A breakthrough has been reached in Qatar's three-year-old dispute with Saudi Arabia and three other Arab countries and an agreement aimed at ending their rift is to be signed in Saudi Arabia today, a senior Trump administration official said in Washington.
Saudi state agency SPA quoted Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman as saying the annual gathering of Gulf leaders would unite Gulf ranks "in the face of challenges facing the region".
The US official said the Saudi crown prince and His Highness the Amir of Qatar would sign the deal.
White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, assigned to work on the dispute by US President Donald Trump, helped negotiate the deal and was working the phones on it until the wee hours of Monday morning, the official said.
Kushner, joined by Middle East envoy Avi Berkowitz and Brian Hook, a special State Department adviser, were flying to the Saudi Arabian city of Al-Ula to attend the ceremony, the US official said.
"It's just a massive breakthrough," the official said. "The blockade will be lifted. It will allow for travel amongst the countries as well as goods. It will lead to more stability in the region."
