Omar Chatriwala

Overview

Omar Chatriwala has spread incitement, whitewashed terrorists, demonized and spread hatred of Israel. Chatriwala has also promoted an anti-Israel agitator and is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

As of November 2021, Chatriwala’s LinkedIn said that he was an Executive Producer at AJ+ since June 2018 in the “Washington D.C. - Baltimore Area.” Chatriwala’s LinkedIn page detailed that he was also the Executive Producer at AJ+ from “April 2014 - August 2015” in Doha, Qatar and San Francisco, California.

As of November 2021, Chatriwala’s Medium and Twitter account said that he was a “co-founder or co-creator” of Doha News.

Chatriwala’s LinkedIn page also said he was an adjunct lecturer at Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q), from “Jan 2011 - Feb 2012,” and that he was a “Journalist, Multimedia Producer, Blogs Editor, Assistant News Editor,” with Al Jazeera English (AJ English) from “November 2006 - November 2010.”

As of the same date, Chatriwala’s LinkedIn page said he received a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) in 2005 and noted that he was active with the Muslim Students Association (MSA) at UT Austin during that time.

Spreading Incitement

Chatriwala retweeted a May 8, 2021 AJ+ tweet that said: “Israeli police fired at Palestinian protesters at Al-Aqsa Mosque. More than 170 people were injured. Protesters were showing support for Palestinian families facing eviction in occupied East Jerusalem. The UN has called Israel's forced evictions a potential war crime.”

In May 2021, Palestinian violence erupted in anticipation of an Israel High Court ruling on eviction proceedings concerning over 70 Palestinian tenants illegally residing in Jewish-owned properties in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. 

The tweet was accompanied by an AJ+ video that claimed that “Israeli forces fired on palestinian protestors at Al-Aqsa mosque.” The video also showed footage of protestors chanting [00:00:49] “Sheikh Jarrah is calling” and calling [00:00:52] for “revolution.”

In May 2021, violent clashes broke out between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa compound following claims the Al-Aqsa Mosque was in danger. The subsequent incitement was a leading factor in Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorists firing over 4,300 rockets from Gaza into Israel later that month. Israel responded by launching “Operation Guardian of the Walls (OGW),” carrying out targeted military strikes in Gaza. Allegations of Jews “threatening” to destroy the Al-Aqsa Mosque have been a traditional pretext for Arab attacks on Jews predating the State of Israel.

Incitement surrounding Al-Aqsa and Sheikh Jarrah were leading factors in Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorists firing over 4,300 rockets from Gaza at Israeli population centers from May 10 to 21, 2021. In response to rocket attacks from Gaza, Israel launched “Operation Guardian of the Walls (OGW),” striking military targets in the terrorist-controlled enclave.

Chatriwala retweeted a May 8, 2021 AJ+ tweet that said: “At least 169 Palestinians have been injured by Israeli police near the Al Aqsa mosque in occupied East Jerusalem Many were wounded in the eyes or face say medics. Palestinians are protesting plans to evict 30+ families in Sheikh Jarrah to make way for Israeli settlers.”

Whitewashing Terrorists

On July 30, 2014, during Operation Protective Edge (OPE), Chatriwala tweeted: “All side confirm Hamas had nothing to do with killing of 3 Israeli teens that sparked the current war http://buzzfeed.com/sheerafrenkel/israeli-intelligence-officers-doubt-hamas-involvement-in-inc… by @sheeraf.”

Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S., Canada, European Union, Israel and other countries. Founded in 1987, it has killed thousands of Israeli civilians through mass shootings and suicide bombings. Hamas has also kidnapped children, families and the elderly and held them hostage in Gaza. It has desecrated [slide 2] dead bodies and launched numerous rocket attacks against Israeli civilians. 

Hamas was responsible for the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers from a bus stop on June 12, 2014. The abducted boys were murdered by their captors, and their bodies were found buried in Palestinian-controlled territory on June 30, 2014.


Israel commenced OPE in July 2014 to stop rocket fire targeting Israeli civilians and to destroy Hamas attack tunnels.

