US embassy cable - 05DOHA1468

C O N F I D E N T I A L DOHA 001468 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/23/2015 
TAGS: PREL, KDEM, PTER, KISL, XA, QA 
SUBJECT: OULD AL-TAYA ARRIVES IN DOHA, JOINING OTHER EXILES 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Chase Untermeyer for reasons 1.4 (d). 
 
1. (U) Ousted Mauritanian president Maouiya Ould al-Taya 
arrived in Doha at 8 PM August 22 with his family. According 
to a local news report, he was also accompanied by the 
"teacher of his children" and is staying at a luxury hotel. 
He arrived on a Qatar Airways plane via Cairo. Sources 
indicate that the GOQ requires that he not engage in 
political activity while taking refuge in Qatar. 
 
Host for Exiles 
--------------- 
 
2. (SBU) Taya joins a motley mix of forced and voluntary 
exiles in Doha. Prominent among them is Dr. Yousef 
al-Qaradawi, who as a member of the Muslim Brotherhood ran 
afoul of the Nasser regime in Egypt and was given a 
professorship at Qatar University in 1962. The former Iraqi 
Minister of Foreign Affairs under Saddam Hussein, Naji Sabri 
al-Hadithi, has found refuge here, as have Saddam's wife and 
one daughter (as  ell as an assortment of family members for 
other former Iraqi regime figures). The Chechen leader 
Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev found asylum in Doha until his 
assassination in February 2004. Hamas leader Khalid Meshaal 
resided in Qatar for some time, and members of his family 
have remained. Bilal Phillips, a Canadian Salafist Muslim, 
moved to Qatar after his residency in the United Arab 
Emirates was revoked; he teaches at the Qatar Guest 
Center. In the same category is Wagdy Ghoneim, an Egyptian 
national expelled from the U.S. in early 2005 for supporting 
extremism in mosques. Finally, the president of the former 
Islamic Salvation Front, Abbasi Madani, chose to reside in 
Qatar after his release from Algerian prison in 2003. 
 
3. (C) Qatar has thus become something of a refuge for a 
range personalities from across the political spectrum. As it 
did with Taya, the GOQ generally requires that "guests" not 
create political trouble. Madani, for example, does not 
criticize the Algerian government and recently supported 
President Bouteflika's recent proposal for national 
reconciliation. 
 
Possible Reasons for Granting Asylum 
------------------------------------ 
 
4. (C) There are several theories why Qatar would choose to 
host such a disproportionate number of estranged figures. A 
simple one is that, though Qatar's economic might is growing 
apace, it remains a rather tiny political entity, and these 
figures help the rest of the world locate the country on the 
political map. Linked to this idea is that fact that some of 
these individuals serve as a resource for the satellite 
channel Al Jazeera. Madani has appeared several times on the 
channel, and Qaradawi has a regular show. 
 
5. (C) It is not necessarily true that Doha plans to use 
these exiles as political chips against the governments of 
their home countries. To the contrary, Doha maintains strong 
relations with Algeria, to continue with the Madani example. 
And the GOQ did not state a position, either in support or 
critical, on the Mauritanian coup. It is expected that 
hosting Taya will not change Qatar's neutrality in the 
matter. Nevertheless, the exiles extend Doha's range of 
useful international contacts. 
 
6. (C) While aiming to show Qatar as open to a wide range of 
political views, the variety of circumstances show that each 
case is judged independently. Ould Taya's reported close ties 
with the Qatari Amir would likely have been decisive. Some 
minor characters may have been drawn to Qatar for its relaxed 
reputation and were able to remain because the government 
does not want to create an unnecessary stir by kicking them 
out. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
7. (C) In Qatar it is the Islamic-oriented exiles who are 
active giving lectures (at one level) or nuturing a devoted 
following (at the higher level). Ould Taya, as politician out 
of power from a poor country in the "far west," will probably 
slip into relative obscurity. 
UNTERMEYER