While aging Gulf state rulers congratulate 33-year old Sheik Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on becoming Qatar’s new emir, lost in the adulation is the tension caused by Qatar’s support for the Muslim Brotherhood.
CBS News reported, “Qatar broke ranks with other Gulf states to offer help to the Muslim Brotherhood,” which now dominants politically in Egypt.
That support for the Muslim Brotherhood came while Sheik Tamim’s father, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, was on the throne. With Sheik Hamad’s abdication, his son has given no indication that he will change policies on the issue.
Because Sheik Tamim was “closely involved in all key decisions” during his father’s rule, there is no indication that his views on the Muslim Brotherhood are different from his father’s.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins.