[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 197 (Thursday, November 30, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H6042-H6048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THE STATE OF QATAR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
Bergman) for 30 minutes.
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Schneider).
  Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Debbie Wasserman 
Schultz, for organizing this hour. I thank the Speaker for his 
indulgence and attention as we have gone through a long list typical of 
conversations talking about the hostages. I thank my friend from 
Michigan, General Bergman, for the time.
  We should not have to be here tonight. We should not be forced to 
talk

[[Page H6043]]

about some of the 250 people brutally kidnapped and taken hostage on 
October 7.
  It should not be necessary to call for the immediate, unconditional 
release of these hostages. We should not be here because Hamas should 
not be holding hostages.
  I am grateful that more than 100 hostages have been released and 
returned to Israel, but 143 hostages remain in captivity, held by 
Hamas, by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and by others in Gaza.
  The families don't know the status of their loved ones. They don't 
know where their loved ones are. They don't know when they will be 
coming home.
  I will talk tonight about one hostage, Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Hersh's 
parents, Rachel and Jon, are from Chicago. I have been friends with his 
aunt, Abby, for more than 30 years. I know his grandmother Leah. 
Hersh's family is now my family.
  Hersh was born in northern California. His family moved to Virginia 
when Hersh was 4 and to Israel when he was 7. That was in 2008. Hersh 
grew up in Jerusalem, reached adulthood, and was known widely as a 
kind, gentle mensch.
  On Friday, October 6, of this year, Hersh was with his family in 
Jerusalem. It was the evening of the Sabbath, Shabbat, and the holiday 
of Simchat Torah.
  The family went to synagogue and then went to dinner at a friend's 
house with two other families. After dinner, Hersh grabbed his backpack 
and left to meet his friend Aner. They later learned that Hersh and his 
friend were going to a concert in the south, a music festival.
  That was on Saturday, October 7. I will read at length some of the 
words of Hersh's father, Jonathan Polin, published in Time magazine.
  He says, describing his circumstance on Sunday, having learned that 
Hersh was taken hostage on Saturday, at some time--I think it was 
Sunday morning--a picture started to circulate online that was from an 
outdoor bomb shelter. They are not uncommon in the south of Israel.
  Our son was in the picture, as was Aner. Through social media, we 
started to search for other families of people who were in the shelter 
and to try to piece together a story.
  What we have subsequently pieced together, based on conversations 
with the three witnesses who were in the shelter with him, is the 
following: Sometime around 7:30 Saturday morning, those in the bomb 
shelter came under heavy gunfire. Grenades were being tossed into the 
shelter.
  Hersh's friend Aner, who was by the entrance of the bomb shelter, is 
responsible for the lives of anybody who is still alive--he was picking 
up grenades and tossing them back out and taking control of the 
situation. But it was total chaos. At least 11 grenades were thrown 
into the shelter. Aner picked up eight and threw them back out. Three 
exploded inside.

                              {time}  1930

  People were critically wounded. What we next know from witnesses is 
that at roughly 9 a.m., gunmen came into the shelter calmly, not 
shooting, and they said anybody who can get on their feet and walk out, 
walk out of here. And our son was one of the small number to walk out.
  That was 55 days ago: Seven Shabbat dinners with an empty seat in the 
Hersh Goldberg family; seven weeks of uncertainty not knowing where 
Hersh is; seven weeks of not knowing how Hersh is doing; seven weeks of 
not knowing when Hersh is coming home.
  Tonight, we have heard about so many of these hostages, 143 of the 
250-plus hostages taken still are in captivity. The IRC must be able to 
see Hersh in every one of the other hostages.
  Hersh and all the other hostages must come home. Not someday, not 
soon, but now. We owe it to these hostages to bring them home. We owe 
it to our families, and we must make sure that Hamas can never take 
hostages, can never attack Israel ever again.
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Florida 
(Ms. Wasserman Schultz).
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, my friend 
from Michigan, General Bergman, for his indulgence and his generosity.
  Mr. Speaker, I close by reminding the American public the names and 
faces you saw tonight are only a fraction of those who remain held 
hostage in Gaza by cowardly terrorists, by Hamas.
  I hope every American understands that Israel is fighting to protect 
her citizens from this diabolic terrorist organization and to rescue 
her hostages.
  There is only one culprit to blame for this war, and that is Hamas. 
Their singular goal is to destroy Israel and kill Jews.
  Mr. Speaker, this Chamber has always and will always continue to 
stand strong with Israel and work to release these victims from 
terrorist tyranny and support, preventing an attack like this from 
being perpetrated against Israel by Hamas ever again.
  ``Am Yisrael Chai,'' ``The people of Israel live.''
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. 
Landsman) as he provides his statement.
  Mr. LANDSMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and to 
my colleague, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, for bringing us all together 
today.
  I would just say a word or two about Doris Liber, who I met a few 
weeks ago. She came to the Capitol with other families who have loved 
ones who were taken hostage. Her son, Guy, was taken hostage by Hamas 
on October 7; 26 years old.
  He was at a festival with his friends, and terror took over. He was 
shot in the arm and called his mother. That was the last time she heard 
his voice. We hope and pray that he is alive and that he will be 
released.
  Every single one of these hostages must be released. Hamas must 
release every single hostage, and they must surrender.
  They can end this nightmare, and they can end this war.
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time I have 
remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Michigan has 22 minutes 
remaining.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and submit 
extraneous materials for the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, the State of Qatar poses the gravest and 
most profound threat to the national security interest of the United 
States in the Middle East.
  This was true before October 7, but it is now undeniable in the 
aftermath of the unspeakable horrors of that day, where at least 32 
Americans were brutally murdered, and another 12 Americans were taken 
hostage.
  Qatar poses a threat to the U.S. not through its military. Nor does 
Qatar threaten the U.S. by training and directly equipping terrorist 
groups the same way that the Ayatollah and the mullahs from Iran do.
  Qatar threatens the U.S. even though it does not call Israel the 
Little Satan, nor does it call the United States the Great Satan. It is 
true that Qatar does not loudly proclaim that it wants to wipe Israel 
off the map, just as it does not publicly chant ``death to America.'' 
But it is precisely because Qatar does not espouse extremism so boldly 
and brazenly that this tiny but wealthy emirate is so dangerous to our 
national security interests.
  The nature of this threat is best understood by comparing and 
contrasting the two main state sponsors of Hamas--Qatar and Iran.
  Qatar has access to the corridors of power and the ability to mingle 
with world elites. Iran, on the other hand, simply does not have the 
ability to influence our glad-hand Western leaders.
  Iran does not get involved and invited to the G20. Qatar does.
  Iran does not attend Davos. Qatar does.
  Iran does not host the forward headquarters of CENTCOM, Central 
Command. Qatar does.
  The Iranian Ayatollah can't simply get President Biden on the phone 
for a friendly call, but the Qatari Emir can, and does.
  The Islamic Republic of Iran in its current form run by the mullahs 
would