On July 26, 2014, also during OPE, Chatriwala tweeted: “It Turns Out Hamas Didn’t Kidnap and Kill the 3 Israeli Teens After All http://nym.ag/1pgXp14 via @intelligencer.”

On February 19, 2012, Chatriwala tweeted: “Khader Adnan: No food without freedom says the Palestinian after 63 days of hunger strike in Israeli jail http://aje.me/wClUbw by @justimage.”

Khader Adnan was a senior member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist organization. A 2007 YouTube video showed Adnan praising and encouraging suicide bombings: "Who among you will carry the next explosive belt? Who among you will fire the next bullets? Who among you will have his body parts blown all over?” In May 2023, Adnan died in prison after refusing medical treatment during a hunger strike.


On February 21, 2012, Chatriwala tweeted: “RT @EhabZ: Israel to free Palestinian hunger striker Khader Adnan. #khaderadnan http://apne.ws/xxDyAi.”

On April 7, 2012, Chatriwala tweeted: “Israel frees former hunger striker Khader Adnan” and linked to an AJ English article that referred to Adnan as a “Palestinian prisoner” and “a 33-year-old baker who was arrested ‘for activities that threaten regional security’ due to his alleged leadership role in Islamic Jihad.”

On April 27, 2012, Chatriwala posted a photo on Tumblr of Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal and said: “Saw #Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal at Friday prayers in #Doha today#doha#qatar#hamas#Khaled Meshaal # friday #prayer#mosque#palestine.”

Hamas leader and founder Khaled Mashal has called for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state  

Demonizing Israel

On May 21, 2021, Chatriwala tweeted: “It's not a conflict, it isn't a clash (thanks for setting the record straight @Nadia8)” and linked to an article titled: “Don’t call it a ‘clash’: Why words matter in covering Israel and Palestine.”

The article encouraged journalists to use language that would demonize Israel instead of describing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in neutral terms.

The article also claimed that the Sheikh Jarrah evictions were part of an Israeli “policy to limit the number of Palestinians to maintain a demographic balance” and accused Israel of land theft, mass political imprisonment and economic exploitation of Palestinians. 

The article also portrayed Israel as carrying out a mass displacement, military occupation and political repression of Palestinians.

Chatriwala retweeted a December 15, 2018 tweet that said: “‘One-state Solution’ is bad marketing. For 51 yrs, there's been only one state west of the Jordan River - an apartheid state. When we fought apartheid in SA, we didn't demand ‘a 1-state solution’, we called for full democratic equality - has a nicer ring to it, eh?”

On August 17, 2018, Chatriwala posted to Facebook: “A much-needed long read in which the facts are clearly laid out that, by definition, Israel is an apartheid state. by Nathan Thrall.”

Chatriwala linked to an August 14, 2018 op-ed in The Guardian by anti-Israel journalist Nathan Thrall, titled: “BDS: how a controversial non-violent movement has transformed the Israeli-Palestinian debate.”

Thrall’s op-Ed documented the effects of the BDS movement that “rejects the idea of a Jewish state” and centers the right of return and the accusation of “apartheid” against Israel.

The “right of return” is a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel. 


On July 30, 2015, Chatriwala tweeted: “Amnesty Report Visualizes Israel's War Crimes” and linked to an AJ+ video with the same title. The AJ+ video accused [00:00:43] Israel of “the deliberate targeting of civilians” during OPE.

The video Chatriwala shared also featured anti-Israel academic and BDS supporter Eyal Weizman claiming [00:00:60] that Israel targeted first responders, ambulances and hospitals.

Throughout the summer of 2014, during Israel’s OPE, Hamas used civilian infrastructure for military purposes, which included homes, schools, hospitals and mosques

Hamas also launched numerous rocket attacks against Israeli civilian population centers and they encouraged Gazans acting as human shields to ignore Israeli warnings in order to frustrate Israeli efforts to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza.

On March 12, 2012, during Israel’s Operation Returning Echo (OPE), Chatriwala tweeted: “RT @Mogaza: #Gaza in the last 7 hours. 2 killed, and 42 injured mostly #women and #children by #Israeli #air raids! #palestine.”

