Qatar’s emir arrives in Egypt for first visit since end of boycott

Qatar’s ruler arrived in Egypt on Friday, his first trip to the country since the two Arab countries agreed last year to end a long-running regional feud, diplomatic sources said.

Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who last visited Egypt in 2015, was greeted at the airport in Cairo by President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.

The visit comes just two months after Qatar announced it would invest $5 billion in Egypt.

The emir’s trip comes days after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited Cairo and the announcement of $7.7 billion in investment deals between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain had boycotted Qatar since 2017 over charges it supports terrorism, a reference to Islamist groups. Qatar denied the accusation.

With Egypt facing economic headwinds as a result of the war in Ukraine, its cabinet said in March that Egypt and Qatar had agreed to sign investment deals worth $5 billion.