[[Page H6044]]

never be designated as a major non-NATO ally. Yet just last year, 
President Biden bestowed this prestigious designation on the State of 
Qatar.
  Qatar has used its enormous influence with the West to help terrorist 
groups, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Taliban. Qatar's singularly 
unique support for Hamas has proved invaluable for the bloodthirsty 
terrorist group.
  Hamas leaders not only planned the unprecedented error campaign from 
luxury villas and penthouse suites in Doha, provided to them by the 
State of Qatar, but they have been allowed to promote blood libels 
daily since October 7 on Al Jazeera, the propaganda outlet owned and 
ultimately controlled by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al 
Thani.

  For years and continuing to this day, Qatar has promoted and 
whitewashed Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Taliban, among other terrorist 
groups, including with fawning coverage on Al Jazeera. Qatar also 
effectively serves as the diplomatic arm for these terrorist groups, 
including when they claim to act as mediators with the terrorists from 
the West. And, of course, Qatar also funds these and other terrorist 
groups, sometimes overtly and sometimes quietly.
  But Qatar has also provided direct and material support to Hamas here 
in the United States, such as aggressively protecting the terrorist 
group by successfully killing legislation that was to enact harsh 
sanctions on the state sponsors of Hamas.
  As I will soon explain in more detail, the State of Qatar was single-
handedly responsible for killing the Hamas Sanctions Bill, which was 
first introduced in 2017 by my friend and colleague, Congressman Brian 
Mast.
  The State of Qatar not only killed the Hamas Sanctions Bill in the 
115th Congress, but after it was reintroduced in 2019, the emirate once 
again killed the legislation in the 116th Congress.
  While it is impossible to know for sure, it is distinctly possible 
that if Qatar had not gone to such extraordinary lengths to protect 
Hamas from sanctions, that the atrocities of October 7 might never have 
happened.
  Almost the entire Beltway foreign policy establishment, not just 
Democrats but also Republicans, have gotten Qatar wrong for the past 
25-plus years. The establishment's conventional wisdom is that although 
almost all outward indicators show that Qatar is firmly aligned with 
Iran, Islamists, and jihadists, the supposed truth is that they are 
secretly moderate and pro-America.
  Unfortunately, our foreign policy elites have chosen to cling to the 
illusion of who the Qataris privately claim to be, while ignoring the 
harsh reality of who they actually are.
  It is simply not true that Qataris are reluctantly close with Iran, 
Islamists, and jihadists, engaging with these malign actors out of 
necessity or to help the United States and the West.
  The overwhelming evidence shows that, in fact, the Qataris are true 
believers.
  Qatar's apologists claim that the emirate only has dealings with Iran 
because they jointly own the North Field, the world's largest natural 
gas reserve.
  Yet time and again, Qatar acts in sync with Iran across the Middle 
East, where both regimes just so happen to try and destabilize the same 
governments, especially those that are strong allies of the United 
States. And Qatar and Iran both sponsor some of the same terrorist 
groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
  There is no support for Ambassador Al Thani's allegation. The most 
generous interpretation for the emirate is that Qatar wanted to serve 
as the home for Hamas headquarters and its leaders, and that it 
convinced the Obama administration to allow them to become joined at 
the hip with this bloodthirsty terrorist group.
  Similarly, Qatar is also no reluctant supporter of Hamas. Qatar's 
Ambassador to America, Meshal Al Thani, implied in a Wall Street 
Journal op-ed earlier this month that the United States essentially 
requested Doha to host Hamas' world headquarters and to provide 
sanctuary to the terrorist group's leaders.
  The best evidence that Qatar genuinely supports Hamas and generally 
shares the same world view and goals as the terrorist organization is 
what you see when Hamas leaders, such as Ismail Haniyeh or Khaled 
Mashaal, meet with the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
  As you can see in photos of their meetings, the Emir warmly embraces 
Mashaal, terrorists with blood on their hands, and the Emir clearly 
demonstrates with his smile and body language that he considers these 
Hamas thugs to be his close, personal friends.
  There are two other powerful indicators that Qatar agrees with the 
radicals who hate America.
  The first is the ruling Al Thani family's close relationship with the 
longtime spiritual leader of the International Muslim brotherhood, 
Yusuf Al-Qaradawi. The other is something available for anyone to see 
for themselves, the stomach-turning content of Al Jazeera, the Qatari 
state-owned propaganda outlet.
  Until Yusuf Al-Qaradawi died last year at the age of 96, he was not 
only the top religious cleric for the Muslim Brotherhood, but also for 
the ruling Al Thani family.
  The Qatar Foundation, which is actually a private company owned by 
the Emir of Qatar and his parents, worked closely with Qaradawi for 
decades, spending hundreds of millions of dollars to export and promote 
Qaradawi's deranged brand of Islam.

