The Egyptian weekly Al-Ahram Al-Arabi devoted several articles in its February 18, 2012 issue to Qatar, presenting the country as striving to occupy a central position in the international arena and using its various resources to advance that aim. Citing officials, investigators, and analysts, the articles claimed that Qatar, like Israel, was serving U.S. interests and that in this capacity it was working to sow division in the Arab world.
The articles also cited official Syrian criticism of Qatar, an indication that the weekly's political stance remains supportive of the Assad regime.[1]
Following are excerpts from the articles:[2]
Qatar Is a Land of Sheikhs with More Americans than Qatari Citizens
In an article presenting a series of claims regarding Qatar's negative involvement in various Arab countries at the behest of the U.S., writer Mahdi Mustafa cited claims by former Libyan foreign minister and ambassador to the U.N. 'Abd Al-Rahman Shalqam, who defected from Al-Qadhafi's regime to join the rebel forces. According to these claims, Qatar had given oppositionist elements financial and media assistance. Shalqam was also cited as stating that Qatar was behind the Paris conference "that approved the protection of Libya by international [forces against Qadhafi's forces] – a mission that turned into the bombing of Libya by NATO forces."
Mustafa claimed that Syria's suspension from the Arab League marked another American mission carried out by Qatar, adding: "Bashar Al-Assad claimed that Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad [bin Jassem] bin Jaber Aal Thani was carrying out U.S. dictates, and even remarked to him: 'I defend my people with the military, while you defend yours with the American bases on your soil...'"
Regarding Saudi Arabia, Mustafa wrote: "In a leaked recorded phone call, Hamad bin Jassem [bin Jaber Aal Thani] told Al-Qadhafi: 'The Saudi regime is collapsing. Saudi Arabia will be divided up – a plan the West would welcome were it not concerned over [the prospect of] rule by the Islamist stream.'" Mustafa also noted, "Prince Talal bin 'Abd Al-Aziz, brother to the Saudi king, has warned against Qatar's negative influence on the stability of the Gulf and the [Arab] region..."
Regarding Qatar's activity in Sudan, Mustafa wrote that it "had hosted armed oppositionist factions, as well as some of the leaders of Sudan's government, and is still funneling money there. Soon, we will see Darfur totally separated from Sudan, and we may even witness a new revolutionary spring in Khartoum... Qatar has become the legitimate agent of the factions of political Islam, which Washington wishes to install in place of the current rulers, with no regard for the peoples' desire for democracy, freedom, and honorable lives."
Writer Al-Tayyeb Al-Sadeq discussed Qatar's economic activity in the Arab world as a means to exert its influence: "Qatar funnels money and expands its investments in Arab Spring countries in accordance with its interests. This is especially [true] in Libya, Egypt, and Tunisia. Its investments in the Arab arena are discerning and cautious, and some of them have been frozen or cancelled, such as in Syria... After the Egyptian revolution, [Qatar] announced some $10 billion in investments in the country. During his visit to Tunisia on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Tunisian revolution, Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Aal Thani announced the approval of 10 cooperation agreements between the two countries and the deposit of $500 million in the Tunisian treasury. Qatar spent more than $3 billion in aid to the Libyan revolution, in order to get the citizens to oust Al-Qadhafi..."
Qatar Has No Cultural Importance
Another article in the weekly, by writer Rasha 'Amer, was titled "Qatari Culture Is Devoid of History and Was Built on the Shoulders of Egypt and the Arabs." It cited several Arab scholars' reservations over Qatar's cultural merit, such as those of poet 'Abd Al-Mun'im Ramadan, who claimed that "Qatar wants to hijack the Arab cultural center from places with history, and to empty them of their pasts and sources of authority."
In his article, Dr. Sa'id Al-Masadfa stated that there was a disproportionate relationship between the size of Qatar's population and the high cultural status to which it aspires. In this vein, author Ahmad Al-Khamisi claimed that even small countries like Qatar could achieve importance, offering the examples of Israel, which he claimed rose to prominence as the forward military base of another large country – i.e. the U.S. – and the Vatican, which maintained great religious importance. As for Qatar, he said: "Qatar draws its artificial strength from its role as the mouthpiece of U.S. policy in the region, by way of its media outlets. Its cultural role is hard to discuss, not because it is a small country, but due to other historical and cultural reasons... No one has yet heard of a Qatari scientist or writer, nor of any Qatari antiquities. There is no shame in this; the shame results from Qatar's attempts to inflate its role."
