Demise of Gulf wise men bodes ill for Middle East conflicts | Financial Times

Demise of Gulf wise men bodes ill for Middle East conflicts | Financial Times:

The death of two Gulf peacemakers this year augurs ill for the war-torn Middle East, where conflict has defined the decade that followed the Arab spring.

Sheikh Sabah, Kuwait’s emir from 2006 who died last month aged 91, sought to resolve regional conflicts over his half a century of shaping foreign policy in the most democratic state in the Gulf. 

When Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates led a trade and travel embargo over fellow Gulf state Qatar, accusing Doha of fostering extremism, the elder statesman Sheikh Sabah adopted his traditional mantle as mediator, shuttling between capitals seeking to restore unity within the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council.

While the dispute outlasted his attempts for resolution, Sheikh Sabah claimed that mediation had at least prevented military conflict between Gulf neighbours who used to describe each other as “brotherly states” but now engage in virulent smear campaigns on social media.