Qatar: The fueling Islamist bigotry Goliath & its Al Jihadzeera

Submitted by Miri (United States), May 11, 2022 at 10:03

Reporting Biases - WSJ

M Green, Jan. 2, 2002

Amir Taheri's ("Bin Laden's Private TV Channel") insightfully exposes the true nature of Qatar's Al-Jazeera TV channel and its adversarial role in the current conflict. Perhaps a more fitting name for this channel would be "Al-Jihadzeera"! ... the article makes it abundantly clear where this particular Arab institution stands.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1010012291811235280

Militant Islam Monitor - Al Qaeda tape 'given' to 'Al Jihadzeera' shows Bin Laden 'lieutenant' Al Zawahiri threatening attacks on UK and US

Al Qaeda tape 'given' to 'Al Jihadzeera' shows Bin Laden 'lieutenant' Al Zawahiri threatening attacks on UK and US

Bush dismisses Al Qaeda warning
August 5, 2005
https://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/914

Al Jihadzeera' Reporters Charged With Belonging To A Terrorist Group

Feb 1, 2014 — Neither Peter Greste, nor any employee of Al Jazeera, a propaganda network controlled by the Qatari
https://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/6284

ASSESSING THE U.S.-QATAR RELATIONSHIP - Govinfo.gov

[House Hearing, 115 Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] ASSESSING THE U.S.-QATAR RELATIONSHIP

HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION

JULY 26, 2017
Serial No. 115-55

Qatar has been known to be a permissive environment for terror financing, reportedly funding U.S. designated foreign terrorist organizations, such as Hamas, as well as several extremist groups operating in Syria.

In 2014, the former deputy director of CIA, David Cohen, called out Qatar publicly along with the Kuwaitis, because according to him, "The private engagement with these countries had not achieved what we were trying to achieve." In fact, Qatar has openly housed Hamas leaders, Taliban leaders, and has several individuals who have been sanctioned by our U.S. Treasury Department, and it has failed to prosecute them.

At least one high-ranking Qatari official provided support to the mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks against our country, Khalid Sheikh Mohammad.

Then, of course, there is Khalifa Mohammed, who is a U.S.-, EU-, and U.N.-designated international terrorist for his role in financing al-Qaeda and the 9/11 mastermind.
In 2008, he was tried and convicted in absentia by Bahrain for his terrorist activity, and arrested later that year by Qatar only to be released by the Qataris 6 months later, and then openly financed by Doha.
Can anyone guess what Khalifa Mohammed has been up to these days? He was implicated in terror financing activities in 2012, but more recently, he has been alleged to be financing and supporting terror in both Iraq and Syria with no response from the Qatari Government.

Hamas leader, Khaled Meshaal, also made Doha his headquarters for years while the Qatari's--with the Qatari's Government support and even the Muslim Brotherhood has received significant support from Qatar.

Of course, not all of this is supported by the government in Doha. Many individuals and charities in Qatar have been known to raise large sums of money for al-Qaeda, the Nusra front, Hamas, and even ISIS.

In Qatar, there are three buckets: Terror financing by the government; terror financing done in Qatar through their own citizens that their government may not know about; and terror financing in Qatar that the government knows about but does nothing to stop. According to the 2015 country reports on terrorism, the State Department stated, "Entities and individuals within Qatar continue to serve as a source of financial support for terrorists and violent extremist groups, particularly regional al-Qaeda affiliates such as the Nusra front."

There is no excuse for openly harboring terrorist and supporting groups that seek to harm our allies, and the excuse by Qatar that it is harboring these nefarious actors is because the U.S. asked them to no longer stands up.

Qatar should not be continuing this reckless policy due to past mistakes from previous Republican and Democratic administrations. We must not allow for our air base to be used as a means to justify this sort of behavior, and a lack of a more appropriate response. Doha's behavior must change the status quo, and if it does not, it risks losing our cooperation on the air base. The truth of the matter is that none of the Gulf countries--none of the Gulf countries are without their issues. All of the nations have been involved in funding different groups at some point that we would not approve of. But it seems like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are making progress at a faster rate while Qatar is making some progress but still is lagging slowly behind. According to the Congressional Research Service, "In October 2016, Daniel Glaser, then Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing in the Office for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, told the Washington, DC, Research Institute that over the past decade, Qatar has made less progress in countering terrorism financing than had Saudi Arabia." We must analyze the totality of our relationship with these Gulf countries.

While Qatar only helps to facilitate our operations at our air base, the UAE, for example, has spent 12 years with us fighting alongside in Afghanistan and has been involved in counterterrorism operations with the U.S. in Libya. So moving forward, one outcome that I hope comes out of this dispute is for the Gulf countries to work closely with our Treasury Department's Financial Action Task Force to root out and disrupt terror financing streams. This uneasy time may just be an opportunity for us to take a long hard look at how, and for some, if, we can effectively address and stop terror financing in the region, and ultimately defeat the extremism that threatens the security of us all. And with that, I turn to my friend, the ranking member, Mr. Deutch, for his statement.

Mr. Deutch.

Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.

Thanks to the witnesses for being back before our committee. I thank the chairman for convening today's timely hearing to explore our relationship with Qatar at a moment of great instability in the region. The ongoing diplomatic rift between Qatar and its Gulf neighbors is not good for the parties of the conflict; it is not good for the region; and it is not good for American interests. It is a distraction from today's most pressing challenges, Iran's destabilizing activities, the conflict in Syria, and the spread of terrorism.

