From Pearl Divers to Porsche DriversThat the other Gulf countries even care about Qatar enough to despise it is a relatively new development. For decades they lagged far behind their Saudi neighbors, who were in the midst of a heady oil boom. Then, in 1971, Qatar struck gas. Their average income of $125,000 is the highest in the world, over twice that of the United States or Saudi Arabia. His rise to power in 2013, at the age of 33, offered a stark contrast with the gerontocracy of Saudi Arabia, where rulers clung to their thrones till reaching their deathbeds.

Source: New York Times January 22, 2018 07:52 UTC