Qatar was the second country to recognise the NTC and the first to announce a trade agreement with it, declaring on 27 March 2011 that it would market Libyan oil exports from eastern terminals controlled by anti-Gaddafi elements. It was also the first Arab country to join international military operations in Libya, sending interceptors to help enforce the no-fly zone starting on 25 March. The Qatari government is also closely tied to Al Jazeera, one of the first international news networks to begin covering the 2011 civil war.