JEDDAH — Al Jazeera, a Qatari state-owned news network, has been accused of violating US law, according to the Washington Free Beacon, a US-based news website, quoting a report from a former member of US Congress. As per US law, the Qatari media house must disclose its ties to the Qatari royal family, which has for years used it to further Doha's political interests in America, but the network has refused to do it so far. Former representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who served in Congress for 30 years and chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee from 2011-2013, issued a report on Tuesday (July 7), accusing Al Jazeera of operating as an undisclosed agent of the Qatari government in violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. According to the report, she claimed that both Al Jazeera and Qatar are violating the US Act, which requires certain foreign agents, like Russia's RT, China's CGTN and Turkey's TRT media networks, to periodically disclose their relationship with the foreign principal. Heeding Ros-Lehtinen's call, prominent members of Congress have petitioned the Department of Justice to launch a full-scale investigation into Al Jazeera's activities to determine if it is in violation of disclosure laws. In recent years, Qatar has emerged as a flashpoint in US politics due to its infiltration of the US public education system and other key American institutions. Qatar is accused of spending billions to peddle influence in the United States and sway public opinion, often without disclosing these activities. Al Jazeera drew congressional ire in 2018 when it was implicated in a massive spy effort targeting prominent Jewish and pro-Israel individuals in Washington D.C. According to the Washington Free Beacon citing sources, US Congress could be moving on the issue in the coming weeks. "The United States needs to take a hard look at its relationship with Qatar and to compel Al Jazeera—the media network that is owned, funded, directed, and controlled by the Qatari government—to register with the Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act," Ros-Lehtinen wrote in the report, claimed the Washington Free Beacon. The former lawmaker maintains the Department of Justice must require Al Jazeera to register under FARA, as it has done with other foreign news outlets, such as those controlled by Russia and China. The report makes the case that Qatar "owns, funds, directs, and controls" Al Jazeera, which the country allegedly uses to further its own foreign policy agenda. Al Jazeera's board of directors is chaired by a member of the Qatari ruling family, who exerts control over the network, according to the report. Because of this, the report says, Al Jazeera cannot maintain independence from the government and, thus, falls under the criteria under the FARA registration.
