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In 2011, Dr. Charles Small, then head of the Yale Initiative for the Interdisciplinary Study of Antisemitism (YIISA), was informed that the center—North America’s first university-based institute dedicated to antisemitism research—would be shut down just five years after its founding. Yale University stated that the center had failed to meet academic expectations.
However, researchers and Jewish organizations in the United States pointed to political pressure, particularly from Islamic groups that opposed YIISA’s focus on Muslim antisemitism.
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Qatar Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Yale
(Photo: Shutterstock.com/ Ahmad Thamer Al Kuwari)
Following the closure, Small launched an independent investigation, which he claims provided a “smoking gun” regarding the real reason behind the decision. “One of the most vocal opponents of the center within Yale turned out to be anti-Israel and maintained extensive ties with anti-Israel entities,” Small told Shomrim, an Israeli investigative outlet.
What initially seemed like an internal university dispute evolved into a broader exposé on foreign influence, particularly from authoritarian regimes—chief among them, Qatar—on American academic institutions. Small, who has held research and teaching positions at leading universities in the U.S. and Israel, said this event spurred further inquiries into funding sources at Yale and other universities. His investigations uncovered hidden financial connections between Qatari entities and institutions across the United States, Europe, and Israel.
Billions in undisclosed funding
“In a short time, we identified over $3 billion in donations to Yale and other universities that were not properly reported as required by law,” Small said. In 2019, he presented his findings to senior officials in Washington, prompting a federal investigation that exposed extensive undisclosed foreign funding.
Three years ago, Small teamed up with retired Brig. Gen. Sima Vaknin-Gil, Israel’s former chief military censor and director-general of the Strategic Affairs Ministry. Along with a team of 10 researchers and an Israeli forensic accounting firm specializing in global financial investigations, they deepened their inquiry. Their research led to a series of reports detailing the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood and Qatari funding on academic content, the promotion of anti-democratic and anti-Israel agendas, and even antisemitic rhetoric in higher education.
Their latest report, released recently, highlights a previously overlooked dimension: Qatari involvement in U.S. elementary and secondary education (K-12).
Soft power in early education
Small, who now serves as CEO of the New York-based Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP), describes Qatar’s strategy as one of “soft power,” using vast financial resources to shape narratives and policies through investments in infrastructure, lobbying firms, academia, research, and media.
“The fact that Qatar—a country with fewer than 350,000 citizens—donates more money to American universities, civil society organizations, and cultural institutions than any other nation in the world is deeply troubling,” he said.
According to ISGAP, Qatari funding has also reached K-12 education in the United States. One key example is a program called Choices, run under the auspices of Brown University, a prestigious Ivy League institution. Choices provides schools with curricula, books, and teacher training on history, international relations, and human rights.
ISGAP’s findings reveal that Choices collaborated with the Qatar Foundation International (QFI), an entity operating under the Qatar Foundation (QF), founded by Sheikha Moza, the mother of Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Documents uncovered by ISGAP show that QFI sponsored teacher training sessions that included Middle East history courses, covering travel and registration expenses for educators. At another event during the COVID-19 pandemic, QFI funded curriculum development for American middle and high school teachers, offering free Middle East studies lesson plans. Though a link to QFI’s website was initially embedded in Choices’ digital materials, it was later removed. ISGAP retained an archived version of the original reference.
Shaping narratives in schools
Vaknin-Gil, now vice president for strategy at ISGAP, called the findings “astonishing.” She said QFI, registered as a nonprofit in the U.S., ultimately influences lesson plans that reach about 8,000 schools and millions of children.
According to ISGAP’s research, over time, the Choices curriculum shifted from presenting a balanced history of the Middle East to incorporating an overtly anti-Israel narrative, including questioning Israel’s legitimacy. “This ranged from omitting historical details like the Balfour Declaration and the Abraham Accords to distorting Jewish ties to Israel and even erasing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital,” Vaknin-Gil said.
She emphasized that the issue is broader than just Israel. “A foreign nation is promoting an ideology that is fundamentally anti-Western and anti-democratic, directly influencing American children without any oversight or checks and balances,” she warned.
In response to criticism, Brown University issued a statement saying it was committed to academic freedom and diversity of viewpoints. The university denied that Qatar Foundation had any role in developing or reviewing its curricula and stated that “all foreign-sourced funds are reported in accordance with legal requirements.”
Global impact and Israeli connections
ISGAP’s research also found that Qatar’s financial influence extends to Israel through a London-based nonprofit called The Galilee Foundation. The foundation states its mission is to “empower disadvantaged Palestinian youth in Palestine/Israel by turning them into agents of change.” According to its financial reports, 90% of its allocations go to various NGOs in Israel, including scholarship programs for Arab students.
Among its notable donors is Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani himself, who contributed 2.4 million pounds (approximately $3 million), deposited in an interest-bearing account to fund Israeli-Arab student scholarships. His mother, Sheikha Moza, also committed to a ten-year funding agreement with the foundation.
Other Qatari-linked donors to The Galilee Foundation include the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies in Doha and Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, a Qatari-funded media outlet. Both organizations have ties to Azmi Bishara, a former Israeli lawmaker who fled to Qatar after being accused of espionage for Hezbollah. Bishara is closely linked to the Qatari emir, while his brother, Dr. Marwan Bishara, heads The Galilee Foundation’s board of directors.
According to Vaknin-Gil, the indirect funding route through London is deliberate. “This is a method similar to money laundering—not illegal, but a way to obscure the funding’s origin,” she said.
Several Israeli NGOs receive funding from The Galilee Foundation, including Mada al-Carmel, which focuses on Palestinian nationalism, and Baladna, a youth organization that once ran a campaign urging Arab-Israelis to avoid national service. The most prominent beneficiary is the Arab Culture Association, founded by Azmi Bishara himself. The association funds students who serve as teaching assistants in Arab schools, impacting thousands of students.
What does Qatar want?
Small and Vaknin-Gil argue that Qatar’s funding activities align with the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, which they say is committed to establishing an Islamic state, eradicating Israel, and undermining Western democracies. “Qatar is using billions of dollars in unchecked funding to influence decision-makers, academic institutions, media, and other power centers in the West,” Small said.
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ISGAP’s research revealed that Qatari-funded universities experience 300% more antisemitic incidents than those without such funding. Their study also found increased anti-Israel rhetoric, suppression of free speech, and even faculty dismissals at these institutions.
A 2023 ISGAP report revealed that Texas A&M University, which operates a campus in Doha, received over $1 billion from the Qatar Foundation. This included funding for 500 research projects, some related to sensitive nuclear studies. The disclosure led to widespread scrutiny in the U.S. and ultimately to Texas A&M’s announcement that it would close its Qatar campus.
Requests for comment from the Qatar Foundation, QFI, and the Galilee Foundation went unanswered. Any responses received will be added to this report.