Cairo: The Arab League yesterday condemned what it called the “hateful campaign” against Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 World Cup, amid a corruption scandal rocking football’s governing body FIFA.
The League’s General Assembly in a statement declared its “full support” for Qatar’s hosting of the tournament, which would be the first World Cup held in an Arab country.
“The Arab League endorses the resolution issued by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) condemning the hateful campaign that attempts to question Qatar’s right to host the 2022 World Cup,” the Cairo-based League said.
On Thursday, the OIC denounced “biased Western media campaigns against the State of Qatar”, and GCC foreign ministers issued a strongly-worded statement on June 11 affirming their solidarity with their member state.
Swiss judicial authorities have launched an investigation into the awarding of the 2022 competition and the tournament in Russia four years earlier.
Qatar has maintained that its bid remains unaffected by the latest allegations. AFP
