More Tamim-loyal members appointed in Qatar's Shura Council

CAIRO – 13 November 2017: Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani issued a decree renewing the membership of the 13 Shura Council members and appointing 28 new members. The new members are affiliated with him and include women for the first time.

The 45-member Shura council is responsible for discussing draft laws that should be approved by a third of the cabinet and emir, general government policy, and the state's draft budget.

In a historic move, Qatar has appointed four women to the Advisory (Shura) Council, one of its most important consultative bodies, for the first time. The four women are: Hessa Sultan Jaber Mohammed al-Jaber, Aisha Youssuf Omar al-Hamad al-Mannai, Hend Abdurrahman Mohammed Mubarak al-Muftah, and Reem Mohammed Rashid al-Hammoudi al-Mansouri.

Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and the State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Ahmed Bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud joined the Shura council and would be elected as president of the council in the opening session of the council, scheduled to be held on Tuesday.

Mahmoud has tackled the Darfur file in Sudan.

Previously, Qatari Foreign Ministry issued a ministerial decision on November 7 appointing Lulwah Rashid al-Khater as the official spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry.

It is the first time that Qatar appoints a woman in the position of the Foreign Ministry’s official spokesperson during Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani’s ruling.

The announcement comes as Qatar continues to deal with the impact of the worst and most bitter diplomatic crisis in the Gulf for years, which has seen the emirate politically and economically boycotted by neighboring countries.

In the coming period, the U.S. Congress is scheduled to hand over the text of the U.S. Qatari protocol at the same time Khater is appointed; the text outlines that sources of terrorism in Qatar are to be monitored. Congressmen Dan Donovan and Brian Fitzpatrick called for amendments in the protocol.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson signed a memorandum of understanding with the Qatari government in July, pledging greater cooperation in the fight against illicit financing of terrorist groups throughout the Middle East.

The Congress is considering new legislation that requires the president to impose sanctions on individuals and state-sponsored agencies that finance terrorist groups like Hamas. Qatar is trying to convince the U.S. administration to steer clear of adding any Qatari agencies to that list, according to The Hill.