Qatar. A Modern History

Qatar plays a crucial part in the Middle East today. With the second greatest natural gas resources in the region, Qatar´s economic clout is considerable. At the same time the Qatar story is replete with paradoxes: the state hosts the Al-Jazeera media network, an influential expression of Arab nationalism and anti-Americanism, while also hosting the principal US naval base in the region. Its leaders, like Saudi Arabia´s, adhere to the Wahhabi form of Sunni Islam, yet Qatar eyes its Saudi neighbours with suspicion. It is a fervent champion of the Palestinian cause, yet welcomes the Israeli Foreign Minister to present the Jewish state´s case in its capital, Doha. With this groundbreaking modern history, Allen Fromherz presents a full portrait which analyses these paradoxes and Qatar´s growing regional influence within a broader historical context. Drawing on original sources in Arabic, English and French, as well as his own fieldwork in the Middle East, Fromherz offers a multi-faceted picture of the political, cultural, religious, social and economic make-up of modern Qatar, its significance within the GCC states and the wider region.