Israel’s Operation Returning Echo (ORE) was a military campaign fought against terror organizations Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) in the wake of rockets fired by the two terror groups from Gaza into Israel. In response, the IDF launched airstrikes at PIJ and PRC sites. ORE took place from March 9 to March 14, 2012.  


Spreading Hatred of Israel

Chatriwala retweeted a March 30, 2019 AJ+ tweet that said: “It has been 1 year since #GreatMarchOfReturn protests began in Gaza, calling for an end to the Israeli blockade and for the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes. The UN says Israeli forces killed 189 Palestinians and wounded 6,000+ people during protests.”

On March 30, 2018, some 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border to take part in “Land Day Protests” or the “March of Return.” The violent demonstrations were instigated by Hamas on the Israeli-Gaza border. Participants declared their intention to harm Jews across the border under the pretext of “peaceful resistance.”

March participants sent scores of kites bearing explosive devices across Israel’s border to burn Israeli crops and homes. Rioters also made numerous attempts to breach Israel’s border fence, which caused the Israeli Defense Forces to respond with live fire.

Agitators also threw Molotov cocktails, firebombs, shot firearms and threw rocks under the cover of smoke from burning tires. 

Chatriwala retweeted a May 14, 2018 tweet that said: “Left: #Jerusalem Right: #Gaza (Pictures taken at the same time this afternoon)” and included a graphic of two photos together. The first was a photo of the opening of the U.S. Embassy to Israel in its new Jerusalem location and the second was of March of Return protesters.

On May 16, 2018, a Hamas senior official, Salah al-Bardawil, stated that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during the May 14 Gaza border protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed that three of its members were killed at the same protest.

On April 8, 2018, Chatriwala tweeted: “😪He was wearing a vest marked ‘PRESS.’ He was shot dead covering a protest in Gaza..” and linked to a Washington Post article about Yasser Murtaja. 

Yasser Murtaja, a photojournalist, was reportedly a Hamas spy who used drones to film Israeli military positions. Murtaja was shot and killed on April 6, 2018, as he filmed the 2018 Hamas-led “March of Return” protest in Gaza.

Promoting an Anti-Israel Agitator

On November 30, 2018, Chatriwala posted an AJ+ video of Marc Lamont Hill to his Facebook page and wrote: “Here's what Marc Lamont Hill said at the UN that led to his CNN contract being canceled.”

In November 2018, Hill was fired from his contributor position at CNN (Cable News Network) after he gave an anti-Israel speech at the United Nations. He called [00:20:47] for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea,” a phrase associated with demands to dismantle the State of Israel. Hill also accused [00:16:19] Israel of “ethnic cleansing,” as well as [00:17:49] “white supremacy” and [00:17:56] “settler colonialism.”

The video featured Hill accusing [00:01:13] Israel of “state violence and ethnic cleansing” and calling [00:01:48] for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea.”  

“From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” is a chant calling to dismantle the State of Israel. It has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state.


Chatriwala retweeted a November 30, 2018 AJ+ tweet that embedded the same AJ+ video and said: “CNN fired pundit Dr. Marc Lamont Hill after he gave this speech at the U.N. in support of Palestinian resistance.” 

Supporting BDS

On July 2, 2016, Chatriwala posted a link on Facebook to a Washington Post op-ed that supported BDS by Rebecca Vilkomerson, the former executive director of the anti-Israel Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) organization and a leading promoter of BDS.

On October 30, 2014, Chatriwala tweeted: “SodaStream Leaving The West Bank After Boycotts” and linked to an AJ+ video with the tagline: “Facing an intensive boycott campaign, the controversial Israeli company that makes home soda machines is leaving the West Bank.”

In February 2016, 500 Palestinians lost their jobs when Sodastream moved its factory from the West Bank to southern Israel. Although the company denied that BDS had an impact on the decision, the BDS movement took credit for the factory’s relocation.


