Abu Akleh, a veteran correspondent for Al Jazeera, was killed on May 11, 2022 while reporting on an Israeli operation in the Jenin refugee camp. She was wearing a blue protective vest clearly marked “PRESS” at the time of the shooting, according to eyewitness accounts and media footage from the scene.

Then-Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett initially said Palestinian gunfire was likely responsible for the killing and denied involvement by Israeli forces. The Israel Defense Forces later stated it was “not possible to unequivocally determine the source of the gunfire,” while acknowledging there was a “high possibility” Abu Akleh was accidentally struck by Israeli fire.

Independent investigations conducted by the United Nations and several international media organizations, including CNN, The New York Times and Al Jazeera, concluded that Abu Akleh was likely killed by Israeli troops during the raid.

Her funeral in occupied East Jerusalem later drew international attention after Israeli security forces clashed with mourners carrying her coffin. The Jerusalem Red Crescent said 33 people were injured and six hospitalized during the confrontation.

In statements issued on Monday, members of Abu Akleh’s family said the absence of legal accountability reflected a broader failure to protect journalists operating in conflict zones.

“We want the US to provide a public update about the investigation and ensure that there is transparency in the FBI investigation,” her niece, Lina Abu Akleh, told Arab News.

She also called for sanctions against the Israeli military unit allegedly involved in the shooting and criticized what she described as insufficient action by Washington despite Abu Akleh’s US citizenship.
“The ongoing impunity sends a dangerous message that journalists can be targeted without consequence,” Lina Abu Akleh said, linking the case to wider concerns over the safety of reporters covering conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon.

The Committee to Protect Journalists last week urged US authorities to relaunch and publicly update the FBI investigation opened in 2022. In a letter to the US Department of Justice, the organization said it was unaware of formal witness interviews despite multiple individuals expressing willingness to cooperate.

The group described the lack of visible progress in the case as a “profound failure” by the US government to respond promptly and impartially to the killing of one of its citizens abroad.

Qatar is conducting a multi-pronged, global influence campaign to expand its regional and international clout.

Recently, it was reported that Israeli security officials are investigating the possibility that Qatari elements are behind a wave of online posts in recent weeks designed to cast doubt on the stability of the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. These posts, widely circulated in Israeli media, focused on Egypt’s military buildup and increased troop deployment in Sinai — a move that could be seen as violating the peace treaty.

However, a civil society group called “Fake Reporter,” which tracks malicious online activity, found a sharp rise in content on social media portraying Egypt as an increasing threat to Israel. Some of the videos and images used to support these claims were actually from an Egyptian military drill held in 2018.

While it’s true that Egypt has been enhancing its military capabilities, it seems there’s a deliberate attempt to frame this as a threat to Israel. The suspicion is that this disinformation campaign may be aimed at weakening Egypt’s role as a mediator, particularly with the U.S., in Middle Eastern affairs — and especially in Gaza-related matters.

If Qatar is indeed behind this disinformation, it would be yet another link in its vast influence network — one that’s drawn increasing attention lately, both due to the potential collapse of the Assad regime in Syria and Qatar’s involvement in mediation efforts around hostage negotiations. In the Israeli context, reports have surfaced about Qatar hiring Israeli PR experts — including advisors to Netanyahu — to improve its image in global public opinion and in the Jewish world.

This isn’t a new tactic for the small Gulf emirate. While research on influence campaigns over the past decade has focused mostly on Russia, China, and Iran, Qatar has largely flown under the radar — unjustly so. A series of investigations by Reuters since 2019 exposed “Project Raven,” a secret UAE-led operation that hired former NSA agents to spy on targets in Turkey, France, Yemen, Iran, Qatar, and Israel.

Leaked information from that project revealed the extent of Qatar’s global influence operations — supporting both terrorist groups and friendly regimes in the West, while also working to destabilize governments across the Arab world.

