Qatar says it is victim of hostile US media campaign

DOHA: Qatar said Thursday it is the target of a hostile media campaign, particularly in the US, a day after accusing hackers of attributing false remarks to its emir on state media.
Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said he was surprised by the number of recent articles attacking Qatar in the United States.
"There is a hostile media campaign against the state of Qatar, which we will confront," Sheikh Mohammed told reporters, adding that the campaign was strong "especially in the United States".
"It is surprising that during the past five weeks, there were 13 opinion articles focused on Qatar" in the US media.
Sheikh Mohammed said that the day the Qatar News Agency was "hacked, a conference on Qatar convened (in America) without us attending while the authors of those articles were there".
He said the cyber attack took place the same evening as the conference, and asked: "Is this a coincidence?"
Comments attributed to Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani claimed he questioned US hostility towards Iran and that President Donald Trump might not remain long in power.
Doha has strongly denied any such comments were made, saying they were the result of a cyber attack on the QNA.
Qatar is a key US ally and home to Al-Udeid, the largest American airbase in the region, which houses around 10,000 troops.
In recent weeks, however, it has found itself the subject of criticism in the United States over its supposed support for Islamist groups.
It is thought the conference the foreign minister was referring to was one held in Washington on Tuesday, entitled: "Qatar and the Muslim Brotherhood´s Global Affiliates".
There has been speculation there could be problems for Doha as the new US presidency questions its relationship with groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, or the Palestinian  movement Hamas, whose former leadership live in exile in Qatar.