The Qatari emir tried to sound as if his sharia-oppressed country were equal opportunity in a post about the graduating class of Qatar University. Instead, he inadvertently displayed how hypocritical he is and how sharia law keeps women out of the public square.
Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani posted on X, “I congratulate our daughters and sons, the students of Qatar University, on their graduation from this important stage in their academic journey, wishing them further success and excellence, and that they may be a vital force in the renaissance of our society and the progress of our nation, contributing to the realization of our country's comprehensive developmental aspirations.” Hillel Neuer, head of UN Watch, drily challenged in response:
.@TamimBinHamad But Emir, where are “the daughters”? https://t.co/bLpANoRu8f pic.twitter.com/KyJS7MWR6e
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) May 4, 2026
After all, Al Thani’s regime is a huge and enthusiastic sponsor and supporter of Hamas and other terrorist groups, so naturally he is a practiced liar.
Now, it is true that women can and do attend university and run businesses in Qatar, and Qatari women have more education than women of multiple other Gulf nations, so to that extent Emir Al-Thani is right. But sometimes it’s all in the comparisons. Polygamy, underage marriage, and much lower pay are all realities for Qatari women. Writer Valentine Marie, who lives in Qatar, explained last year:
Within the Gulf, Qatar is among the best nations for women’s rights. Within the global ranking of gender inequality, however, Qatar is 44th. You will see this paradoxical nature throughout various levels of life in Qatar. The country has explicitly stated its commitment to gender equality, yet still enforces imbalanced laws in the spheres of inheritance, marriage, and even whose testimony holds more weight in court.
Why might this be? Why would Qatar have so many imbalances in its system that keep women in a second-class position? That I can explain in one word: Islam.
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Under Islamic or sharia law, women are always inferior and dependent on men. If they are accorded more rights, it is simply as a favor from the men, who can take them away again with perfect justification under sharia. And if, conversely, the Muslim men give women no rights, that is most certainly in accord with sharia.
Quran 70:22-30 and 23:5,6 — among other verses — refer to the fact that Muslim men are allowed to have sex not only with their wives but also with their slaves. Islamic texts also endorse domestic abuse and essentially make it a sin for women to refuse the sexual advances of the men in their lives, institutionalizing rape. Polygamy is legal in Qatar, where men can take multiple wives.
Furthermore, Hadith and Sirah both confirm that Muhammed married Aisha when she was only six and consummated the marriage when she was only nine. He was in his fifties at the time. The Youth Foundation UK noted in 2023 that while the government in Qatar does not officially encourage child marriage (though girls can marry legally at 16 or younger with parental consent), it still persists as a very real problem within the country.
Or, in other words, the emir of Qatar is absolutely complicit in sharia misogynistic oppression of women.
