Some leaders of American-Jewish non-profits said that Qatar is using Lt. Hadar Goldin’s body as a “bargaining chip”.

:: A recently published report has claimed that Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani will seek to hold meetings with Jewish leaders in the United States.

The Forbes report said that the Emir aims to gain the leaders’ support, amid Qatar’s ongoing rift with four Arab states, through handing over the body of an Israeli officer that Hamas killed in 2014.

The Emir is currently in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly.

Bargaining chip

According to the writer, Richard Miniter, some leaders of American-Jewish non-profits said that Qatar is using Lt. Hadar Goldin’s body as a “bargaining chip” to communicate with Jewish-American groups, three years after his murder.

Hamas admitted to killing the Israeli army’s lieutenant after he infiltrated a tunnel in the Gaza Strip in 2014. The movement usually retains the bodies of Israeli military in exchange for its own captives.

Miniter added that some American-Jewish leaders received a tacit message saying that their meeting with the Qatari Emir may result in recovering 23-year-old Goldin’s body. It may also reveal the fate of a missing Israeli soldier, they added.

Speaking to Miniter, Jewish Rabbi Shmuley Boteach said he funded an advertising campaign against Qatar. Boteach is deemed as one of America’s “most influential rabbis,” according to US magazine Newsweek.

Opposition

Boteach revealed that an opposition exists amid American-Jewish groups and is trying to communicate with Doha. Despite the latter being involved in killing Israeli soldiers through supporting Hamas, he added.

“It is a shameful episode for our community when those who fund the murder of Jews in Israel are being embraced by Jews in the United States,” said the Rabbi.

Boteach also noted that he received a word of warning claiming that his advertising campaign would go to waste since Hamas, under Qatari pressure, is expected to hand over the bodies of Israeli officers.

The Rabbi explained that he ordered for “full-page New York Times ads to make it clear to all who agreed to whitewash the terror-stained hands of the emir would be condoning murder.”

Desperate Qatar

The report also quoted Boteach saying that the attempts to organize meetings between the Qatari Emir and some American-Jewish groups shows Qatar’s desperation.

He noted that the Qatar Emir usually meets with the heads of states and governments, while considering other parties inferior – as such meeting with non-profit groups is an example of a “come-down from his high horse.”

Miniter said that the diplomatic and economic strain on Qatar has worked. This is linked to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cutting ties with the country.

The quartet also withdrew its ambassadors, closed ports, airports and worked to isolate the Qatari leadership until it committed itself to stop supporting and financing terrorism.