Qatar turns to Israel to escape Saudi squeeze

Qatar turns to Israel to escape Saudi squeeze

By Tamara Nassar

The Electronic Intifada, 26 January 2018

US President Donald Trump meets Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in New York, 19 September 2017.
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

The Qatari government has been sponsoring trips for right-wing Americans and staunch supporters of Israel in an apparent bid to salvage the emirate from its regional isolation.

Earlier this month, Israel apologist Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz made a trip to Doha at the invitation of Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the emir of Qatar, who financed the trip.

Dershowitz, one of the Israel lobby’s most prominent US figures, wrote an article upon his return in which he reflected on numerous meetings with Qatari officials.

But he first professed to being surprised at learning that an Israeli tennis player was to participate in a Doha tournament and that Qatar is open to welcoming the Israeli national soccer team, should it qualify for the World Cup which Qatar will host in 2022.

He contrasted this with Saudi Arabia’s refusal to grant a visa to an Israeli chess player, concluding that “the Saudis were not necessarily the good guys in their dispute with Qatar.”

“The Israel of the Gulf”

Dershowitz’s take on the Qatar blockade also referenced Israel: “I observed that Qatar is quickly becoming the Israel of the Gulf states, surrounded by enemies, subject to boycotts and unrealistic demands, and struggling for its survival.”

Dershowitz reiterated repeatedly that he did not verify any of the information he was given, but was only relating what he was told. In this vein, he suggested that Qatari-Israeli normalization is on the horizon.

“I heard a lot of positive statements regarding Israel from Qatari leaders, as well as hints of commercial relationships between these isolated nations.”

Dershowitz also told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz that he asked the emir, Sheikh Tamim, and other top Qatari officials to help release the bodies of two Israeli soldiers, Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin, who were killed during Israel’s 2014 assault on the Gaza Strip, and two other Israeli citizens currently being held there.

“They told me they’re trying,” Dershowitz said of the Qatari officials.

State-sponsored trips

Mike Huckabee, the Christian Zionist former governor of Arkansas, also made a trip to Qatar this month.

Huckabee, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, is the father of Donald Trump’s White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Huckabee opposes any Israeli withdrawal from Jerusalem and has suggested Israel should annex the West Bank, which he calls “Judea and Samaria.”

In a tweet, he described Qatar as “surprisingly beautiful, modern and hospitable.”

Conservative radio host and Israel supporter John Batchelor was also invited by the Qatar government to broadcast his show from Doha earlier this month, where he was joined by former Republican congressman Thaddeus McCotter.

Batchelor released a series of episodes from Doha, some of them in conversation with top Qatari officials.

In one of the episodes, defense minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah discusses the illegality of the regional isolation of Qatar.

In a short episode upon his return, titled “Qatar as an island of stability and good cheer,” Batchelor reveals that “what they wanted to know was how America views Doha, Qatar.”

He expressed that “they’re an ally if we want them. They love [Secretary of State Rex] Tillerson too.”

Shortly after Dershowitz published his article, and Huckabee and Batchelor returned to the US, the White House announced that Trump spoke with the emir of Qatar. The White House stated that the emir thanked him for “Qatari action to counter terrorism and extremism in all forms” and that they “discussed areas in which the United States and Qatar can partner to bring more stability to the region, counter malign Iranian influence and defeat terrorism.”

All agree on Israel

Qatar has been at the center of regional grievances because of its support for the Palestinian political and resistance movement Hamas, whose leaders have long been hosted in Doha, among other reasons.

Yet despite these deep divisions, the regional states apparently still see eye to eye when it comes to cozying up to Israel.

In September, Haaretz reported that a Washington lobbying firm hired by Qatar was trying to arrange meetings with major American Jewish groups for the emir while he was in the US for the annual United Nations General Assembly.

This looked like an attempt to use Israel lobby influence in Washington to help Qatar push back against the efforts to isolate it.

