UAE veteran commentators resign from Qatar-based beIN Sports

Faris Awad and Ali Saeed Al Kaabi announced their resignation from the Qatar-based sports channels on Saturday.

ABU DHABI // Two of the UAE’s top football commentators have left regional broadcaster beIN Sports.

Faris Awad and Ali Saeed Al Kaabi resigned from the Qatar-based sports channels on Saturday.

Awad thanked supporters and staff on Twitter.

“Today, I’ve ended my cooperation with beIN Sports channels,” he tweeted. “I would like to thank the administration and all my colleagues and all my brothers there who have shown support, warmth, affection and appreciation.

“I would like to thank the channel’s director Nasser Al Khalifi for everything, and I thank my brother Abdel Aziz El Merri and Ibrahim and everyone for their cordiality and thousands of thanks to my dear brother Mohammed Saadoon.”

He indicated that he would continue to work with Dubai Sports.

Al Kaabi tweeted: “Ten years of real professional expert work that shall remain in my heart forever. So long to all my colleagues at beIN Sports and great thanks to my true friend Nasser Al Khalifi.”

Saudi columnist Samar al-Mogren, who writes for Al-Arab Qatari daily, tweeted on Sunday that the “Saudi ministry of culture and information has decided to end the collaboration of Saudi writers with Qatari newspapers”, Agence France-Presse reported.

She said that two other Saudi writers, Saleh al-Shehi and Ahmed bin Rashed al-Saeed, had also stopped writing for Qatari newspapers based on the ministry’s orders.

Another writer, Muhanna al-Hubail, had received similar orders from the ministry, said Mogren.

It is unclear if the resignations relate to current diplomatic tensions between the UAE and Qatar.

The UAE withdrew its ambassador to the country last week.