Reports in Iranian media have quoted several government officials as saying Tehran would be prepared to export food products to Qatar if the blockade continues.

“Food shipments from Iran can reach Qatar in 12 hours,” Reza Nourani, chairman of the union of exporters of agricultural products, was quoted as saying by the local Fars News Agency.

Analysts have told MEED the decision by the UAE and Saudi Arabia to close airspace, ports and territorial waters to air traffic and shipping to and from Qatar could have serious ramifications on the country’s food supplies.

In 2016, Saudi Arabia and the UAE made up almost 40 per cent of all food products imported by Qatar. The country’s land border with Saudi Arabia is the main route for more than half of its food supplies.

Saudi Arabia has decided to close this border, leaving the Qataris dependent on air and sea freight, which could increase prices.

“The impact on food security has so far been understated, and the Qataris could soon find out how vulnerable they are to their neighbours,” says Jack Kennedy, an analyst at UK-based IHS.

“While construction and industries will be at the forefront of the economic argument, food security and access to key commodities will be key.”

Social media reports and pictures have circulated showing long queues at supermarkets and cash machines in Qatar as residents fear the worst, one Doha-based analyst has told MEED under the conditions of anonymity.