On August 8, 2014, Chatriwala tweeted: “VIDEO: Are You Buycotting Israel? http://youtu.be/eXoD_0YbFdg by @etharkamal via @ajplus” and linked to an AJ+ video with the same title and description: “A new app called Buycott lets hundreds of thousands of users boycott products deemed to support Israel, something that is gaining popularity in light of the attack on Gaza.”

Qatar - Terrorism  

Qatar is one of the primary state backers of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) and has provided funding for Hamas in the past. Qatar facilitates funding to advance extremism around the world, including the West.
  
Founded in Egypt 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood is a transnational Islamist organization, listed as a terrorist organization in at least six countries, including Egypt, Russia and Saudi Arabia. Hamas, a terrorist group dedicated to Israel’s destruction, is listed as one of the Brotherhood’s offshoots.

Hamas has been designated aterrorist organizationby the European Union, Canada, Australia, the United States and Israel.

The Hamas founding charter has called for the murder of Jews, and Hamas has hosted “summer camps,” that taught children how to wage war.

Qatar Foundation

In 1995, the then-Emir of Qatar and his wife, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, created the Qatar Foundation (QF) to “advance education, science, and cultural development.” 

In 1995, QF was given two billion dollars in resources by the Qatari Government “to address knowledge and capacity deficits” and transform into a “knowledge-based economy.”

QF launched Education City (EC) in 1997, with the stated goal of providing “world-class education to the people of Qatar.” 

In 2003, the campus was officially inaugurated

Qatar Foundation - Yusuf al-Qaradawi and the Muslim Brotherhood  

In 2007, Yusuf al-Qaradawi announced QF’s establishment of the Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS) in EC. The QFIS structure was to be created by an advisory committee, chaired by al-Qaradawi.
  
Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi [Yousef Al-Qaradhawi] was the founder and, as of April 2020, remained head of the European Council for Fatwa and Research. In 2005, The Wall Street Journal reported the council used the anti-Semitic fabricated text, the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, as a basis for some of its deliberations.

al-Qaradawi said in a statement that aired on Al-Jazeera TV on January 30, 2009: "Throughout history, Allah has imposed upon the Jews...The last punishment was carried out by Hitler...Allah Willing, the next time will be at the hand of the Believers."

al-Qaradawi has also called for the murder of American civilians, as well as American troops in Iraq, homosexuals and Jews and expressed support for domestic violence against women. 

In 2008, Moza bint Nasser and QF established within QFIS, the al-Qaradawi Centre for Research in Moderate Thought, also known as the “Al-Qaradawi Center for Islamic Moderation and Renewal,” in honor of “His Eminence” Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi.
 
QFIS described al-Qaradawi as “a pioneer of Islamic moderate thought” and the research center’s “main theorist.” 

In January 2012, QF opened the Research Center for Islamic Legislation and Ethics (CILE), “under the guidance of Director Dr. Tariq Ramadan.” In October 2015, Ramadan was listed as the CILE Director. 

Tariq Ramadan is the grandson of Muslim Brotherhood (MB) founder Hassan al-Banna and son of senior Brotherhood operative Said Ramadan. Tariq Ramadanis also alleged to be a serial-rapist, as well asa terrorist supporter. 

In 2015, Ramadan gave a “Principles of Leadership in Islam” seminar series, open to all EC students.As of May 2020, CILE listed Ramadan as part of “Our Team” on their website.  

NU-Q - Qatar Foundation  

In 2008, QF invited Northwestern University (NU) in Evanston, Illinois to set up a Qatari satellite campus in EC, Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q), focusing on journalism and communications. 

The degree that NU-Q awards students upon graduation would be identical to that earned at NU’s Evanston, IL campus.

On July 10, 2009, the Chronicle of Higher Education released an article critical of the academic standards of EC, noting that: "Administrators at several branch campuses of American universities in Qatar acknowledge that they accept students with admissions standards that fall below those expected on their home campuses…"

On April 5, 2014, Everett Dennis, NU-Q’s then-Dean and CEO said [00:12:25] in an interview with Richard Heffner, a former professor of Communications and Public policy at Rutgers University (Rutgers), that QF was “paying the bill” for NU-Q’s building, faculty, research and housing.