Qatar Is Using Al-Jazeera to Boost Its Political Status
Bashir Hassan analyzed the relationship between Al-Jazeera TV and the Qatari regime, asking who controlled whom: "Qatar is a country of a little more than 11,000 square kilometers, with a population approaching 500,000. However, it aspires to position itself [in the center] of the global political map, using no means other than Al-Jazeera TV, which introduced many to Qatar [for the first time]... This channel was the U.S.'s main portal to the Arab world, and everything [the U.S.] wished passed through it. It was the first [Arab] channel to feature politicians and analysts from Israel – the foremost enemy of the Arabs and Muslims.
"It is said that the U.S.'s plans for the Iraq invasion were in the hands of Al-Jazeera executives several days before it began. Furthermore, this channel was the first to report on the WikiLeaks documents, and it increased tensions on the Arab street after the outbreak of the revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya. Now, the target is Syria, and woe to anyone who tries to invoke the law against the Qatari channel.
"What happened to former Egyptian information minister Osama Haikal is a case in point: The channel unleashed its wrath upon him and fabricated lies about him simply because he demanded paperwork before allowing the channel to broadcast from Egypt... In the current media chaos in Egypt, Osama Haikal was made a scapegoat. And although he was ousted from the Information Ministry, he never regretted the steps he took against the channel."
Qatar Buys Athletes To Enhance Its International Status
Writer 'Ala 'Izzat claimed that Qatar had used sports as a means of "purchasing history," such as its successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup: "The Qatari crown prince, who then became emir, did not want the Qatar of his time to have the same status it had under his father. He wished to purchase influence that would suit him and his rule, so he could use it to force himself on the Arab region – especially after the earth yielded an abundance of natural resources, like gas and oil. The sheikh and his advisors saw sports as the best way to address the world, as part of the largest public relations campaign in Qatar's history."
According to 'Izzat, the millions of dollars Qatar funneled towards encouraging athletes attracted an increasing number of sports stars to it, thus introducing fans worldwide to the county. This, he said, was how Qatar had won the bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup soccer championship.
'Izzat added that the Western media had accused Qatar of bribing members of the FIFA Executive Committee, which determines where the World Cup championship is to be held, and of offering famous players and coaches salaries vastly higher than any they had ever earned to play in the Qatari league in the twilight of their careers.
Qatari Funds Mismanaged
Writer Jabr Al-Qarmouti claimed that some of Qatar's investments had failed due to careless spending, and that the country's great wealth did not benefit its citizens: "Despite Qatar's economic might, which it tries to leverage into political benefits in order to place itself in a position disproportionate to its international and regional status and in order to fulfill a controversial role, the Qataris still wonder: Where are the promises of freedom, democracy, and an elected parliament? They feel that all the [country's] profits notwithstanding, there is too much taxation of services and licenses. Some accuse the Qatari authorities of withdrawing liquid cash reserves and investing them in bankrupt international corporations."
Al-Qarmouti cited experts who claimed that Qatar's financial institutions were mismanaged and that some of its investments were troubling, such as its plans to purchase the heavily indebted Manchester United Football Club.
In his article, Al-Tayyeb Al-Sadeq dealt mainly with Qatar's political investments. He noted the readiness with which the country made lavish purchases, such as financial institutions, sports teams, and even a Cezanne painting worth $250 million.
[1] An article in the weekly quoted Syrian Ambassador to Egypt Yousef Al-Ahmad as saying: "Qatar is the spearhead of aggression against the Arab ummah. [It] plots against its brothers... Its leaders are the bridge on which Israeli-American aggression crosses into the Arab countries... It is a land of sheikhs that houses an American military base, and, in fact, is home to more Americans than [Qatari] citizens." Al-Ahram Al-Arabi (Egypt), February 18, 2012.
[2] Al-Ahram Al-Arabi (Egypt), February 18, 2012.
