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Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani, who is in his twenties, was named
crown prince in August 2003 after the abdication of his older brother, Jassem.
Jassem was reportedly deemed to be insufficiently motivated to rule the emirate.
[World Tribune.com 3 Sep 03] "Sheikh Jassim was unhappy about not
getting enough responsibilities," one Western diplomat told Reuters. Another diplomat said the change might be
due to health reasons. [Reuters 4 Aug 03] The emir, Sheikh Hamad bin
Khalifa al-Thani, had ousted his father, Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani, in
1995 in a bloodless palace coup while the old emir was abroad. At that time,
Sheikh Khalifa was trying to recover powers and patronage that Sheikh Hamad had
been steadily securing since 1992. In 1996 a coup plot against Hamad was foiled
and arrested dozens of people.
A reshuffle of the military and security forces begun in
early 2003 after Qatar and the US foiled a coup by mid-level Qatari army
officers in 2002 who opposed the US military presence in the emirate, according
to Gulf diplomatic sources. [World Tribune.com 3 Sep 03]
US counterterrorism experts expressed concern that Qatar's
security chief is a suspected Al-Qaeda sympathiser. There have been allegations
that Qatar's interior minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalid al-Thani, has
sheltered terrorists “including the suspected mastermind of the Sept. 11
hijacking plot, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed - in and around his farm compound near
the capital of Doha.” [Los Angeles Times 28 Mar 03]
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Stability depends on the government balancing traditional
culture with economic and diplomatic pragmatism.
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In a referendum in April 2003, Qataris overwhelmingly
approved a new constitution that guarantees freedom of expression, religion,
assembly and association. The constitution also provides for a 45-member
parliament of which two-thirds will be elected and the remainder appointed by
the emir. Parliamentary elections are expected in 2004. [AP 30 Apr 03]
Qatar is opening up its police force to more women. There
were 107 women cadets who graduated from Qatar's police academy in early
June. There had been only 30 female police officers. [Gulf News 9 Jun 03]
Qatar’s Ministry of Interior indicated in October 2002 at
the MILIPOL security exhibition in Doha that, over the next three years, it
would look at several systems to bolster internal security – especially at
immigration points - in an apparent bid to curb the movements of militants and
criminals. Access to systems and locations will increasingly be guarded by
finger and voice printing and other biometric devices. The ministry is also to
buy coastal and land border radar equipment and new patrol boats, and it has
announced plans to bolster civil defences.
There have
been reports that the governments of Qatar, Yemen and Djibouti have been
coordinating to form a US-backed alliance for combating terrorism
inside the Arabian Peninsula and Horn of Africa. [Gulf News 18 Jun 03]
A Jordanian journalist was condemned to death in
Doha in October 2002 for spying for Jordan. The sentence was up held on
February 2003, but there remained hope of a pardon from the Emir. Firas Majali, who had been arrested in
January 2002, allegedly provided Jordan with information on the status of US
troops in Qatar, as well as economic and social data. [Reuters 22 Oct 02] Bilateral
relations were strained in August 2002 after Qatar-based al-Jazeera
television broadcast a programme critical of Jordan.
Al-Jazeera has caused
other diplomatic problems for Doha, and has also been barred from operating in
Bahrain.
India and Qatar in January 2003 were discussing arrangements
for an Extradition Treaty and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters and a
Joint Working Group (JWG) on Terrorism between the two countries. [UNI 21
Jan 03]
Iran and Qatar signed a memorandum of understanding on 15
October 2002 setting out cooperation and information exchange on security and
police matters, including combating drug smuggling, money laundering, and
cooperation with Interpol. [Arabic News 17 Oct 02]
·
Qatar’s massive gas fields will bolster the country’s
international strategic significance.
·
Doha, perhaps, fearful of mounting instability in
neighbouring Saudi Arabia, is increasing its reliance on the US for security.
Emir Hamad
Bin Khalifa Al-Thani on 2 September 2003 appointed his son, Crown Prince Tamim
Bin Hamad, deputy chief of the armed forces in an apparent move by the ruling
family to increase direct supervision over the military following an attempted
coup in 2002. Qatar does not have a defence minister. A reshuffle of the
military and security forces begun in early 2003 after Qatar and the US foiled
a coup by mid-level Qatari army officers in 2002 who opposed the US military
presence in the emirate, according to Gulf diplomatic sources. [World
Tribune.com 3 Sep 03]
India,
Pakistan and the UAE are looking to purchase 12 used Mirage 2000-5 fighters
from Qatar. A sale to either India or Pakistan could adversely affect relations
between Qatar and the non-recipient – the 2 September 2003 Defense News
cited a senior Indian defence official as saying that New Delhi
wants the Mirage fighters to help augment its delivery systems for nuclear
weapons. Qatar only bought the French fighters in 1998.
The US military is shifting its Combat Air Operations Centre for the Middle East from Saudi Arabia to Qatar. [New York Times 28 Apr 03]
Qatar is buying four DV15 interceptor high-speed craft
from France, with delivery expected from the end of 2003 to the first quarter
of 2004. The 15m craft are to be used to bolster the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces'
ability to protect offshore oil and gas installations and maintain the
territorial integrity of littoral waters. [Jane’s IDEX Show Daily 16 Mar
2003]
Some 600 members of the US Central Command (CENTCOM) moved from Florida to Qatar for exercise "Internal Look” in December 2002. British headquarters staff also visited Al-Udaid.
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld signed an agreement
in Doha on 10 December that will allow the US and Qatar to strengthen the
long-term strategic cooperation "and to engage in some upgrades here in
the country that will work to our mutual benefit," he said. [DoD 10 Dec
02]
·
Qatar’s military security is increasingly being tied up with
a US military presence. Qatar, which has looked to France for much of its
military hardware, is increasing its defence procurement ties with the US.
·
Key US Central Command staff deployed to Qatar to manage the
2003 war on Iraq.
·
Qatar is becoming the main centre for US air operations in
the Gulf region. Development of Al-Udaid Air Base in 2002 has provided the US
Air Force with potential basing for 10,000 personnel and around 100 aircraft.
The 15,000 feet runway is the longest in the Gulf. Qatar has also hosted
pre-positioned military hardware at As-Sayliyah.
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