  To understand just how much of an extremist Qaradawi was, all you 
would have to do is watch the old broadcasts of his show on Al Jazeera. 
Over the years, Qaradawi used his platform to endorse violent jihad 
against the West, and he specifically advocated for terrorist attacks 
on Israel, as well as attacks on U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
  Qaradawi also praised the Holocaust and repeatedly used his show to 
promote the mass murder of Jews.
  On his Al Jazeera show in 2011, Qaradawi proclaimed that Allah used 
Adolf Hitler to wreak the Holocaust upon the Jews as divine punishment, 
and he praised Hitler for putting Jews in their place.
  Qaradawi was also well known for praising Hamas during the Al Jazeera 
broadcasts. Unfortunately, the entirety of Al Jazeera is now well known 
for praising Hamas.
  Al Jazeera has served as an unabashed cheerleader for Hamas for 
years, and especially since October 7. The broadcasts of state-owned Al 
Jazeera have been rife with explicit cheerleading for Hamas and 
spreading blood libels about the Jewish State.
  Not only does Al Jazeera reveal its repugnant biases in hailing Hamas 
as the resistance and casting Israel as the occupiers, but among its 
earliest reporting on Hamas' October 7 terrorist attack was a story 
praising the brutal kidnapping as ``humanitarian,'' under the headline, 
``Activists praise the resistance's humanitarian treatment of an 
Israeli woman and her children.''
  In the time since, Qatar's propaganda outlet has continued to 
interview top Hamas leaders, often in-studio in Doha, allowing them to 
promote dangerous falsehoods designed to incite viewers against not 
just Israel, but also America and the West.
  For years, Hamas has tried to sell the West a fiction, the idea that 
there is an armed wing and a political wing of the terrorist 
organization. Well, it is safe to say that since October 7, Al Jazeera 
has become the media wing of Hamas.
  If someone wants to know about Qatar's true foreign policy positions, 
all they need to do is check out Al Jazeera's Arabic language coverage.

                              {time}  1945

  That way, it wouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Qatar's Ministry 
of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on October 7 that holds Israel 
solely responsible for the mass murder of 1,200 innocents and the 
kidnapping of another 200-plus.
  Earlier this month, at a Gulf Cooperation Council gathering, Qatar's 
Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani doubled down on this position when 
he had the audacity to condemn the world for allowing Israel supposedly 
to be above the law, as if a nation should not be allowed to defend 
itself from mass murders at its border, even as the Emir himself very 
much treats the Hamas leaders as above the law by refusing to arrest 
them.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Ogles).
  Mr. OGLES. Mr. Speaker, if Americans knew that the Biden 
administration was treating a state sponsor of

[[Page H6045]]