In March 2015, Stephen F. Eisenman, President of the Northwestern Faculty Senate, reported to the NU Faculty Senate that Qatari students receive full scholarships from the QF, while non-Qatari students, with some exceptions, must pay full costs. Eisenman also reported that “that five new endowed professorships at NU were recently funded out of QF money.”

In 2016, NU signed a 10-year extension to its agreement with QF, enabling NU-Q to operate through the 2027-2028 school year.

As of November 2019, the United States Department of Education (DoE) reported that Qatar gave NU $323.4 million in contract revenue since January 2013, averaging $49.6 million per year.

As of April 2020, Qatar Foundation’s contract with NU-Q was not available to the public. 

As of May 2020, EC hosted six American university satellite campuses, in addition to NU-Q, including Carnegie Mellon University, Georgetown University, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), the Joan & Sanford I. Weill Medical College of Cornell University and Texas A&M University.

QF lawyers, according to a January 2016 Washington Post article, petitioned the Texas attorney general in an attempt to keep the operational and financial details confidential.

However, the Washington Post was able to publish the 2012 10-year contract between VCU and QF because it was “disclosed as a matter of public record.” The projected budget included a VCU management fee of $3.6 million dollars for 2013, to rise to $4.1 in 2015.

The Washington Post article added: “The other four U.S. schools involved are private: Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Northwestern and Georgetown universities. They all declined Post requests for their Qatar contracts.”

The Washington Post later published the 2014 contract between Texas A&M and QF in a March 2016 article. The contract stated: “Texas A&M is eligible for a management fee for running the branch — an amount set at $8.2 million in fiscal 2014.” 

In 2019, the U.S. DoE was reportedly “quietly investigating Georgetown and three other universities — Texas A&M, Cornell and Rutgers — over their funding from Qatar.” 

Qatar Foundation - Anti-Israel Campaign  

In 2009, the Qatar Foundation hired the U.S. public relations firm, Fenton Communications, to develop “a communications action plan for an 18-month campaign,” using Al Fakhoora, a Qatari-based pro-Palestine initiative.

The Fenton plan aimed to delegitimize Israel and generate international support for the Hamas-run Gaza strip, with a reported budget of $120,000.

Al Fakhoora was reportedly launched in 2009, following “the Israeli aggression on Gaza,” in support of promoting and facilitating access to higher education.  

Israel commenced Operation Cast Lead (OCL)in 2008-09 in order to stop Hamas rocket fire from Gaza targeting Israeli civilians. In 2010, Hamas admitted that nearly 700 of the Palestinian casualties in OCL were combatants.

In May 2010, Farook Burney, director of Al Fakhoora, reportedly participated in the Mavi Marmara attempt to “break the siege in Gaza.”  

The Mavi Marmara was the lead ship in a “Freedom Flotilla” of six ships that attempted to sail to Gaza in May 2010 to “break the siege.” A 2011 United Nations’ report found that the flotilla activists initiated a violent confrontation with Israeli forces. Following the incident there was no humanitarian aid found onboard the ship, only crude weaponry.  

In June 2010, Burney reportedly told students at QFIS that "Al Fakhoora has launched an advocacy campaign to file legal charges against Israel and change the public perception in the West about its actions."

As of 2020, Fakhoora was located in Education City (EC), Qatar.  

Qatar Foundation -EC Mosque Hosting Anti-Semitic Preachers  

In April 2015, QF opened the Education City (EC) Mosque, located in Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies (QFIS) campus, adjacent to NU-Q.

Since the opening of the mosque, QF’s newspaper has encouraged readers to “join the QF community for prayer” at the EC Mosque, which has hosted 18 preachers and clerics who have variously spread anti-Semitism, expressed support for terror, spread [00:00:20] a conspiracy theory that radicalized Muslims played no part in 9/11 or the Charlie Hebdo attacks and declared that the Jews use pornographic movies to “destroy the world and control it.” 

