Qatar’s deeds triggered Arab dispute: Hudson Institute

CAIRO – 26 July 2017: In a panel discussion held by Hudson Institute in Washington on July 25, entitled Saudi Arabia, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Trump Administration: Stability or Upheaval? Participants said that Qatar was the reason for the recent dispute in the Gulf region, due to its terrorism-related activities. They said that it jeopardizes the security of other countries without consequences.

In his comments on the diplomatic rift between Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE and Bahrain, Saudi analyst and Nonresident Fellow, Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, Mohammed Alyahya accused Qatar of funding the terrorist groups all over the world, which has repercussions on its neighbors, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Iraq, and Libya.

“The idea of putting Qatar on the map and making Qatar a known entity internationally has very much been the foundation of Qatari policy making,” Alyahya said. He also said that they did that regionally by interfering in their neighbors’ domestic affairs. They interfered over the years beginning after Sheikh Khalifa Al Thani disposed his father in 1995.

“They invested in the conflict in Libya, which is thousands of kilometers away from Qatar, despite the limitation of Qatari military,” Alyahya added. He further explained that it used its wealth to finance the conflicting parties in Libya.


Qatari role in Libyan turmoil

Alyahya gave an example of Qatar’s hostility to Saudi Arabia in which the head of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Abdul Aziz al-Muqrin, was given a Qatari passport and was free to move from Qatari borders into Saudi Arabia.

He also referred to a 1bn dollar ransom Qatar paid to Al Qaeda-affiliated militias and Iranian security officials in Syria to release 26 captured members of royal family in Qatar. The Financial Times said that that incident highlighted how Qatar has allegedly used hostage payments to bankroll Jihadis in Syria. Those actions enraged its neighbors and led to the diplomatic rift.


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The Saudi analyst explained the reason for Qatar’s support to terrorist groups all over the world is due to its small population, Al Udeid military base, and its geography. It provided the Muslim Brotherhood with a fertile soil to build and an opposition society from which to launch their attack against Egypt, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

“This adventure carries a lot of potential upside, but no downside,” Alyahya added.
Adjunct Fellow of Hudson Institute, Michael Pregent, also participant of the discussion panel. He explained that Qatar was taking a position with Obama’s administration as a pro-Muslim Brotherhood and pro-Iran, and that they helped to communicate with both parties.

He gave an example of what Qatar is doing by saying, “It’s like getting into the borders of Mexico, as long as you can get there you can get away from law enforcement, and you can plan your next game.”

“You can’t both host the world cup and host U.S. bases, and then allow terrorism financing and lobby donors in Doha,” Pregent said.

“One of the things Qatar did was the Bowe Bergdahl exchange for five Taliban commanders. They were sent to Qatar, they were supposed to wear ankle bracelets, and their assets were supposed to be frozen. They were not supposed to communicate with Taliban, we don’t even know where they are now,” Pregent said. In that statement Pregent was referring to the deal between the U.S. and Qatar to trade Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl for 5 senior Taliban leaders. The leaders were released in 2014 from Guantánamo Bay.