As Qatar cozies up to the United States, experts are warning that the Gulf nation may not be as friendly or pro-democracy as it might seem. In fact, the nation is a bastion for the same brand of radical Islam we see practiced in other Middle Eastern nations.

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From CBN:

However, Qatar is an emirate, basically a kingdom, and according to critics, no defender of Western values.

“Qatar is the opposite of all that,” warns Yigal Carmon, the head of the Middle East Media Research Institute or MEMRI, which monitors what Qatar’s leaders say in Arabic. “Qatar is an Islamist ideological emirate that seeks in every single step of its activities to promote jihad.”

CBN notes that Carmon has characterized the nation as “a hub of Muslim extremism,” highlighting its connections to Islamic terror around the world.

The laundry list is a long one. The mastermind of 9/11, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, was a Qatari government employee. Qatar has long sponsored the Muslim Brotherhood, which seeks a worldwide Islamic government. Qatar finances and hosts Hamas and has backed Palestinian terrorism. It has strong ties to Iran and the Taliban. It broadcasts antisemitism and lies about Israel, as well as anti-American propaganda, through its global TV channel, Al Jazeera. There are also reports Qatar funds terrorists in Africa who kill Christians.

On October 7th, Qatar blamed Israel for the Hamas massacre, and when Israel killed the mastermind behind the attack, Yahya Sinwar, the mother of Qatar’s emir, in a now deleted post on X, wrote that Sinwar “will live on” and Israel “will be gone.”

Qatar’s hatred for Israel and love for terror is bad enough, but we can’t forget the influence this nation has in America and in the Trump administration. CBN notes that White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have all “either lobbied for Qatar, worked for firms that did, or had business relationships with the emirate.” CBN also notes that Qatar has spent almost $100 billion to curry favor with the powers that be in America.

At IFA, we have warned about America’s closeness with Qatar. The Gulf nation is, according to Natalie Ecanow of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, hoping its good graces from Washington will keep lawmakers from speaking out when it supports terror. Is this really the kind of nation we want our leaders to be close with?

Let’s pray for the Trump administration specifically. Let’s pray that America influences Qatar, not the other way around!

How are you praying about the relationship between America and Qatar? Share your thoughts and prayers below.

(Excerpt from CBN. Photo Credit: Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)