terrorism like a major ally, they would be infuriated, but that is 
exactly what is going on with Qatar, a tiny but very wealthy country in 
the Persian Gulf.
  Qatar is a friend to anti-Semites. As the general stated, clearly, 
they must hate Israel and the Jewish people. They are one of the 
largest sponsors of state terrorism in the world. They regularly play 
host to leaders of Hamas and the Taliban. In fact, Qatar provided Hamas 
leadership with a venue to celebrate the horrific atrocities of October 
7.
  Only in a world where Joe Biden is President would we be supporting a 
terrorist country as part of our foreign policy. Last year, President 
Biden designated Qatar as a Major Non-NATO Ally, a special designation 
given to about 20 countries, like Taiwan and Israel, and an honor meant 
to highlight an extremely close bilateral relationship. In a sense, we 
do have a close relationship with Qatar, far too close.
  Qatar has given over $5 billion--that is b as in bravo--to U.S. 
colleges, which makes them the number one foreign donor to our very own 
educational institutions. Researchers at the Institute for the Study of 
Global Antisemitism and Policy have presented a strong link between the 
funding of U.S. universities by Doha and the active presence of anti-
Semitic groups on those campuses.
  Needless to say, we should be extremely wary about the impact of 
these donations on our young people. For decades, Congress has allowed 
these donations to flow into our universities without any supervision 
or meaningful disclosure requirements.
  Meanwhile, American Jews are harassed on campuses or compelled not to 
reveal their Jewish heritage. Since the start of the October 7 war, 73 
percent of Jewish students in the U.S. have been victims or witnesses 
to on-campus anti-Semitism.
  Qatar has the honor of hosting a major airbase outside of Doha. The 
presence of that airbase all but ensures their safety and that they 
will never be attacked. You would hope, at the very least, Qatar would 
try hard to ensure that it is not spreading anti-Semitism or supporting 
anti-American sentiments, but we have seen this anti-Semitism. We have 
seen it alive and well on Qatar's state-owned media outlet, Al Jazeera, 
or, as I like to say, AJTN, Al Jazeera terrorist network.
  Unfortunately, criticisms of Qatar come in muted in this town. Doha 
has certainly poisoned the well, purchasing the loyalties of university 
elites, influential think tanks, some of the best lobbyists that money 
can buy, and even politicians, which is why so many D.C. institutions 
whitewash Qatar's support for terrorism.
  On top of this, as I mentioned earlier, Qatar lets the leaders of 
Hamas and the Taliban stay at the most expensive hotels in Doha and 
provides up to $480 million, half a billion dollars, to Hamas to keep 
their military afloat.
  Qatar will tell you that this is going to nonmilitary uses, but we 
have heard throughout testimony today that money flowing to Qatar, 
flowing to Iran, is fungible.
  As the former chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ms. 
Ros-Lehtinen, once put it, in Qatar, there are three buckets: terror 
financed by the government, terror financed through Qataris, and terror 
financing that Qatar doesn't stop.
  That is the former chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee 
commenting on something that has been known for decades, known in this 
town, that Qatar openly and actively supports terrorism.
  Let's look at a few more examples. In 2003, Congress was informed of 
Qatar's funding to charities that support al-Qaida, including the bin 
Laden-endorsed charity, the Qatar Charity. The same year, The New York 
Times also reported that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of 9/11 
and one of the terrorists responsible for murdering 3,000 Americans, 
fled to Qatar from Kuwait in order to avoid apprehension.
  We also know that Qatar has provided support for al-Qaida's affiliate 
in Syria, al-Nusrah Front. Qatar has provided support to numerous 
terrorist groups, including the Taliban, the Muslim Brotherhood, and, 
of course, its most visible beneficiary, Hamas.
  What would you call a group that supports terrorists or a country 
that supports terrorist groups like al-Qaida, al-Nusrah, the Taliban, 
the Muslim Brotherhood, and Hamas? You would call them a state sponsor 
of terrorism.
  That is what this administration needs to do. It needs to remove 
Qatar's Major Non-NATO Ally status until such time that Qatar denounces 
terrorism and any support for terrorism or terrorist groups. If they 
don't, maybe it is time to label them as a state sponsor of terrorism.
  Earlier today, this House passed, in a unanimous fashion, my 
amendment to call on Qataris to condemn Hamas, turn over Hamas 
leadership to the U.S. or Israeli custody, and prevent Iran from 
receiving any funds.
  If the Emir of Qatar were here on the House floor, I would tell him 
to pick a side. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. 
Enough equivocating.
  Let me be clear. I do not wish ill on Qatar. In fact, I am open to 
dialogue.
  To the people of Qatar, I wish them well, but I want to ensure that 
my country has partners it can trust. Qatar has demonstrated time and 
again its unwillingness to abandon its two-faced approach toward 
relations with the United States and with terrorists.
  Mr. Speaker, regarding the atrocities, what does Qatar have to say 
when a mom and her 10- to 12-year-old daughter were brutally raped, 
left naked, and murdered in their home?
  What does Qatar have to say when a baby was put into an oven, the 
father murdered, and the wife brutally raped? What does Qatar have to 
say?
  When women were being gang-raped, their breasts cut off, and the 
terrorists were playing with them, tossing them around like toys, what 
does Qatar have to say?
  When they were sexually abusing men and cutting off their genitals, 
what does Qatar have to say?
  When the pregnant mom, her mouth gagged, was being held while they 
cut the baby out of her womb, what does Qatar have to say?
  They blame Israel.
  They need to pick a side. For too long, they have been on the wrong 
side.
  Let me make one final note on Qatar, and it is in reference to a 
comment made earlier by my colleague from Texas. He mentioned Qatar's 
role in helping to release hostages from the clutches of the Hamas 
dogs, the terrorists of Hamas. Most Americans taken by Hamas on October 
7 are still in custody. What has Qatar done?
  Many people, Israeli and otherwise, are still in Hamas custody. What 
has Qatar done?
  I would say they are stalling for time to allow Hamas to regroup, to 
flee, and to rebuild. It is time that families and children be 
reunited. We want every hostage released now.
  We pose a question to you: Do you think Qatar is the best 
intermediary for releasing hostages? I don't think they are.
  I am grateful for every hostage that has been released, but while 
Qatar is helping to release some hostages, they are also ensuring 
Hamas' preservation.
  I said earlier today that someone who robs your home and then offers 
to cut your grass 2 days later is still a thief. It does not change who 
they are.
  Given the level of financing Qatar provides Hamas on an annual basis, 
they could have at least compelled the release of all Americans.
  Let me mention briefly, Mr. Speaker, my Trust But Verify Act, which 
would delist Qatar's MNNA status, Major Non-NATO Ally status, until the 
President certifies that they are no longer providing support for 
international terrorism, and the President must recertify this every 90 
days.
  Mr. BERGMAN. Mr. Speaker, time is finite because once a minute is 
gone, it is lost forever.
  I have countless examples here of how Qatar's influence is so deep in 
Washington, D.C. That includes hacking. That includes targeting 
committee chairmen. Most importantly, the biggest example that is read, 
The Gray Lady, The New York Times, is a business partner, to an extent, 
with Hamas.
  It is time that we stop treating Hamas' benefactors and the 
government as an ally. The time is now for the U.S. to force Qatar to 
choose between the U.S. and Hamas. They cannot embrace both. If they 
choose to continue embracing Hamas, we must treat them as we treat any 
other state sponsor of terrorist groups that murder Americans.