One preacher, Salman al-Audah, claimed [00:02:48] in a sermon broadcast on a major Gulf media channel in August 2012, that Jews use “human blood” for Passover matzah

A cleric, Tareq al-Hawas, stated [00:04:11] about Jews "If only Hitler had finished them off, thus relieving humanity of them." Hawas was reportedly a member of Yusuf al-Qaradawi's International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) in 2013.
 
Another cleric, Mohammed al-Arifi, proclaimed in 2012, that “one’s devotion to jihad for the sake of Allah and one’s will to shed blood, smash skulls, and chop off body parts...constitute an honor.”

On March 18, 2016, preacher Mudassir Ahmed spoke at the EC mosque, urging attendees to [00:37:47]: “Kill the infidels... Count them in number and do not spare one.”

On April 1, 2016, preacher Khalid Al-Bakr, who has expressed support for Hamas, spoke at EC’s Mosque, calling [00:36:47] for Allah to “render victorious our brothers the mujahideen...in every place” and to “guide their shooting.”

On October 30, 2015, during the “Knife Intifada,” al-Hawas used his pulpit at the EC mosque to condemn [00:30:18] “the aggressor Zionists,” adding: “Allah, Help out Islam and Muslims, humiliate the heathens; destroy the foes of the religion.” al Hawas also said: "Protect your house, Al-Aqsa mosque from the hands of the Zionist aggressors."  

October 2015 saw a wave of stabbings, known as the “Knife Intifada,” where young Palestinians throughout Israel were stabbing and attempting to stab Israeli civilians. The upsurge in violence across Israel was incited by Palestinian political and religious leaders. The attacks were sparked and fueled by Palestinian leaders propagating the libel that Israel intended to desecrate the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.  

NU-Q - Al Jazeera  

Since 2008, NU-Q has worked closely with the Al Jazeera Media Network (Al Jazeera). In 2013, NU-Q signed a Memorandum Of Understanding (MoU) with Al Jazeera “which deepens ties between the two organizations.”
  
Al Jazeera is a multinational multimedia conglomerate and parent company of the Qatari state-funded Al Jazeera. AJMN comprises an entirely state-owned network, chaired by Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar.

AJMN has been repeatedly accused of slanting news reports to promote and advance the agenda of theMuslim Brotherhood (MB), as well as MB’s offshoot, the Hamas terrorist organization.

On March 13, 2013, Qatari-based news site Marhaba reported that NU-Q’s MoU with Al Jazeera aimed to “further facilitate collaboration and knowledge transfer between the two media organisations.” NU-Q’s announcement of the MoU referred to itself and Al Jazeera as “two of Qatar’s foremost media organisations.”

The MoU was created, in part, so NU faculty would provide consultations to launch Al Jazeera America (AJAM), based on NU’s “expertise in the American Media Industry.”Al Jazeera, for its part, expressed “willingness to support NU-Q students with scholarships as well as training opportunities.” 

Al Jazeera launched AJAM, an American news channel, 2013. However, the channel closed in April 2016 due to low viewership and following a crisis in 2015 when CEO Ehab Al Shihabi reportedly stepped down after accusations of sexism and anti-Semitism.

NU-Q’s MoU with Al Jazeera was signed by Ahmed bin Jassim bin Mohamed Al-Thani, Qatari Minister of Economy and Commerce and Director General of Al Jazeera, as well as Everette Dennis, the Dean and CEO of NU-Q.

Since the MoU, Al Jazeera has maintained a close partnership with NU-Q, including funding NU-Q’s professorial research.  

NU-Q Joint Advisory Board  

Since NU-Q and Al Jazeera signed their initial MoU in 2013, NU-Q has a Joint Advisory Board (JAB), which consists of ten to eleven people; five or six positions filled by Qatari-connected members and five positions filled by Western members. 

All eleven of the current or previous Qatari-connected JAB members were directly affiliated with QF, Al Jazeera or the Qatari government.

There is little information available about the role of NU-Q’s JAB. The role of the Texas A&M University, Qatar (TAMUQ) JAB was exposed by the Washington Post in a 2016 article, to include general oversight and close monitoring and review of every aspect of TAMUQ, with QF paying the JAB TAMUQ expenses.