For example, Qatar played a role in toppling Gaddafi’s regime in Libya and was the first to recognize the rebel government. It also supported Tunisia’s post-revolution regime after the fall of Ben Ali, and has actively backed Syrian rebels with weapons and funding. Traditionally, Qatar has pursued a proactive agenda in the Arab world and has recently intensified efforts to position itself as a leader of the Sunni world. To that end, it engages in various influence channels:

Influence Among Decision Makers

Qatar commonly uses financial incentives to sway influencers and policymakers. Beyond the bribery scandals uncovered in Project Raven, French authorities recently indicted Nasser Al-Khelaifi — a senior official in Qatar’s Investment Authority and president of Paris Saint-Germain football club — for allegedly using bribes to manipulate business decisions.

Similarly, U.S. Senator Bob Menendez was accused of accepting bribes from both Qatar and Egypt to advance their interests. Qatar also funds trips for politicians and journalists to Doha — a form of soft power. In 2018, federal investigations began in the U.S. into whether lobbyists and former government officials working for Qatar had violated lobbying laws. That year, 250 people close to President Trump were flown to Doha at Qatar’s expense. Likewise, Rep. Ilhan Omar was flown to Qatar during the 2022 World Cup, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer admitted to a similar Qatar-sponsored trip when he was still a member of Parliament.

Just last week, the European Network of Aviation Associations (ENAA) warned the EU’s transport department about a possible aviation deal with Qatar, raising corruption concerns.

Financial Influence

Qatar’s wealth oils the wheels of influence in the U.S. Congress — with reports in 2018 showing that 59 members received donations from Qatar. Think tanks in Washington also benefit, making Qatar a major funder of those who whisper in the ears of decision-makers. In 2022, it was revealed that Gen. John Allen, then-president of the Brookings Institution, was under investigation for secretly lobbying for Qatar after retiring from the military — earning over $1 million in fees. He worked alongside Richard Olson, former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan and the UAE, who admitted to participating in the lobbying campaign.

“Qatargate” Scandal in Europe

The Qatargate scandal in the European Parliament revealed that, starting in 2019, Qatar paid Italian MEP Antonio Panzeri and Greek EU Vice President Eva Kaili in exchange for favorable votes. This led to greater scrutiny in Europe over parliamentarians’ trips to Qatar and prompted ethics committees to enhance oversight and limit Qatari influence.

Western Assets and Public Opinion

Qatar also secures influence through investments. It holds major stakes in European corporations like Porsche. Its massive investment in building the U.S. air base at Al-Udeid made it the largest American military base in the Middle East. Qatar also targets American public opinion — in spring 2020, it donated millions in COVID-19 aid to families in Los Angeles, Charleston (South Carolina), and other U.S. cities.

Influence Through Sports

Qatar places immense importance on sports as a tool for influence. Hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup was the result of a massive lobbying effort — including hiring Israeli PR experts. The campaign continues, with recent reports of Qatari investors aiming to buy the English football club Tottenham and launching their bid to host the 2027 Basketball World Cup. During the 2024 Paris Olympics, Qatari leaders, including the Emir, were prominent guests at the opening ceremony, and Al-Khelaifi even carried the Olympic torch.

Diplomatic Influence

Qatar invests heavily in its image as a regional mediator. Both the Biden and Trump administrations praised its efforts in negotiating the release of American hostages from the Taliban. Doha values this role so highly that its diplomats frequently emphasize Qatar’s neutrality. For instance, the Qatari ambassador to the U.S. wrote op-eds in The Wall Street Journal and Newsweek framing Qatar as an honest broker. Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson has echoed this narrative in numerous interviews, including with Israeli outlets like Haaretz and Channel 12. Journalists from The Jerusalem Post and Kan 11 have even been invited to Doha.

