The US ambassador in Doha on Thursday formally apologised to Qatar after a video was posted online showing laughing American soldiers stationed in the Gulf allegedly insulting the emirate's flag. Dana Shell Smith took to Twitter to apologise and called on the US military to investigate the incident after having been summoned by Qatar's foreign ministry.
"I have presented my apology to the government of Qatar and instructed the US military command to investigate the incident and take disciplinary action," she said on social media. "My dear followers, please be assured that those soldiers were making fun of themselves and not the state of Qatar." The ambassador, who has served in Doha for the past two years, added that Qatar was a "staunch ally and an old friend".
The video shows a male and female soldier in fatigues standing in front of US and Qatari flags. The pair are shown joking and laughing, saying they are being filmed at an "unknown dislocation". The male soldier then says they are "in a place called ummm", and points to the flag of Qatar, one of Washington's closest allies in the Middle East. The woman soldier repeats the word "ummm". It is not clear when or where the video was filmed, though it appears to have been circulating online from Wednesday.