The Embassy of the State of Qatar in Washington, DC, released the following statement on 13 June 2024 after the House Ways and Means Committee hearing: "The Crisis on Campus: Antisemitism, Radical Faculty, and the Failure of University Leadership."

The statement clearly states that Qatar condemns antisemitism, Islamophobia, and all forms of bigotry. It also emphasises that Qatar funding American universities for malign purposes, including influencing recent incidents of campus unrest, is a false narrative.

It is mentioned that Avril Haines, Director of National Intelligence, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on 2 May 2024 that there was no evidence that Qatar played any role.

Read the full statement below:

"The State of Qatar condemns antisemitism, Islamophobia, and all forms of bigotry.

Unfortunately, during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing today, this serious issue and the important work of Congress were obstructed by a few individuals with an unrelated agenda. They repeated a false narrative that Qatar is funding American universities for malign purposes, including influencing recent incidents of campus unrest.

When this same unfounded assertion was put to Avril Haines, Director of National Intelligence, at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on May 2, 2024, she said plainly there was no evidence that Qatar played any role.

Qatar has no desire or ability to influence anything that happens on U.S. university campuses. It is flatly untrue, for example, that Qatar is the "largest foreign donor to US. universities - a claim made to imply dark motives, and to undermine the strong U.S.- Qatar security and trade partnership.

It is true that, for more than twenty years, six American universities have operated campuses in Qatar, educating and awarding degrees to Qatari women and men, and to students from around the world who wish to study there. These universities operate with complete independence. The contract payments to these universities fund the operating costs of the campuses in Qatar, including construction, maintenance, and faculty salaries. They are not donations, and this distinction is clearly reflected in the Department of Education data.

The Ways and Means Committee is a body with important responsibilities, and we are confident that it will not be diverted from its purpose. This is despite interference from interest groups who seek to exploit current events to advance their own unrelated objectives."

Source: Embassy of the State of Qatar in Washington, DC

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ILQ Staff

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