Influence in Education

A 2022 study by the U.S. National Association of Scholars revealed that between 2001 and 2021, Qatar donated $4.7 billion to American universities — including Cornell, Georgetown, and Carnegie Mellon — in return for opening Doha branches. Sometimes, this came with conditions, like removing certain course content or cooperating with Qatari media like Al Jazeera. Texas A&M alone received $404 million between 2015 and 2023. (The university has announced plans to shut its Doha campus by 2027 — a move publicly criticized by the U.S. ambassador to Qatar.)

Qatar has become the largest foreign donor to U.S. universities, often without proper disclosure, and a 2020 ISGAP study found a correlation between Qatari funding and pro-Palestinian activism on American campuses.

Supporting Terror-Linked Groups Under a Humanitarian Disguise

Qatar often masks its support for terror-linked entities as humanitarian aid. To retain influence in Gaza, Qatar insisted on delivering aid during the early 2025 ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, including fuel and bulldozers. It pledged $100 million to UNRWA, with $4.5 million earmarked for operations in the West Bank. Qatar also funneled money to Hezbollah through “charities” that provide food, medicine, and education — and used similar “humanitarian” ventures to build ties with the Houthis in Yemen and the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Media Influence

Qatar’s media arm, Al Jazeera, plays a major role in shaping public opinion. It’s the most popular English-language news network in the world after CNN and BBC — and has been accused of acting as a mouthpiece for Hamas and other Islamist groups. Since its founding in 1996, Al Jazeera has provided a platform for Muslim Brotherhood leaders and broadcast divisive content about the Arab world.

Its various branches, including AJ+ in the U.S., continue to influence global narratives. In Gaza, several Al Jazeera journalists were recently found to be affiliated with Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and the channel actively promoted staged events involving Israeli hostages.

Conclusion

Qatar is conducting a multi-pronged, global influence campaign to expand its regional and international clout. Through its vast network of soft power — in diplomacy, media, education, finance, and humanitarian aid — Qatar has become a key player in global affairs. Israel’s current dependence on Qatari mediation regarding hostages forces it to tolerate, and even flatter, one of Hamas’s primary funders — without whom the October 7th attack may not have happened. Qatar is now also helping Hamas recover.

This case illustrates the sophistication of Qatar’s influence strategy — and the urgent need to monitor and defend against it.

Translated in English from Jerusalem Institute of Strategic Studies.

Cameraman Samer Abu Daqqa was unable to get to safety or medical treatment after being injured in the strike on the Farhana School in Khan Younis and died of his wounds before ambulances were allowed in the area, Al Jazeera said.

Al Jazeera said Israeli drones fired missiles at the school. Reuters could not verify the details of the incident.

Israel’s military did not respond to a request for comment.

“Following Samer’s injury, he was left to bleed to death for over five hours, as Israeli forces prevented ambulances and rescue workers from reaching him, denying the much-needed emergency treatment,” Al Jazeera said in a statement.

The journalists were reporting from the city in southern Gaza, which has been at the centre of Israel’s ground offensive in recent days.

Three Gazan rescue workers were also killed in a strike on the school, said the Civil Defense department, part of the Hamas-controlled interior ministry. Reuters could not immediately establish the sequence of events.

Al Jazeera’s chief correspondent Wael al-Dahdouh was injured in his hand in the attack but managed to reach a nearby hospital for treatment for his injuries, Al Jazeera said.

Dahdouh, a Gaza correspondent, is particularly well known to viewers across the Middle East after learning last month during an emotional live broadcast that his wife, son, daughter and grandson were killed in what the network said was an Israeli air strike.

The two months of war in Gaza have taken a heavy toll on journalists, with at least 64 reporters and media workers killed, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Friday.

The CPJ called on international authorities to “conduct an independent investigation into the attack to hold the perpetrators to account.”

Asked about the killing of Samer Abu Daqqa, White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters: “We still have no indications that the Israelis are deliberately going after journalists covering this war.”

The targeting came after threats to al-Sharif since November, the Qatari-based network said.

