Qatar Challenges Washington on Hamas
By Matthew Levitt
As part of The Washington Institute's focus on Gulf and counterterrorism issues, my colleague Simon Henderson and I co-authored this piece on Qatar's move away from the Arab consensus and toward Syria and Iran, as evidenced most recently by its stance on Hamas:
Speaking last week in Qatar, Hamas leader Khaled Mashal thanked Qatar for its support and declared that Palestinian fighters had "won the war [in the Gaza Strip] by defeating Israeli plans." Mashal also lauded controversial Islamic scholar Yousef al-Qaradawi as the "shaikh of resistance." By tolerating such an event, Qatar, which hosts a vital U.S. command center as well as a substantial air wing and storage facilities, highlighted its diplomatic journey away from the Arab consensus -- via support for Islamist extremists -- toward an alliance with Syria and Iran. Qatar's developing stance hampers Washington's policies on Iran and the Middle East peace process.
The complete article is available here.
Note: The Institute announced yesterday that Kenneth L. Wainstein has joined the Institute as the Sheila and Milton Fine distinguished visiting fellow, focusing on counterterrorism issues. He was appointed as the nation's homeland security advisor by former president George W. Bush on March 30, 2008, and served in that position until January 20, 2009. Mr. Wainstein chaired President Bush's Homeland Security Council and reported to the president on a range of homeland security and counterterrorism matters. Mr. Wainstein will write and speak on emerging U.S. counterterrorism challenges in the Middle East, including the Gulf States.