For most Americans who expect conflict in the Middle East to fall along sectarian lines, or between competing regional hegemons, it is confusing to see Sunni Arab neighbors in conflict. But this is a dispute over longstanding grievances, over Qatar's support financially, and through its state-owned Al Jazeera news station, for actors and groups that Qatar's neighbors and, in many cases, the United States, see as deeply problematic. This feud, like others in the region, is a nuanced and deeply complex matter, and our relationship with Qatar is no less complex. A tiny but immensely wealthy nation pursues an ambitious foreign policy of close relations with all actors in the region. Unfortunately, this includes terror groups like Hamas and the Afghan Taliban. Qatar has served as a financial and political lifeline for Hamas' devastating rule in Gaza since the terror group took over more than a decade ago. Qatar has sent hundreds of millions of dollars into the Gaza strip, provides safe haven in Doha for Hamas leader, Khaled Meshaal, and helped legitimize Hamas rule in 2012 when the Emir became the first international leader to visit Hamas- led territory. Qatar has also supported other dangerous groups in the region, including sending advanced weaponry and financing to extremist elements in Syria and Libya, and Al Jazeera has given voice to clerics calling for suicide attacks against Americans and Israelis...

Dr. Schanzer, we will begin with you for your opening statement. STATEMENT OF JONATHAN SCHANZER, PH.D., SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, FOUNDATION FOR DEFENSE OF DEMOCRACIES Mr. Schanzer. Madam Chairman, Ranking Member Deutch, and members of the subcommittee, on behalf of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, thank you for the opportunity to testify. As many of you know, FDD has been producing research and analysis on Qatar since the eruption of the Arab Spring in 2011. Our critique has been consistent. We have pointed to Qatari support for Hamas, the Taliban, jihadists in Syria, jihadists in Libya and the Muslim Brotherhood. We have been critical of Qatar for the invective broadcast on state-owned Al Jazeera. We have tracked the many reports suggesting that Qatar paid ransom to terrorism groups, and we have noted through the work of my colleague, David Andrew Weinberg, that Qatar has failed to take action against U.S. and U.N.-designated terrorist financiers. In my written testimony, I document these problems, and I am happy to discuss them further. But for a moment, I would like to address how Qatar has responded to the allegations against it...
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-115hhrg26427/html/CHRG-115hhrg26427.htm

Qatar accused of funding Al-Qaeda's parent organisation in Syria

Jun 7, 2021 — The Al-Nusra Front, considered to be the Al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria
https://atalayar.com/en/content/qatar-accused-funding-al-qaedas-parent-organisation-syria

Qatar, Money and Terror

These groups include al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, the al-Nusra Front, and the Taliban.
https://www.counterextremism.com/content/qatar-money-and-terror

Qatari officials intimidated claimants in terror case, high court told

Nov 11, 2020 — The claimants say they fled to Holland after their lives and homes were destroyed by al-Nusra Front, a jihadist organisation
https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/11/high-court-hears-claims-qatar-officials-intimidated-terror-case-witnesses

Joshua S. Block
Op-Ed: Qatar is a financier of terrorism. Why does the U.S. tolerate it?

Jun 9, 2017 — Qatar's ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, has been trying to get Jabhat al-Nusra off America's terror list by championing a cosmetic
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-block-qatar-terrorism-syria-20170609-story.html

Slip of tongue reveals Qatar's relation with Al-Nusra Front - EgyptToday

Sep 9, 2017 — Qatari political expert Ali Al-Hail admitted Qatar's relationship with terrorist organizations
https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/21891/Slip-of-tongue-reveals-Qatar%25E2%2580%2599s-relation-with-Al-Nusra-Front

Opinion | Fighting, While Funding, Extremists

Jun 19, 2017 — Qatar has also supported radicals in Syria — like the Qaeda offshoot Al Nusra — and groups in Libya and other Arab nations.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/19/opinion/saudi-arabia-qatar-isis-terrorism.html

Al-Jazeera Correspondent Wael Al-Dahdouh Applauded by Crowds in Gaza Celebrating Hamas's "Victory"
May 21, 2021
https://www.memri.org/tv/jazeera-correspondent-wael-dahdouh-crowds-gaza-celebrating-hamas-victory

Fmr. Al-Arabiya News Channel General Manager Abdulrahman Al-Rashed: Al-Jazeera Aired The Bin Laden Tapes In Full Because Its Main Focus Was Indoctrination; I Would Have Aired Only The Newsworthy Titles; At Al-Arabiya We Stood Up To Bin Laden's Ideology
June 09, 2021
https://www.memri.org/tv/saudi-journalist-abdulrahman-rashed-fmr-al-arabiya-news-jazeera-standards-indoctrination-bin-laden

Qatar's 'Democracy' Charade

October 25, 2021 | By Y. Carmon and Alberto M. Fernandez

A strange conjunction of events took place in the late summer of 2021. In Tunisia, the country's democratically elected President Kais Saied suspended parliament and changed government officials, citing his authority under Tunisia's constitution to do so. At almost exactly the same time, the democratically elected government of Afghanistan was being overthrown by a radical Islamist insurgent group – the Taliban – closely allied with the global terrorist organization Al-Qaeda.
https://www.memri.org/reports/qatars-democracy-charade

Al-Jazeera Journalists, Public Figures In Qatar Tweet In Praise Of The Elad Terrorist Attack On Israel's Independence Day

May 9, 2022
https://www.memri.org/reports/al-jazeera-journalists-public-figures-qatar-tweet-praise-elad-terrorist-attack-israels

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