The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) has published a report accusing Qatar of turning its vast wealth, state institutions and media network into instruments for advancing Islamist movements during the rule of former emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Aal Thani. Released after Hamad’s death on July 12, the report alleges that his nearly two-decade rule transformed Qatar into a major backer of Islamist organisations across the Middle East and beyond.
Among its most explosive claims, MEMRI says Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM), the man identified by US authorities as the mastermind of the September 11 attacks, worked for the Qatari government before escaping an FBI arrest attempt in 1996. The report also accuses Doha of promoting Wahhabism, empowering the Muslim Brotherhood and using Al Jazeera to amplify Islamist figures.
1. Qatar became a hub of Islamist influence, says MEMRI
The report argues that Sheikh Hamad’s rule marked Qatar’s emergence as a leading supporter of Islamism and Islamist terrorist organisations across the Arab and Muslim world.
2. Wealth and Al Jazeera were used to spread ideology
According to MEMRI, Qatar combined its financial power with Al Jazeera’s reach to cultivate religious, political and ideological influence across the region.
3. Al Jazeera gave airtime to jihadist leaders
The report says the broadcaster aired Osama bin Laden’s speeches in the early 2000s and later broadcast messages and interviews of Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani.
4. Report cites alleged funding of Islamist groups
MEMRI refers to the Raven Project leaks, which it says showed Qatar paid $15 million to Islamist groups operating in northern Mali and the Sahel in 2011.
5. KSM allegedly worked for the Qatari government
The report says Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was employed by Qatar’s Ministry of Electricity and Water before 9/11 while simultaneously planning and supporting terrorist operations.
6. FBI arrest attempt allegedly failed in Doha
According to MEMRI, FBI officials travelled to Doha in 1996 to arrest KSM. The report says only the emir and the palace were informed confidentially and KSM disappeared within hours.
7. Report reproduces KSM’s alleged confession
MEMRI quotes what it describes as KSM’s confession, in which he claimed responsibility for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, the September 11 attacks, Daniel Pearl’s murder, the Bali bombing and several other terrorist plots.
8. Trump accused Qatar of funding terrorism
The report reproduces Donald Trump’s 2017 remarks in which he said Qatar had historically been “a funder of terrorism at a very high level” and urged Doha to end such support.
9. MEMRI links Qatar with Wahhabism
The report argues that Qatar embraced Wahhabism and promoted the ideology beyond its borders, describing it as an influence on later Salafi movements, including Al-Qaeda.
10. Muslim Brotherhood received official backing, report says
MEMRI says the former emir openly embraced Wahhabism, highlighted his family’s connection to its founder and gave Muslim Brotherhood ideologue Yusuf Al-Qaradawi a major platform on Al Jazeera while backing Brotherhood movements in several countries.