Qatar asks UN body to resolve Gulf airspace row

Dubai

QATAR has asked the United Nations' aviation agency to intervene in an airspace rights' dispute with three Gulf states following an escalating diplomatic row and trade blockade, two sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.

Qatar has sent a letter to the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) governing council in an effort to resolve the dispute after Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain closed their airspace to Qatari flights.

The Gulf state has indicated that it will ask the council to resolve the conflict, one of the sources said, using a dispute resolution mechanism under the 1944 Chicago Convention which is overseen by ICAO. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because counc…