Qatar

B

Political Expression

Prior to the discovery of oil the large merchant families controlled much of Qatar’s wealth, giving them considerable political influence with the emir. Oil revenues have since given the emir financial independence and essentially unchallenged political power. There is little serious opposition to the ruling al-Thani clan. Within the large clan of several thousand members, however, there is often infighting. Rulers have periodically been displaced by rivals, most recently in 1995, when Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani overthrew his father, Khalifa bin Hamad al-Thani. Under Emir Hamad, the government began allowing Qatar’s professional and business people greater voice in political affairs. The 2005 constitution guarantees Qatari citizens full freedom of political expression and association.

C

Defense

Qatar has a modest defense force of 12,400 military personnel, with 8,500 in the army, 1,800 in the naval forces, and 2,100 in the air force. Military service is compulsory for Qatari males who do not complete secondary school. Qatar played a significant role in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, and served as a central command center for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. Qatar signed a security pact with the United States in 1992, and it depends largely on this ally for protection against major external threats. In the early 21st century the United States shifted its major air operations headquarters for the Middle East from Saudi Arabia to Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base.

D

International Organizations

On independence in 1971 Qatar joined the United Nations, the Arab League, the Nonaligned Movement, and the Organization of the Islamic Conference. It established the Gulf Cooperation Council in 1981 with five other Persian Gulf Arab states.

VI

History

Traces of Stone Age habitation dating back 50,000 years have been found in Qatar. By 4000 bc the ancient trading culture of Dilmun, based in Bahrain, had spread to the Qatar Peninsula. Dilmun’s power peaked in about 2000 bc, and the state’s far-flung trade connections linked Qatar to the ancient cultures of Mesopotamia and India. Dilmun faded in the 1st millennium bc, and control over Qatar and the gulf region passed to the Babylonians and, later, the Seleucids.

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From the 3rd to the 7th centuries ad the Sassanids of Persia (now Iran) ruled Qatar and adjacent parts of the Arabian mainland. In the mid-7th century Qatari sailors played a significant role in carrying Muslim troops across the gulf to conquer Persia as the new religion of Islam expanded out of Arabia (see Spread of Islam). Subsequently, Qatar came under the sway of the Islamic dynasties of the Umayyads, based in Damascus (in present-day Syria), and the Abbasids, whose capital was Baghdād (now in Iraq). In 1517 the Portuguese captured Qatar, but they were expelled in 1540 by the Ottoman Empire, which intermittently exercised authority over Qatar and the northern Persian Gulf until World War I (1914-1918).

A

Rival Clans in Qatar

From ancient times until the 18th century there were few permanent settlements in Qatar and virtually none in the interior because of its hostile climate. In the 1760s the al-Khalifa and al-Jalahimah clans—both members of the ‘Utub tribe of central Arabia—migrated from Kuwait to Qatar. The al-Khalifa clan established its rule in Az Zubārah in the northwestern part of the Qatar Peninsula. In 1783, with assistance from the other clans of the ‘Utub, the al-Khalifas captured Bahrain. For much of the 19th century the al-Khalifas continued to control at least part of Qatar, but were increasingly challenged by the al-Thani clan.

The al-Thani clan had immigrated to Qatar from the Najd region of central Arabia at some point before the arrival of the al-Khalifas. The al-Thanis and other emigrants from Najd brought with them the strict interpretation of Islam often known as Wahhabism (see Wahhabis). Over the course of the early and mid-19th century, the remaining al-Khalifas gradually emigrated to Bahrain and the al-Thanis established authority over the Qatar Peninsula. Under the al-Thanis, Qatar developed a modest economy based on pearl diving, fishing, and trade. When the al-Khalifas attacked in 1867 to try to recapture the peninsula, the British intervened to prevent instability in the area. The British supported the al-Thanis’ authority over Qatar, recognizing the dominant position of their leader, Muhammad bin Thani.

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