[[Page H6046]]

  Mr. Speaker, the State of Qatar poses the gravest and most profound 
threat to the national security interests of the United States in the 
Middle East.
  This was true before October 7th, but it is now undeniable in the 
aftermath of the unspeakable horrors of that day--where at least 32 
Americans were brutally murdered and another 12 Americans were taken 
hostage.
  Qatar poses a threat to the U.S. not through its military. Nor does 
Qatar threaten the U.S. by training and directly equipping terrorist 
groups the same way that the Ayatollah and the Mullahs from Iran do.
  Qatar threatens the U.S., even though it does nor call Israel the 
Little Satan, nor does it call the United States the Great Satan. And 
it is true that Qatar does not loudly proclaim that it wants to wipe 
Israel ``off the map,'' just as it does not publicly chant, ``Death to 
America.''
  But it is precisely because Qatar does not espouse extremism so 
boldly and brazenly that this tiny but wealthy emirate is so dangerous 
to our national security interests.
  The nature of this threat is best understood by comparing and 
contrasting the two main state sponsors of Hamas--Qatar and Iran.
  Qatar has access to the corridors of power and the ability to mingle 
with world elites. Iran, on the other hand, simply does not have the 
ability to influence or glad-hand Western leaders.
  Iran does not get invited to the G-20--Qatar does.
  Iran does not attend Davos--Qatar does. Iran does not host the 
forward headquarters of CENTCOM--Qatar does.
  The Iranian Ayatollah can't simply get President Biden on the phone 
for a friendly call.
  But the Qatari Emir can--and does.
  The Islamic Republic of Iran in its current form run by the mullahs 
would never be designated as a ``Major Non-NATO Ally.'' Yet just last 
year, President Biden bestowed this prestigious designation on the 
State of Qatar.
  Qatar has used its enormous influence with the West to help terrorist 
groups, such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Taliban. Qatar's singularly 
unique support for Hamas has proved invaluable for the bloodthirsty 
terrorist group.
  Hamas leaders not only planned the unprecedented terror campaign from 
luxury villas and penthouse suites in Doha--provided to them by the 
State of Qatar--but they have been allowed to promote blood libels 
daily since October 7th on Al Jazeera, the propaganda outlet owned and 
ultimately controlled by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamnad Al 
Thani.
  For years and continuing to this day, Qatar has promoted and 
whitewashed Hamas, Hezbollah and the Taliban--among other terrorist 
groups--including with fawning coverage on Al Jazeera. Qatar also 
effectively serves as the diplomatic arm for these terrorist groups, 
including when they claim to act as ``mediators'' with the terrorists 
for the West.
  And of course, Qatar also funds these and other terrorist groups, 
sometimes overtly and sometimes quietly.
  But Qatar has also provided direct and material support to Hamas here 
in the United States, such as aggressively protecting the terrorist 
group by successfully killing legislation that was intended to enact 
harsh sanctions on state sponsors of Hamas.
  As I will soon explain in more detail, the State of Qatar was single-
handedly responsible for killing the Hamas Sanctions Bill, which was 
first introduced in 2017, by my friend and colleague, Congressman Brian 
Mast.
  The State of Qatar not only killed the Hamas Sanctions Bill in the 
115th Congress, but after it was reintroduced in 2019, the emirate once 
again killed the legislation in the 116th Congress.
  And while it is impossible to know for sure, it is distinctly 
possible that if Qatar had not gone to such extraordinary lengths to 
protect Hamas from sanctions, that the atrocities of October 7th might 
never have happened.
  Almost the entire Beltway foreign policy establishment--not just 
Democrats, but also Republicans--have gotten Qatar wrong for the past 
25-plus years. The establishment's conventional wisdom is that although 
almost all outward indicators show that Qatar is firmly aligned with 
Iran, Islamists and jihadists, the supposed ``truth'' is that they are 
secretly moderate and pro-America.
  Unfortunately, our foreign policy elites have chosen to cling to the 
illusion of who the Qataris privately claim to be, while ignoring the 
harsh reality of who they actually are.
  It is simply nor true that the Qataris are ``reluctantly'' close with 
Iran, Islamists and jihadists, engaging with these malign actors out of 
necessity or to ``help'' the United States and the West. The 
overwhelming evidence shows that, in fact, the Qataris are true 
believers.
  Qatar's apologists claim that the emirate only has dealings with Iran 
because they jointly own the North Field, the world's largest natural 
gas reserve.
  Yet time and again, Qatar acts in sync with Iran across the Middle 
East, where both regimes just so happen to try and destabilize the same 
governments--especially those that are strong allies of the United 
States. And Qatar and Iran both sponsor some of the same terrorist 
groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
  But there is no support for Ambassador Al Thani's allegation.
  The most generous interpretation for the emirate is that Qatar wanted 
to serve as the home for Hamas headquarters and its leaders, and that 
it convinced the Obama Administration to allow them to become joined at 
the hip with the bloodthirsty terrorist group.
  Similarly, Qatar is also no ``reluctant'' supporter of Hamas. Qatar's 
Ambassador to America, Meshal Al Thani, implied in a Wall Street 
Journal op-ed earlier this month that that the United 
States essentially requested Doha to host Hamas' world headquarters and 
to provide sanctuary to the terrorist group's leaders.

