Qatar using Sudan for supporting terrorism in Africa

Robert Al-Fares

Sudan is highly important for Qatar, which takes advantage of poverty in that country through charities and humanitarian aid to fund terrorist groups. This has been so clear with Doha’s arms shipment sent to Libya under the cover of humanitarian aid to Sudan.

Qatar also recruits a number of Sudanese mercenaries as members of terrorist movements in the north, east and south of Africa, i.e. the Somali al-Shabaab movement and other branches of al-Qaeda in Africa. Qatar funds all of these terrorist movements and groups.

Dr. Ayman Samir stated in a report titled “Qatar Supports Terrorism in Africa” in the UAE-based A Bayan newspaper that Doha supports terrorists in Africa as recently exposed by Western intelligence reports and leaks revealed by The New York Times newspaper, which unveiled “direct link” between the Qatar’s government to the Bosaso bombings.

Dr. Samir explained that many reports and documented evidence revealed by the Western media affirmed Qatar’s links to extremism and terrorism. That raises a key question, why now? Qatar’s functional role, as a supporter of terrorism in the world, is weakening.

In the same vein, The Guardian newspaper revealed the terrorist groups, which get support from Doha through Qatar’s Al Rayan Bank. The Times also published another report, which revealed the bank’s funding to al-Qaeda and its arms in many parts of the world.

A number of African governments stopped dealing with Qatar. These countries include Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Comoros, Niger, Chad, Gabon, and Senegal.

Qatar provided Ansar al-Deen with hundreds of millions of dollars. It also supported al-Tawhid wal-Jihad movement, which is affiliated with al-Qaeda, according to French journalist Richard Labvière, who told Munich Security Conference that he had seen by his own eyes a Qatar Red Crescent aircraft smuggling terrorists who fought the French army from Mali to a safe place in Libya.

Qatar has fully funded Harakat al-Islah — Damul Jadiid (New Blood), which the Brotherhood’s military wing in Somalia. Moreover, Qatar sent millions of dollars to the terrorist al-Shabaab movement, whose leader had lived in Qatar for many years.

According to the US State Department and Treasury Department Qatar had given support to than 90% of terrorist activities in Somalia.

Somali sources said some Sudanese nationals were among 30 al-Shabaab terrorists, who were killed by the Somali government in a military operation.

Therefore, Qatar is keen on keeping Sudan in chaos and economic turmoil to continue the funding of terrorist groups and foster the jihad dogma. To this end, Qatar is seeking to revive the Muslim Brotherhood in Sudan to recruit Sudanese elements in terrorist movements in Africa.