“We call on the international community to take urgent measures to stop the occupation army’s massacres of journalists and civilians in Gaza,” it said.

“The horrific event unfolded today at Jabalia Camp, where Moamen’s family sought refuge, leading to the killing of his father, mother, three siblings and his children,” the network said in a statement.

The journalist, who was elsewhere during the bombardment, later appeared live on Al Jazeera. The victims included 17 other members of his extended family.

The network said it “will pursue all legal steps to holding accountable all those responsible for this crime.”

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Jabalia is in the northern Gaza Strip.

On Oct. 25, an Israeli raid killed several family members of Wael Dahdouh, another Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza.

As the battle inside the tiny Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory intensified, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed international calls for a halt to the fighting.

But U.N. and other aid officials warned that a public health catastrophe was engulfing civilians in Gaza, with hospitals struggling to cope with mounting casualties and food, medicine, drinking water and fuel running short.

The director of Gaza’s Indonesian Hospital told Al Jazeera that more than 50 Palestinians were killed and 150 wounded in Israeli air strikes on a densely populated area of the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

The tunnels under the cramped enclave are a prime objective for Israel as it expands a four-day-old ground offensive – after three weeks of aerial bombardment – into Gaza from the north to hit Hamas in retaliation for the Islamist group’s deadly surprise attack into southern Israel on Oct. 7.

Some of the 240 hostages that Israel says were seized by Hamas that day are believed to be held in the tunnel complex, adding a further complication for the Israelis on top of the difficulties of fighting in an urban setting.

“Over the last day, combined IDF (Israel Defence Forces) struck approximately 300 targets, including anti-tank missile and rocket launch posts below shafts, as well as military compounds inside underground tunnels belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization,” an Israeli military statement said.

Militants responded with anti-tank missiles and machine gun fire, it said. A number of militants were killed, it said, without specifying a number.

Hamas said in a statement its fighters were engaging in fierce battles with Israeli ground forces, who were taking losses. “The occupation is pushing its soldiers into proud Gaza, which will always be the cemetery of invaders,” Hamas said.

Israeli forces also bombed the narrow coastal enclave overnight in air, sea and ground attacks, hitting northwestern areas, witnesses said on Tuesday.

On Monday, Israeli forces targeted Gaza’s main north-south road and attacked Gaza City, its northern hub, from two directions.

Gaza health authorities say that 8,525 people, including 3,542 children, have been killed in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7. U.N. officials say more than 1.4 million of Gaza’s civilian population of about 2.3 million have been made homeless.

About 1,400 people, mainly civilians, were killed in the cross-border Hamas assault on Oct. 7, Israel says.

Reuters has been unable to independently verify casualty counts.

Ground Fighting Spreads To South Gaza

The al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, said militants also clashed early on Tuesday with Israeli forces invading Gaza’s south, hitting four Israeli vehicles with missiles.

Militants also fired at two Israeli tanks as well as bulldozers in northwest Gaza, al-Qassam said. In Beit Hanoun, in the northeast, they “liquidated” an Israeli unit which was ambushed as it entered a building.

Reuters was unable to confirm the details of battle reports. Israel’s military had no immediate comment on the Hamas accounts.

Air raid sirens sounded in the area of Israel’s far southern resort city of Eilat on the Red Sea on Tuesday and the Israeli military said it downed an approaching “aerial target”.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis said they had launched a “large number” of ballistic missiles and drones towards Israel, their third operation targeting Israel, with more to come.

The mounting death toll in Gaza has drawn calls from the United States, Israel’s main ally, other countries and the U.N. for a pause in fighting to allow in more humanitarian aid.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking in Washington, stressed the importance of both security assistance for Israel and humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza.

“Without swift and sustained humanitarian relief, the conflict is much more likely to spread, suffering will grow, and Hamas and its sponsors will benefit by fashioning themselves as the saviours of the very desperation they created,” he said.

