Lifestyle Saudi Crown Prince in Qatar for World Cup opening ceremony By Reuters November 20, 2022 Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS Prince Mohammed visited Doha late last year in his first official trip to Qatar since he was named crown prince in 2017 Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived to Doha late on Saturday to attend the 2022 Qatar World Cup’s opening ceremony on Sunday in a show of Gulf solidarity after a three-year regional dispute ended last year. Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Thani, the deputy of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, was at the reception of Prince Mohammed upon his arrival to Doha, the Emiri Diwan of Qatar said in a statement. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed ties with Qatar from 2017 to January 2021 over accusations that Doha supported “terrorism” – a reference to Islamist groups. Doha denied the charges. Riyadh and Cairo have since led efforts to mend ties and appointed ambassadors to Qatar, while Abu Dhabi and Manama have yet to do so. All but Bahrain have restored travel and trade links. Prince Mohammed visited Doha late last year in his first official trip to Qatar since he was named crown prince in 2017. The World Cup final on December 18 is due to be watched by 80,000 fans in the Lusail stadium and a television audience that could pass one billion people. A successful tournament could do much to “improve the global perception and acceptance of Arab cultural heritage and traditions in the Gulf region”, according to a new report from Fitch Solutions. A successful World Cup could boost Saudi Arabia’s joint bid with Egypt and Greece to host the tournament in 2030 and its campaign to host the World Expo in Riyadh the same year.
