After six years of being inaccessible in the UAE, the Qatari government-sponsored news website Al Jazeera has been unblocked in the country, it has been reported.
According to individual reports across the country, the website is currently available on both of the UAE’s internet service providers, including Du and Etisalat, both on Wi-Fi and mobile data.
If this is an official unban and not an internet error, this would be a change in longstanding policy.
The UAE has not commented on the website’s accessibility or any change in policy, so it may not be a permanent change.
Beyond Al Jazeera: UAE and Qatar’s continuing diplomatic relations
The UAE originally blocked Al Jazeera across the emirates on 5 June 2017, after ending diplomatic relations with the neighboring country. Relations have since returned, with UAE officials meeting to discuss the relationship in the last quarter of 2022.
In fact, UAE officials again met with Qatari counterparts on April 5, 2023, just four days ago, to discuss how the countries can better work together.
“Two official delegations representing the United Arab Emirates and the State of Qatar met in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, today, in the fourth joint meeting to follow up the implementation of “AlUla Declaration “, issued by the GCC Summit hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2021,” said the UAE’s state news agency WAM.
The UAE delegation was led by Ali Saeed Matar Al Neyadi, while the Qatari counterpart was led by Dr. Ahmed bin Hassan Al Hammadi, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“During the meeting, the two sides discussed joint mechanisms and procedures to implement AlUla Declaration, and stressed the importance of bolstering relations between the two brotherly countries and developing joint work in a way that achieves their common interests,” continued the WAM report.
It is unknown if state media was a part of that discussion.
Al Jazeera originally launched as a satellite channel back in 1996 in Doha, Qatar, growing into a 24 hour news network back in 1999. They launched the English website in 2003, and has grown into a global enterprise in the ensuing decades.