly close to reaching an agreement to end an over three-year Saudi-led blockade of Qatar. The possible deal comes after senior White House adviser and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner visited the Gulf this week. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt imposed a blockade on Qatar in 2017 after accusing it of becoming too close to Iran. Analysts say the push by the Trump administration is part of its effort to isolate Iran and elevate Israeli interests in the region.
In 2017, Kushner’s family real estate business appealed to Qatar’s billionaire former prime minister to finance a failing Manhattan property. One month after he and other Qatari investors refused, Jared Kushner pushed the Trump administration to support the Saudi-led blockade of Qatar.