Multiple people associated with the NU-Q’s JAB have whitewashed al-Qaradawi, including the QF CEO and JAB Co-Chair from 2008-2019, Hind bint Hamad Al-Thani, JAB 2019-2020 member and president of Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) Ahmad Hasnah, as well as JAB 2012 - 2014 member and QF Vice President of education Abdulla bin Ali Al-Thani.

Qatari State Minister, NU-Q JAB 2019-2020 member and AJ Vice Chairman Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari, reportedly recommended a book that spread anti-semitism and authored an introduction praising the book. Yaser Bishr, 2017-2020 JAB member and Executive Director of digital media at Al Jazeera has demonized Israel.

Professor Rami Khouri was a Western NU-Q JAB member from 2012-2020 and a senior fellow at American University of Beirut (AUB). As of January 2020, Khouri was also an Al Jazeera contributor.

Khouri has legitimized terrorism, defended the “Knife Intifada,” has glorified violent protesters and spread anti-Israel conspiracy theories.  

NU-Q - Hosting Annual Al Jazeera Speaker Series  

Since the signing of the MoU in 2013, NU-Q has hosted an annual Al Jazeera Speakers Series. Thirteen of the 17 speakers who participated in the series at NU-Q from 2013-2019 have whitewashed terrorism, demonized Israel or expressed supportfor the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Dima Khatib, managing director of AJ+, spoke at NU-Q as part of the series on November 8, 2016. Khatib has spread anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, defended Hamas terror and whitewashed Hezbollah. She has also glorified a terrorist, demonized Israel and is a supporter of the BDS movement.

Elia Ghorbiah, a journalist at AJ’s immersive storytelling studio Contrast VR [Virtual Reality], spoke at NU-Q on November 8, 2018, as part of the series, helping to launch the NU-Q’s new Media Innovations Lab (MIL). 

Ghorbiah has compared Israel to Nazi Germany, exressed support for terrorists, as well as the terrorist organization Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and urged the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers. She is also a supporter of the BDS movement.  

NU-Q - Anti-Israel Middle East Studies Minor  

In 2017, NU-Q launched a Middle East Studies minor in their Liberal Arts program. From 2017-2019, four of the seven members of the NU-Q’s Middle East Studies committee included anti-Israel NU-Q professors Justin Martin, Ibraham Abusharif, Khaled Hroub and Sami Hermez.

Khaled Hroub, a Professor at NU-Q who taught the 2018 and 2019 course “Islamism & Politics in the Middle East,” has reportedly whitewashed the terror group Hamas.

Sami Hermez, an NU-Q Professor who taught the 2018-2019 NU-Q courses “Anthropology of Palestine” and “Advanced Topics: Violence/Power/Resistance,” has promoted a terrorist and demonized Israel.

All of the required reading for Hermez’s “Anthropology of Palestine” course was authored by anti-Israel professors, eight of whom were activists in or supporters of the BDS movement. One of the authors, Edward Said, has advocated for the “right of return,” a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel.

Justin Martin, an Associate Professor at NU-Q, has mocked America’s suffering following the 9-11 terror bombings and demonized Israel. Martin has also broadcast his desire for Qatari funding to boost the BDS movement on U.S college campuses.

Ibrahim Abusharif was an editor and Treasurer of the Quranic Literacy Institute (QLI) from 1990 to 1998. The QLI “was allegedly part of a large web of organizations and individuals that were funding terrorist groups.”

QLI, along with the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF), and the Islamic Association of Palestine, was found to have funded Hamas militant activities and therefore liable for the death of David Boim, an American citizen killed by Hamas in the West Bank. This was later reversed as it could not be proven the funds were intended to be used to kill Boim.

The minor also required students to attend two guest lectures a year, chosen by the Middle East Studies Committee.  

NU-Q - Student Internships in International Media  

As of January 2020, third-year NU-Q Journalism and Strategic Communication students were required to intern for ten weeks at media or public relations firms, off-campus.