  The best evidence that Qatar genuinely supports Hamas and shares the 
same worldview and goals as the terrorist organization is what you see 
when Hamas leaders, such as Ismail Haniyeh or Khaled Mashaal, meet with 
the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamnad Al Thani.
  As you can see in photos of their meetings, the Emir warmly embraces 
Haniyeh and Mashaal--terrorists with blood on their hands--and the Emir 
clearly demonstrates with his smile and body language that he considers 
these Hamas thugs to be his close, personal friends.
  There are two other powerful indicators that Qatar agrees with the 
radicals who hate America.
  The first is the ruling Al Thani family's close relationship with the 
longtime ``spiritual leader'' of the International Muslim Brotherhood, 
Yusuf Al-Qaradawi.
  The other is something available for anyone to see for themselves--
the stomach-turning content of Al Jazeera, the Qatari state-owned 
propaganda outlet.
  Until Yusuf Al-Qaradawi died last year at age 96, he was not only the 
top religious cleric for the Muslim Brotherhood, but also for the 
ruling Al Thani family.
  The Qatar Foundation, which is actually a private company owned by 
the Emir of Qatar and his parents, worked closely with Qaradawi for 
decades, spending hundreds of millions of dollars to export and promote 
Qaradawi's deranged brand of Islam.
  To understand just how much of an extremist that Qaradawi was, all 
you would have to do is watch the old broadcasts of his show on Al 
Jazeera. Over the years, Qaradawi used his Al Jazeera platform to 
endorse violent jihad against the West, and he specifically advocated 
for terrorist attacks on Israel, as well as attacks on U.S. soldiers in 
Iraq.
  Qaradawi also praised the Holocaust, and repeatedly used his show to 
promote the mass murder of Jews.
  On his Al Jazeera show in 2011, Qaradawi proclaimed that ``Allah'' 
used Adolf Hitler to wreak the Holocaust upon the Jews as ``divine 
punishment,'' and he praised Hitler for ``putting (Jews) in their 
place.''
  Qaradawi was well-known for praising Hamas during his Al Jazeera 
broadcasts. Unfortunately, the entirety of Al Jazeera is now also well-
known for praising Hamas.
  Al Jazeera has served as an unabashed cheerleader for Hamas for 
years, and especially since October 7th. The broadcasts of state-owned 
Al Jazeera have been rife with explicit cheerleading for Hamas and 
spreading blood libels about the Jewish state.
  Not only does Al Jazeera reveal its repugnant biases in hailing Hamas 
as the ``resistance'' and casting Israel as the ``occupiers,'' but 
among its earliest reporting on Hamas' October 7th terrorist attack was 
a story praising the brutal kidnappings as ``humanitarian,'' under the 
headline, ``Activists praise the resistance's humanitarian treatment of 
an Israeli woman and her children.''
  In the time since, Qatar's propaganda outlet has continued to 
interview top Hamas leaders, often in-studio in Doha--allowing them to 
promote dangerous falsehoods designed to incite viewers against not 
just Israel, but also America and the West.
  For years, Hamas has tried to sell to the West a fiction, the idea 
that there is an ``armed wing'' and a ``political wing'' of the 
terrorist organization. Well, it is safe to say that since October 7th, 
Al Jazeera has become the media wing of Hamas.
  If someone wants to know about Qatar's true foreign policy positions, 
all they need to do is check out Al Jazeera's Arabic language coverage.
  That way, it wouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Qatar's Ministry 
of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on October 7th that it holds 
``Israel solely responsible'' for the mass murder of 1,200 innocents 
and the kidnapping of another 200-plus.
  Earlier this month at a Gulf Cooperation Council gathering, Qatar's 
Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani doubled down on this position, 
when he had the audacity to condemn

