Qatar campus safe amid Middle East protests, university says
Mark Robinson
Managing Editor
Turmoil sweeping through the Muslim world has a “low possibility” of affecting the VCU Qatar campus in Doha, the campus’ chief safety officer Michael Arrighi said in an email.
Protests erupted in nearly 20 countries across North Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia on Friday, including Qatar, because of an American-made anti-Islam film, the New York Times reported. About 2,100 people protested in Doha after a Friday service held at a mosque about three miles from the VCU Qatar campus, a Qatari publication reported.
“Emergency preparedness is in place and under continual review to respond appropriately to any disturbance or threat,” added Arrighi, who is working with the U.S. embassy in Doha to monitor protests in the region.
The same Qatari publication also reported the chairperson of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, Dr. Yousuf Al Qaradawi, denounced violence in a sermon prior to the protest, saying “loyalty to the Prophet is not expressed by attacking embassies.”
Protesters damaged U.S. embassies in Tunisia, Sudan, Yemen, Egypt and Libya, where four Americans were killed, including U.S. diplomat to Libya, Chris Stevens.
The Qatari demonstration ended at the U.S. Embassy – about 10 minutes from the VCU Qatar campus – where police were on hand to secure the compound. Some of the protesters chanted anti-U.S. slogans, but the demonstration quickly dispersed. No injuries were reported.
The U.S. Embassy in Doha could not be reached for comment as of press time.
About 225 VCU students are currently studying at VCU Qatar. Farzana Hoque, a senior double majoring in interior and fashion design, is one of them. She can’t recall Qatar ever being unsafe in her time there, she said.
“I don’t know what the news is showing, but it’s just the usual peaceful Qatar,” Hoque said in a Facebook message.
Still, some took precautions in anticipation of the protests.
“We have stayed indoors all weekend just to be safe,” relayed Jesse Payne in an email. Payne, an assistant professor at VCU Qatar, noted that he normally feels safer in Doha than he does in the U.S.
VCU Qatar is one of six U.S. universities in Education City, a section of Doha established by the Qatar Foundation in 1995. The foundation is run by the Qatari royal family and headed by Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar.
Qatar is the most peaceful country in the Middle East, according to the Global Peace index. By all accounts, the protests are unlikely to turn violent if they continue.
There were no reports of protests in Saudi Arabia, the only country that borders Qatar, as of press time. Reports indicated that a demonstration in nearby Bahrain saw protesters burn the American and Israeli flags, but no violence was reported.
According to the State Department, embassies and consulates in 65 countries have issued alerts since protests over the film began on Sept. 11. The U.S. Embassy in Qatar is not one of them.
The CT’s managing editor Mark Robinson reported from Gaborone, Botswana, where he is studying abroad for the semester.
