Washington Post claims the UAE orchestrated hacking of Qatari government sites: The UAE reportedly orchestrated the alleged hack of Qatar’s news agency, the event that (publicly, at least)sparked the whole Qatar Smackdown, the Washington Post reports, citing unnamed US intelligence sources. Intelligence officials reportedly confirmed to the newspaper senior members of the UAE government discussed the plan and its implementation on 23 May — a day before comments by the ruling Emir appearing to praise Iran and Hamas were aired on Qatar’s news agency. The officials said it remains unclear whether the UAE carried out the hacks itself or contracted it out. “The UAE had no role whatsoever in the alleged hacking described in the article,” the UAE’s ambassador to the US, Yousef al-Otaiba, said in a statement. “What is true is Qatar’s behavior. Funding, supporting, and enabling extremists from the Taliban to Hamas and Qadafi. Inciting violence, encouraging radicalization, and undermining the stability of its neighbors,” he added.

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