African Leaders have rejected Saudi Arabia call for support to tighten its imposed  sanctions on Qatar.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir held meetings in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with African leaders on the sidelines of the 29th African Union Summit to rally support for the countries that have imposed a blockade on Qatar.

However, in response, the African leaders unanimously stressed the need for the Gulf crisis to end peacefully, Al Jazeera said.
Journalist Mohamed Taha Toukel, specialist in Horn of Africa affairs, told Al Jazeera that the meetings of the Saudi FM with six African leaders were meant to mobilise support for the blockading countries against Qatar. He added that the most important meetings were with the Ethiopian prime minister and the Sudanese second vice-president

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a boycott on Qatar three weeks ago, accusing it of backing militants, then issued an ultimatum, including demands it shut down a Turkish military base in Doha, curb ties with Iran and  close down Al Jazeera TV channel, a demand  the UN describes  is an "unacceptable attack" on the right to freedoms of expression and opinion.

The rift erupted last month when Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and travel ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism and being an ally of Iran, charges that Doha denies.

By Fiifi Abdul Malik