More than 5,000 Qataris, who have lost their citizenship following an emiri decree, have described the government decision as "arbitrary" and said it violated international charters. According to Al-Riyadh Arabic newspaper, which managed to obtain a copy of the emiri decree, a total of 5,266 people from Al-Ghafran branch of Al-Murrah tribe were affected by the decision. The men, women and children on the list are to lose their rights to state-provided employment, housing, education and health care. Electricity and water have already been cut off to the homes of those named, reports said. Informed sources said the move was "a belated response to a failed coup attempt", a reference to the 1996 attempt to unseat Qatar's current ruler, Emir Sheikh Hamad Al-Thani."The move also aims at keeping a balance in Qatari society, especially after the government's plan to hold parliamentary elections next year," the sources pointed out. Human rights activists in the country described the move as "dangerous violation of basic rights of those affected". They said they had informed international human rights organizations of the decree, which affected a large number of women, children and elderly citizens. According to Article 15 of the Qatari Citizenship Law, a Qatari will lose his citizenship if he commits a major crime. But the law applies only to the person or persons who commit the crime, not the entire family or tribe. Al-Murrah tribe, which settled in Qatar some 200 years ago, accounted for 43 percent of the emirate's population. Al-Hayat Arabic daily said the Qatari government justified the decision on the ground that the affected branch of the tribe was of Saudi Arabian origin and held Saudi citizenship. Miteb Al-Ghafrani, a tribe member, said he was in Saudi Arabia when the decree was issued and could not enter Qatar. "I tried to enter Qatar after hearing the news of the death of my father. But my efforts went in vain. I don't have any identity," Al-Hayat quoted Al-Ghafrani as saying. Oil- and gas-rich Qatar has a population of only around 800,000 people, four-fifths of whom are expatriate workers and their dependents.