In 2019, students reportedly interned at international communication firms and news outlets in Washington D.C., New York City, London, Berlin, Stockholm and Doha.

As of February 2020, news outlets where NU-Q students have interned included: BBC News, TIME Magazine, Forbes, the Washington Post, National Geographic, the Guardian, National Public Radio (NPR), the Boston Globe, USA Today, Vox, the Financial Times, the Huffington Post and VICE
.
Students also interned at sports outlets, including: Sports Illustrated and ESPN, as well as fashion outlets Vogue, Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire.

NU-Q reported in 2012 that they were able to offer students residencies at prestigious media organizations “because of the high-level contacts that NU-Q faculty and staff have in the international media.” 

BDS

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by Omar Barghouti in 2005 to challenge “international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.” BDS is an allegedly “Palestinian-led movement,” although leading BDS activists have admitted [00:01:01] this is not true. 

One of the demands of BDS includes [point 3] what is generally known as the “right of return,” a demand discredited as a way to eliminate Israel. Barghouti said the “right of return” is a means to “end Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.”  

Barghouti has said that BDS “aims to turn Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.”

In his activism, Barghouti has also said [00:05:55] regarding Israel: “Definitely, most definitely, we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No…rational Palestinian, not a sellout Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”

The movement has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and received a public endorsement from Hamas in 2017.

BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.

The movement’s most notable achievement has been the infiltration of university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments and student groups, backed by their own anti-Israel members and affiliates, have proposed resolutions on some form of boycott of, or divestment from, Israel and Israeli-affiliated entities.

Boycott resolutions, although non-binding, have been passed by student governments on numerous North American campuses.


BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents on campus. On one campus, when the student government debated a BDS resolution, reports emerged of violent threats against those opposing it.



AJ+

AJ+ is an online news channel run by Al Jazeera Media Network (Al Jazeera) that produces videos and other content in English, Arabic, Spanish and French.

AJ+ has pushed anti-Semitic propaganda, promoted terrorists’ social media campaigns and whitewashed terrorists. The channel has also defended violent protesters, demonized Israel and promoted the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

AJ+ has attempted to leverage intersectional politics in its videos, in order to demonize Israeli law enforcement and has promoted calls for the defunding of the U.S. police force.

Al Jazeera English

Al Jazeera English (AJ English) is a Qatari-owned news channel, part of the Al Jazeera Media Network (Al Jazeera), headquartered in Doha, Qatar. Al Jazeera and AJ English are owned by the Qatari government and are financed by Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar.
 
AJ English has come under scrutiny by the U.S. State Department for Qatari “editorial and programmatic control” of AJ English, as Qatar is also the principal financial backer of the terror groups Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
 
AJ English has a significant social media following and has used its platforms to spread anti-Semitism, whitewash terrorists and promote anti-Israel propaganda. 
 
AJ English is geared to a Western audience and has been careful to distance itself from controversy involving AJ’s Arabic news channels. When caught minimizing the murder of Jewish Israelis or publishing falsehoods that demonize Israel, AJ English has usually been quick to retract its statements.  

MSA

The MSA was  established by members of the Muslim Brotherhood in January 1963 at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, with the goal of "spreading Islam as students in North America." A 2004 FBI investigation uncovered an internal Muslim Brotherhood document in which a brotherhood leader identified the MSA as "one of our organizations." 


The MSA reportedly has “nearly 600 chapters” located in the United States and Canada, and is “the most visible and influential Islamic student organization in North America,” boasting conferences, special events, publications, websites and other activities.


The organization includes a number of previous chapter presidents with explicit links to terrorist groups. Included are al-Qaeda cleric Anwar al-Awlaki (Colorado State University), Somali al-Shabaab militant leader Omar Shafik Hammami (University of South Alabama) and Pakistani Taliban recruiter Ramy Zamzam of the MSA's Washington, D.C. council.  

Social Media and Weblinks

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/1759502203











Omar Chatriwala
Status:
Professional
University:
Northwestern-Qatar
Organizations:
AJ+,
Al Jazeera,
more...
BDS,
MSA

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Last Modified:
05/04/2026

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