Israel has sealed off Gaza and refuses to allow in fuel supplies lest, it says, they be used by Hamas to wage war.

Netanyahu said on Monday Israel would not agree to a ceasefire and would pursue its plans to annihilate Hamas.

A World Health Organization official in Geneva said on Tuesday that a “public health catastrophe” was imminent in Gaza.

Children Beneath The Rubble

Air strikes on Monday night outside the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza caused a power cut and doctors said they feared for the lives of 250 injured Palestinians being treated there as fuel runs low.

“Running out of fuel would mean no power and no power would mean the inevitable death of many patients,” Dr. Moaeen Al-Masri said.

James Elder, a spokesperson for the U.N. children’s agency in Geneva, warned of the risk of infant deaths due to dehydration. Children in Gaza were getting sick from drinking salty water, he said.

About 940 children are reported missing in Gaza, he said, with some thought to be stuck beneath the rubble of buildings flattened by Israeli air strikes.

Significantly fewer humanitarian aid trucks than needed have reached the besieged enclave, U.N. officials said. Aid trucks have been trickling into Gaza from Egypt over the past week via Rafah, the main crossing that does not border Israel.

The proposal to shut down Al Jazeera had been vetted by Israeli security officials and was being vetted by legal experts, Shloma Karhi said, adding that he would bring it to the cabinet later in the day.

Al Jazeera and the government in Doha had no immediate comment.

“This is a station that incites, this is a station that films troops in assembly areas (outside Gaza) … that incites against the citizens of Israel – a propaganda mouthpiece,” Karhi told Israel’s Army Radio.

“It is unconscionable that Hamas spokespeople’s message goes through this station,” he said, adding: “I hope we will finish with this today.” It was not clear if the latter statement referred to a cabinet discussion or implementation of a closure.

One of the most recognizable journalists covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for two decades, Abu Akleh was killed in May 2022 during an Israeli raid in the West Bank city of Jenin. Her death triggered outrage across the region.

Israel says Abu Akleh, who was wearing a clearly marked protective press vest and helmet, was likely unintentionally shot by an Israeli soldier but could also have been struck by Palestinian fire. Abu Akleh’s family believes she was killed deliberately, and witnesses to the incident have said there were no Palestinian fighters firing in the area she was standing.

The U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority (USSC) conducted an investigation, but the report remains classified. In a statement, Van Hollen, a Democrat on the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, said the report contains important insights into her death.

That includes “relevant information and findings about the conduct of the Israel Defense Forces (Israeli military) unit involved in that operation – as well as other IDF units operating in the West Bank,” Van Hollen said.

Van Hollen said that while the USSC team was “unable to conduct an independent investigation” due to lack of access to key witnesses, the report’s public release was still vital to ensuring accountability in the shooting death of a U.S. citizen.

The U.S. State Department, which oversees the USSC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In December, Al Jazeera made a submission to the International Criminal Court over Abu Akleh’s killing. Her family has supported such efforts while urging action by the Biden administration.

Israel insists that its soldiers do not deliberately target journalists and has refused to identify the soldier who may have shot Abu Akleh.

Qatar’s Al-Jazeera published a report that alleged that the attacker of a religious Shiite site in Shiraz Iran was a Bahraini national.

In a serious-toned tweet thread, Ministry said, “MOI asserts that the defaming and inciting campaigns against Bahrain and its citizens through the Qatari Al Jazeera Channel come within a systematic framework that lacks professionalism and media credibility. MOI highlights the following:”.

“First: The report posted on Al Jazeera Channel website that the attacker of a religious site in Shiraz in Iran is a Bahraini national is baseless”, it added. “Second: The media’s credibility and professionalism go against the years-long approach of the channel against the Kingdom of Bahrain. Therefore, the information should be denied immediately, considering that the Iranian local authorities have denied the report”.