[[Page H6047]]

the world for allowing Israel supposedly to be ``above the law''--as if 
a nation should not be allowed to defend itself from mass murderers at 
its border--even as the Emir himself very much treats the Hamas leaders 
as ``above the law'' by refusing to arrest them.
  Qatar has been able to hoodwink the State Department and the foreign 
policy ``elites'' for years through a two-tiered, carrot-and-stick 
approach.
  They lavish money in all directions to purchase ``friends'' and 
supporters. And when they encounter the principled few who can't be 
bought off, Qatar has used its considerable espionage capabilities to 
target those critics it views as harmful to their interests.
  In short, Qatar's influence strategy can be summed up in three 
words--buy or destroy.
  The ``visible'' portion of Qatar's strategy has been to spread 
billions and billions of dollars across the U.S. Here's a srnall 
sampling of Qatar's largesse inside the U.S.:
  A total of $6 billion given to our universities, which doesn't 
include the millions it gives to radical, anti-American campus groups, 
such as Students for Justice in Palestine.
  An unknown dollar amount, but probably hundreds of millions of 
dollars in total, to think tanks.
  Millions and millions of dollars to The New York Times--yes, the 
``Gray Lady''--in the form of co-hosting dubious ``Art for Tomorrow'' 
conferences in Doha, as well as sponsoring other New York Times 
junkets, such as its ``Oil and Money'' conferences.
  Since 2017, Qatar has engaged at least 75 lobbying and PR firms, 
according to the FARA website, and it has paid these firms 
approximately $225 million, for an average of $3 million paid to each 
registered FARA agent.
  And most recently, Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar 
Investment Authority, or QIA, ``invested'' $200 million dollars to 
purchase 5 percent of Monumental Sports Entertainment, founded and run 
by Ted Leonsis, and which is the parent company of the NBA and NHL 
franchises right here in Washington, D.C., the Wizards and the 
Capitals.

  Qatar's lavish spending habits on lobbyists and now for sportswashing 
have garnered at least some media attention. But the dirty secret is 
that it is the darker side of Qatar's ``buy-or-destroy'' approach that 
has probably been even more effective.
  Qatar has engaged in hacking operations to intercept the 
communications of Americans whom the wealthy emirate believes to be 
harmful to its interests, reportedly by hiring firms such as Global 
Risk Advisors, founded and owned by former CIA agent Kevin Chalker, to 
plan and orchestrate these so called ``hack-and leak'' operations.
  In recent years, Qatari espionage activities have used hacked 
materials to smear a long list of powerful and influential figures, 
including both former and current U.S. government offIcials.
  Here are a few examples of the American critics of Qatar that the 
emirate went after through targeted dissemination of hacked materials 
to friendly media outlets:
  the former Homeland Security Advisor to the President, Fran Townsend;
  a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Mark Wallace;
  the former Deputy National Security Advisor, Elliott Abrams;
  the former acting head of the Central Intelligence Agency, Michael 
Morell: and
  the then-sitting Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Ed 
Royce.
  The decision to target Chairman Royce is as stunning as it was 
brazen. But here is the cold, hard reality: a foreign government that 
sponsors numerous terrorist organizations used American citizens and 
others to intimidate and neutralize one of the most powerful U.S. 
government officials in matters of foreign policy, who at that time was 
the Chairman of this body's Foreign Affairs Committee.
  Although Qatar has never publicly stated why they unleashed their 
espionage forces on Chairman Royce, the reason seems obvious.
  It was to protect Hamas.
  In late 2017, Chairman Royce's committee unanimously passed the Hamas 
Sanctions Bill, whose findings mentioned two state sponsors of Hamas--
Iran and Qatar. It was no secret at that time that Qatar's top priority 
was killing the legislation, and Qatari lobbyists were swarming Capitol 
Hill, desperately attempting to halt the bill.
  Just a few months later, in early 2018, Qatar's high-priced PR agents 
worked in cahoots with media outlets, including The New York Times, to 
smear Chairman Royce--a good man, known and loved by many in this 
body--with splashy ``news'' stories that created false narratives 
through the use of hacked materials.
  What makes the whole operation to smear Chairman Royce even more 
outrageous is the very significant ethical conflict of the primary 
media outlet that relied on hacked materials to do Qatar's bidding--The 
New York Times.
  What the ``Gray Lady'' did not mention in any of the many stories it 
published based on emails hacked by Qatar is that The New York Times 
was in business with Qatar.
  In fact, Qatar and Brookfield had reached an agreement to purchase 42 
percent of the New York Times Building in Times Square by January 2018.
  The New York Times also neglected to mention in these stories placed 
by Qatar's Intelligence services that Qatar had been lining the pockets 
of The New York Times for at least several years by this time, with 
untold millions of dollars for ``sponsoring'' junkets hosted by The New 
York Times.
  So when the tiny but wealthy emirate needed to ``teach a lesson'' to 
any other Congressman or Senator thinking of criticizing Qatar--or even 
Hamas--the State of Qatar turned for help to its own business partner, 
The New York Times, which dutifully published a hit piece smearing the 
then-current Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
  The hit pieces that Qatar generated had the desired effect.
  Even though the Hamas Sanctions Bill, H.R. 2712, had been unanimously 
passed by the Foreign Affairs Committee in November 2017 and was 
expected to easily pass a Floor vote in this body.
  But after the Qataris successfully weaponized hacked materials to 
smear Chairman Royce, the Hamas Sanctions bill died a quiet death, 
never even making it to a Floor vote.
  Could anyone imagine the Chairman Royce scenario playing out the same 
way, but with different countries or a different target?
  For example, if Russia had targeted a Democratic Congressman or 
Senator that same way, does anyone doubt that the media and foreign 
policy ``elites'' would have been up in arms?
  Or if it had been Iran smearing a Democratic Congressman or Senator 
with hacked materials? This is yet another example of the unique threat 
posed by Qatar.
  There's no other nation that would be so daring as to intercept the 
communications of prominent Americans--let alone high-ranking U.S. 
government officials--that also has a cozy relationship with top media 
outlets or that has financial ties to a wide array of prominent and 
influential Americans.
  Who in academia would dare step up to criticize Qatar for openly 
targeting American critics, including U.S. government officials?
  Not likely someone affiliated with Harvard, which has received at 
least $17 million from Qatar.
  Probably not anyone affiliated with Northwestern University, which 
has raked in over $600 million from Qatar.
  The same goes for anyone affiliated with Georgetown University--which 
has received over $800 million in Qatari cash--or Cornell University, 
which Qatar has paid a staggering $2 billion.
  The top ranks of the think tank world are also surprisingly reluctant 
to criticize Qatar--which is no surprise given the millions upon 
millions of dollars that Qatar spreads to think tanks.