“Engagement with Qatar can only be in the best interests of the United States and the Jewish community, as we cannot allow Qatar to be ostracized by its neighbors and pushed into Iran’s sphere of influence,” Nick Muzin, the lobbyist from the firm Stonington Strategies which was reportedly receiving $50,000 a month for its services, explained.

Conflicting reports

In Jordan, the Israeli embassy is set to reopen after a six-month crisis caused by an Israeli embassy guard shooting and killing two Jordanian nationals at a residential building in Amman in July.

According to Jordanian government spokesperson Muhammad al-Momani, Israel expressed its “deepest apology” over the incident.

But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu affirmed that he did not apologize, but merely “expressed regret.”

Netanyahu confirmed that “Israel will pay the Jordanian government compensation for the death of the two citizens, but will not award compensation to the family of the victims,” according to Israeli newspaper Haaretz.

The Jordanian government subsequently transferred the compensation – $5 million – to the families of the victims.

Jordanian officials also contested reports that Israel won’t prosecute the gunman, Ziv Hai Mordechai Moyal.

According to the Jordanian AlGhad newspaper, officials said the Israeli government had committed to pursuing legal measures against Moyal.

The Jerusalem Post, meanwhile, reported that the Israeli ambassador to Jordan, Einat Shlain, would be promoted and reassigned.

Moyal fatally shot 16-year-old Muhammed al-Jawawdeh as well as property owner Bashar Hamarneh.

The shooter was then spirited back to Israel under cover of diplomatic immunity before there could be a proper investigation.

Moyal was given what Jordan saw as a hero’s welcome by Netanyahu.

The Israeli prime minister also thanked Trump advisers Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt for their “behind-the-scenes efforts, which helped solve the crisis,” according to The Times of Israel.

The compensation and “apology” also covered the 2014 killing of Jordanian Judge Raed Zuaiter by Israeli troops at the Israeli-controlled crossing between Jordan and the occupied West Bank.

Despite the rift, Royal Jordanian is one of three carriers – the others being Turkish Airlines and Ethiopian Airlines – that will reportedly help Israel deport African refugees, after El Al pilots refused to do so.

Jordanians overwhelmingly oppose the reopening of the embassy, and there is also continued strong opposition to a deal Jordan signed last year to import gas from Israel.

Editor’s note: This article has been updated.

Qatar Uses Zionist Lobby to Improve Its Image in the West

Asharq Al-Awsat, 22 January, 2018

Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh (R) and Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani arrive at a cornerstone laying
ceremony in the southern Gaza Strip. (Photo credit: REUTERS)

The Qatari leadership is employing prominent figures in the Jewish lobby in the United States and many Israeli figures, to help it improve its image in the West, and refute accusations associated with its support of terrorism, sources in Tel Aviv said on Sunday.

The sources noted that some of these figures have tried to dissuade Qatar from supporting Hamas, but the Arab peninsula replied that the relationship with Hamas “is in the framework of efforts to rebuild the Gaza Strip, and that every step in this direction is carried out in coordination with Israel.”

Israeli sources said there were signs of success of the Qatari campaign with the American Zionist Organization, a Jewish-American organization that supports settlements and US President Donald Trump. A few months ago, the organization’s leaders attacked Qatar and accused it of “supporting terrorists who kill Jews, Christians and Muslims.” However, the organization’s president told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz this week that he was ready to “give an opportunity” to cooperate with Qatar.

Lawyer Alan Dershowitz, known for his strong support for Israel, surprised many of his acquaintances in Washington with an article he published last week in The Hill, which appeared to be a “defense list” of Qatar against accusations of its financial and material backing for terrorism.

“I just returned from a private visit to Qatar, at the invitation of and paid for by the Emir,” the first sentence of Dershowitz’s article read. He detailed in the same report how officials in Qatar - including Prince Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani - have dismissed charges that Qatar supports Hamas, is close to Iran and is helping the Muslim Brotherhood.