In its third tweet, the Ministry demanded Al-Jazeera to publish the response in order to correct its report “out of the principle of the right of reply and the clarification of the facts”.

Al Jazeera, which continues to receive political and financial support from the government of Qatar, was established in 1996 as part of Qatari ambitions to transform economic power into political influence in the Arab world and beyond.

As a result, Al Jazeera has come under fire for being Qatar’s official media outlet. 2010 diplomatic cables leaked by WikiLeaks revealed internal discussions from the U.S. State Department that claimed Qatar’s government slants Al Jazeera coverage to serve its political objectives.

According to the Political Scientist Walid Phares, Al Jazeera allegedly developed into the Muslim Brotherhood’s “main ideological and communication network”, during the 2011 Arab Spring in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, and Syria.

Phares stated that Al Jazeera had a “tremendous role” in assisting Islamist components of the revolution after democratic forces had started the uprisings.

Surprisingly, within minutes. I found terrifying armies of fake accounts affiliated with Qatar. Yes Qatar.

First of all, thanks to all my great friends who supported me during the suspension of my account after I posted the below tweet:

I was expecting Twitter to take an action against these fake accounts. Instead, the action was taken against me and my account got suspended right after that tweet! Then, I decided to make sure that I was not mistaken as a bot with real humans, and thanks for my account suspension. I got excited to read more and do some researches about these fake accounts or commonly called bots and if they are really prohibited by Twitter.

Then I found something like, “As per Twitter, their power to identify and remove these behaviors are more sophisticated than ever”. So I decided to see how sophisticated they are.

While I was searching about bots, I was surprised that the country that complains most about bots is Qatar and the country most accused of spreading bots is my homeland, Saudi Arabia. Surprising isn’t it?

I can’t completely deny that accusation, but I am active on Twitter, and I do not remember that we never came across these armies of the fake Saudi accounts they are talking about. I haven’t found a single hashtag in which I noticeably saw fake Saudi accounts backing it up!

So where are these fake accounts that Qatar main media arms @AJEnglish and @AJArabic have always reported about, that these fake Saudi accounts ‘ruined’ Twitter in the Middle East! Either they are so good in hiding or simply they don’t not exist.

After days of searching for these Saudi armies of bots, I gave up and decided to dig more and search in general for the bots from anywhere regardless of their origin.

Surprisingly, within minutes. I found terrifying armies of fake accounts affiliated with Qatar. Yes Qatar.

I was surprised to find exact photo and exact words, with exact Hashtags. Coincidently, on the exact day and the exact hour with “funny” names.

I could not believe my eyes. Qatari media’s continuous accusation against Saudi Arabia about the Twitter bots that’s targeting Qatar, Turkey and Iran was just a cover-up for their day-to-day bots operations which is primarily targeting Saudi Arabia.

They are not just targeting Saudi Arabia, but also implementing Qatar’s political agenda by glorifying the Qatari regime and Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, and even supporting news posts from Al-Jazeera English and Arabic.

These Qatari bots are in thousands and thousands. And to realize the unbelievable magnitude of their operations and numbers, see the below clip with fast scrolling.

I believe it is not a hard job for Twitter Safety team to identify these Qatari bots. In fact, you can try it yourself and visit the hashtag: #QatarTurkey, and you will find the Aj Jazeera English news posted the exact hashtag with exact words, photo and on the same day. In fact, it is just a mere copy-paste bots process.

They all joined in 2020, in the year where Twitter’s power to identify them is more sophisticated. They all have fake funny profiles with 0 or 1 follower.

All these forged accounts are affiliated with Qatar, and they support Qatar’s media channels such as Al Jazeera English and Al Jazeera Arabic, as well as their broadcasters, Qatari politicians, athletes and media professionals, in addition to the fake accounts that oppose Saudi Arabia.

Gaith Al-Tamimi is a Saudi-based Engineer, Geophysicist, Explorer and Travel Expert. He tweets under @GaiTamimi1.