Sheikh Hamad: Emir Who Stood With Gaza When Others Wouldn’t
News Desk
Doha: When Qatar’s Father Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, died on Sunday, the Arab world lost a leader whose legacy extended far beyond diplomacy and statecraft. For many Palestinians, particularly in Gaza, he will be remembered as the first, and only, Arab leader to visit the besieged enclave after Israel imposed its blockade, turning words of solidarity into a defining political gesture.
His 2012 visit to Gaza remains one of the most symbolic moments of his rule. At a time when the territory was under intense international isolation, Sheikh Hamad crossed into the Strip alongside his wife, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, defying regional caution and Western political pressure.
The visit, six years after Israel’s blockade began, was widely seen as breaking Gaza’s diplomatic isolation.
Palestinian leaders have since described the visit as a turning point. Khaled Meshaal, head of Hamas’s diaspora office, said Gaza, Jerusalem and all of Palestine mourned the late emir, calling him the first Arab and Muslim leader to stand with the enclave “in its darkest circumstances.”
Beyond symbolism, Sheikh Hamad backed his visit with substantial financial support. During the trip, he increased Qatar’s reconstruction pledge for Gaza from $254 million to $400 million, funding housing schemes, roads, healthcare facilities and other infrastructure that benefited thousands of Palestinians.
Among his most enduring projects was Sheikh Hamad City in Khan Younis, a residential development providing homes for low-income families, as well as the Sheikh Hamad Hospital for Rehabilitation and Prosthetics, which became a lifeline for amputees and children with hearing impairments.
Although much of the infrastructure financed by Qatar was later destroyed during Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, the hospital continues to operate despite repeated attacks and severe shortages, remaining one of the few lasting symbols of Sheikh Hamad’s commitment.
His support for Palestine long predated the Gaza blockade.
In 1999, he became the first Gulf leader to visit the Palestinian territories since 1967, meeting Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat during a period of political uncertainty. Those close to him said he regarded the Palestinian cause as deeply personal, viewing attacks on Palestinian leadership as attacks on the broader Arab world.
Former Al Jazeera Arabic news director Ahmed al-Sheikh recalled that Sheikh Hamad often questioned why other Arab leaders had not visited Gaza, saying he acted because he believed the enclave had been abandoned by those around it.
His position frequently put him at odds with regional governments. During Israel’s 2008–09 war on Gaza, Sheikh Hamad called for an emergency Arab summit in Doha, proposed a $250 million reconstruction fund and urged the creation of a maritime corridor to ease the blockade. When several Arab leaders failed to attend, he publicly voiced his disappointment, underscoring his willingness to challenge regional inaction.
Sheikh Hamad’s foreign policy transformed Qatar into an influential regional player, but his unwavering support for Palestine remains among the most distinctive chapters of his leadership. While many of the buildings Qatar financed have since been reduced to rubble, the institutions he established, and the political message he sent by standing with Gaza when few others would, continue to shape how he is remembered across the Palestinian territories.
For many Palestinians, Sheikh Hamad’s legacy is measured not only by the projects he funded, but by the moment he crossed into a blockaded Gaza and demonstrated that solidarity could be expressed through action as well as words.
