Qatar takes fight with boycotting Arab bloc to trade body

Qatar says it has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization against three of the four Arab countries that are isolating it.

The Gulf nation said late on Monday that it filed the grievance with the WTO's dispute settlement body alleging that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain are violating laws and conventions related to trade.

The three countries and Egypt cut diplomatic ties and severed all transport links with Qatar on June 5, alleging it supports extremists. Qatar denies the charge and sees the boycott as politically motivated.

The isolation campaign has forced Qatar to seek more expensive imports and reroute flights on costly detours over friendlier airspace.