  And in case you might think that major law firms would be outraged at 
a foreign government hacking the communications of its American critics 
and then weaponizing those hacked materials, that has certainly not 
happened with Qatar.
  Among the law firms retained by Qatar is Covington, a law firm that 
acts as personal counsel to President Biden.
  Three Covington partners serve as the trustees of Biden's Vice 
Presidential Archives.
  Covington partner Dana Remus was the first White House Counsel in 
this Administration, and before that, she was the general counsel for 
the Biden 2020 Presidential campaign.
  Another Covington partner, Robert Lenhard, served as the lead outside 
counsel for the Biden 2020 Presidential campaign.
  And Lenhard's wife, Viveca Novak, was an editor at McClatchy News 
when that outlet was publishing stories based on materials hacked by 
Qatar in 2017-2018.
  Even with its tentacles everywhere in American society, the State of 
Qatar is looking to extend its influence operations into one of the 
last areas in the U.S. that has been immune from foreign influence--
American professional sports.
  The Qatar Investment Authority has purchased 5 percent of Monumental 
Sports Entertainment, the parent company of the NBA and NHL franchises 
right here in Washington, D.C.--the Wizards and the Capitals.
  Over the past month, I have sent multiple letters about QIA's 
proposed investment to the NBA, the NHL, and Monumental Sports.
  All three of them responded to my initial letters with dismissive 
replies, and then the NBA and Monumental ignored my following-up 
letters sent two weeks ago, which included straightforward questions 
that would shed light on some of the basic details regarding this 
business deal that is obviously of significant importance to the 
American public.
  There should be no doubt that Qatar's sole motivation for its 
investment into the Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals is 
to give it a uniquely powerful tool for further

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cementing its death grip on our Nation's capital.
  Congress must investigate this business arrangement. And because 
Monumental's President, Ted Leonsis, is seeking $600 million in 
taxpayer money to pair with Qatar's $200 million ``investment'' in 
order to renovate the Verizon Center, Congress has a duty to 
investigate.
  As my time comes to a close, let me conclude by saying that it is of 
paramount importance that the United States immediately begin to 
reassess its relationship with the State of Qatar.
  The only path forward is to pressure Qatar. It is unconscionable that 
Hamas is holding as hostages nine Americans and almost 200 others, 
while Hamas leaders live freely--and luxuriously--in Doha, just miles 
from the United States Air Base at Al Udeid.
  We owe it to the memory of the 32 Americans murdered on October 7. 
And we owe it to the American people, whose government should not be 
treating Hamas' benefactors as an ``ally.''
  The time is now for the U.S. to force Qatar to choose between the 
U.S. and Hamas. They cannot embrace both. And if they choose to 
continue embracing Hamas, we must treat them as we treat any other 
state sponsor of terrorist groups that murder Americans.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________