Dershowitz went on to say that while Saudi Arabia recently refused to allow the Israeli chess team to enter its territory to participate in the World Chess Championship, Qatar allows Israeli athletes to participate in international competitions held in Doha for years.

The lawyer’s visit to Doha was part of a broad public relations effort that began a few months ago and aims to change the image of Qatar in the eyes of decision-makers in Washington and the West.

An Israeli report said that Qatar hired Nick Muzin, a Jewish media consultant from the ultra-orthodox religious movement, who had previously worked as a senior adviser to Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Tim Scott.

For a monthly payment of about $50,000, Muzin opened the doors of the Jewish community and conservative media in the United States to the Qataris.

“I observed that Qatar is quickly becoming the Israel of the Gulf States, surrounded by enemies, subject to boycotts and unrealistic demands, and struggling for its survival. I heard a lot of positive statements regarding Israel from Qatari leaders as well as hints of commercial relationships between these isolated nations,” Dershowitz said in his article.

In an interview with Haaretz on Sunday, Dershowitz claimed he had not reached “clear conclusioThe Qatari leadership is employing prominent figures in the Jewish lobby in the United States and many Israeli figures, to help it improve its image in the West, and refute accusations associated with its support of terrorism, sources in Tel Aviv said on Sunday.

The sources noted that some of these figures have tried to dissuade Qatar from supporting Hamas, but the Arab peninsula replied that the relationship with Hamas “is in the framework of efforts to rebuild the Gaza Strip, and that every step in this direction is carried out in coordination with Israel.”

Israeli sources said there were signs of success of the Qatari campaign with the American Zionist Organization, a Jewish-American organization that supports settlements and US President Donald Trump. A few months ago, the organization’s leaders attacked Qatar and accused it of “supporting terrorists who kill Jews, Christians and Muslims.” However, the organization’s president told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz this week that he was ready to “give an opportunity” to cooperate with Qatar.

Lawyer Alan Dershowitz, known for his strong support for Israel, surprised many of his acquaintances in Washington with an article he published last week in The Hill, which appeared to be a “defense list” of Qatar against accusations of its financial and material backing for terrorism.

“I just returned from a private visit to Qatar, at the invitation of and paid for by the Emir,” the first sentence of Dershowitz’s article read. He detailed in the same report how officials in Qatar - including Prince Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani - have dismissed charges that Qatar supports Hamas, is close to Iran and is helping the Muslim Brotherhood.

Dershowitz went on to say that while Saudi Arabia recently refused to allow the Israeli chess team to enter its territory to participate in the World Chess Championship, Qatar allows Israeli athletes to participate in international competitions held in Doha for years.

The lawyer’s visit to Doha was part of a broad public relations effort that began a few months ago and aims to change the image of Qatar in the eyes of decision-makers in Washington and the West.

An Israeli report said that Qatar hired Nick Muzin, a Jewish media consultant from the ultra-orthodox religious movement, who had previously worked as a senior adviser to Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Tim Scott.

For a monthly payment of about $50,000, Muzin opened the doors of the Jewish community and conservative media in the United States to the Qataris.

“I observed that Qatar is quickly becoming the Israel of the Gulf States, surrounded by enemies, subject to boycotts and unrealistic demands, and struggling for its survival. I heard a lot of positive statements regarding Israel from Qatari leaders as well as hints of commercial relationships between these isolated nations,” Dershowitz said in his article.

In an interview with Haaretz on Sunday, Dershowitz claimed he had not reached “clear conclusions” about Qatar’s relations with Hamas, Iran and other elements in the region.

“This visit has made me develop a more balanced approach,” he said. "There seems to be two sides to this story.”ns” about Qatar’s relations with Hamas, Iran and other elements in the region.

“This visit has made me develop a more balanced approach,” he said. "There seems to be two sides to this story.”

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