Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has transported some 209 nationals studying in Egypt back to Doha as millions of people demonstrated against President Mohammed Morsi’s government on the one-year anniversary of his inauguration, QNA reports.

The students were flown home in two batches over the past couple days, after MOFA called on all Qatari citizens to leave Egypt “for their own safety.”

According to the New York Times, seven people have been killed and more than 200 people injured in Egypt so far in clashes between pro- and anti-Morsi protesters.

Al-Qaradawi weighs in

Meanwhile, Egyptian-born prominent Islamic scholar Yusuf Al-Qaradawi flew from Qatar to Cairo this weekend to support Morsi, who is also backed by the Muslim Brotherhood.

On his official website, Al-Qaradawi also discounted a widely circulated rumor in Egypt that Qatar’s new Emir had asked him to leave the country.

Discounting the rumors as “nonsense,” a statement on his website added that they were being perpetuated by “followers of the Syrian regime.”

So far, there have been no reported protests from the Egyptian community  in Qatar, which has been a steadfast supporter of Morsi, offering billions of dollars in aid to his government.

However, Egyptian daily newspaper Al Masry al Youm reports that several Egyptians previously petitioned the Qatari government to hold a silent protest against Morsi, but were denied permission to demonstrate “for security reasons.”

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo by Zeinab Mohamed