Qatar said Wednesday it was surprised by Ethiopia's decision to cut diplomatic ties with the Gulf state, and rejected as unfounded the accusation that it sought to destabilize the Horn of Africa. The official QNA news agency cited a foreign ministry spokesman as saying Doha was “surprised” by Addis Ababa's “unfounded and untruthful allegations,” and saw them as “a deliberate attempt to justify its own erroneous policies.” On Monday, Ethiopia announced it was severing ties with Qatar, accusing the Doha government of supporting armed opposition groups across the Horn of Africa and citing Qatar's “strong ties” with Ethiopia's arch foe Eritrea.
