GULFS APART

U.S. Ambassador to Qatar Steps Down Amid Trump Undercutting State Dept.

While Gulf states continue blockade on Qatar, seemingly encouraged by the president.

The U.S. ambassador to Qatar announced that she will leave her post amid a diplomatic crisis engulfing the Persian Gulf nations, made worse by President Trump undercutting the State Department’s approach to the situation. “This month, I end my three years as US Ambassador to Qatar. It has been the greatest honour of my life," Dana Shell Smith tweeted on Tuesday without giving an exact explanation for her departure. Shell Smith was famously openly critical of Trump after he fired FBI chief James Comey, tweeting at the time, “Increasingly difficult to wake up overseas to news from home, knowing I will spend today explaining our democracy and institutions.” Her exit comes as several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, have accused Qatar of supporting terrorism and have imposed a blockade on the U.S. ally in response. While the State Department, led by Rex Tillerson, has requested the states ease their blockade, President Trump has encouraged the blockade after seemingly taking credit for it.