The Media Line: Sheikh Hamad, Who Expanded Qatar’s Global Influence, Dies at 74  

Sheikh Hamad, Who Expanded Qatar’s Global Influence, Dies at 74  

By The Media Line Staff  

Former Qatari Sheikh Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who transformed Qatar into an influential diplomatic, media and investment power during his 18-year rule, has died at 74, state media reported Sunday. The state-run Qatar News Agency announced his death but did not provide a cause.   

Sheikh Hamad seized power from his father, Sheikh Khalifa, in a bloodless palace coup in 1995 and ruled until voluntarily handing power to his son, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in June 2013.   

Under Sheikh Hamad, energy-rich Qatar expanded its international influence and founded the Al Jazeera satellite news network. The country also invested heavily abroad, including in London’s Harrod’s department store, and successfully bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.   

Sheikh Hamad pursued an independent foreign policy that included ties with Iran, Hamas and Egypt’s outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, straining relations with some regional and Western allies. Qatar also hosted a key Pentagon logistical hub following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the US-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.   

Qatar increasingly positioned itself as a diplomatic broker, mediating disputes involving Sudan’s Darfur region, Lebanese factions and the rival Palestinian Hamas and Fatah factions.   

In October 2012, Sheikh Hamad became the first head of state to visit the Gaza Strip since Hamas seized control five years earlier, promising $400 million in projects and investments. He also met Israel’s then-Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni at the United Nations General Assembly in 2007. Qatar allowed an Israeli trade office in Doha until ordering it closed in response to Israel’s attacks on Gaza in late 2008.   

During the Arab Spring, Qatar sent warplanes to NATO-led missions against Muammar Gaddafi’s forces in Libya and provided military and financial support to Libyan rebels. It also became a major political sponsor of the Syrian opposition to then-President Bashar Assad.   

Shortly before Sheikh Hamad’s abdication, Qatar formally opened an office for Afghanistan’s Taliban, setting the stage for US-Taliban talks.   

“The future lies ahead of you, the children of this homeland, as you usher into a new era where young leadership hoists the banner,” Sheikh Hamad said when announcing his abdication.