Well, I'm afraid all the nonsense, worry and hassle has got the better of me, and I've cancelled my three upcoming return business class tickets ex-Egypt. I've referred to the TRF/INVOL instruction mentioned in an earlier post in my refund requests, but I'm not hopeful of receiving full refunds anytime soon (but who knows?).
I've now booked new QR J class tickets VCE-BKK-VCE, at an additional cost of approx $1,000 (quite reasonable fares of EUR 1176 all-in). Of course, I do also have comprehensive travel insurance.
However, with the increased certainty (hopefully), I can go ahead and book accommodation, connecting flights, etc, with a little more confidence. I really didn't want to be at the whim of QR, maybe stranding me in HBE or CAI or elsewhere for a little while, and not being able to use pre-booked connections or accommodation. And a few days in Venice might be nice too.
No thank you, Qatar Airways, very poor form.