Choices Can Kill

Chapter 1 Meeting the President
Chapter 2 The plot
Chapter 3 The Debriefing
Chapter 4 Who Done It?
Chapter 5 – Republican Revenge

Chapter 6 – The Sheikh’s Shake-Up
Sheikh al-Thani read and re-read Retta’s notes of his proposed action plan and asked himself how he got to this point. The list may look good to the Americans and solve the President’s present problems but it spells disaster for Qatar. To the President, it looks like a dream come through. To al-Thani, it would represent the nightmare of tearing down of all his defenses to aggressive action by his enemies.

Doesn’t the President understand that we once had a mutually beneficial relationship with. We acted has Israel’s host for its tennis tournaments and announced that it Israel wins the World Cup, he would personally welcome in Qatar. Even Shimon Peres, when he was Deputy Prime Minister, had a well-publicized official visit to Qatar! Suddenly, we froze our relations with Israel! Why would I throw all of that good will down the drain? It is very simple. It is for the same reason that we are funding HAMAS. These guys are bad actors and we want them happy and far away from Qatar. If you think that HAMAS scares us, what do you think will happen If I stick my finger in the eye of Iran?

For the several hours, the Sheikh pondered the situation he got himself into to help his old friend, President Thomas. Al-Thani did not yet know about the alleged role of the President in supplying the bomb, which killed his two sons. Unsure of his next steps, the Sheikh decided to convene his inner-most advisers. They consisted of cousins and other trusted family members.
The secret meeting was held the next morning in the Sheikh’s private quarters. Attending were Abdullah bin Ibraham Al Thani, prime minister, advisor to emir, Ahmad bin Ali bin Jassim bin Muhammed Al Thani, former emir, and Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, the former prime minister.

The Sheikh slowly and methodically explained his long close relationship with President Thomas. He said that the present foreign policy of Qatar has brought Qatar a massive blockade by other Arab nations surrounding this small country. He added, “This instability has damaged the Qatar economy and could bankrupt what was historically an oil-rich nation.” “Furthermore”, he continued, the policy of bribing HAMAS and isolating Israel to impress Iran is a disaster.”

He pounded his fist on the table and asked, “What did we gain from all this? Our country is surrounded. Our Arab neighbors are choking off our resources. We lost access to Israel’s advance technologies, and now, have placed President Thomas in a precarious position of facing a Congress angry, at his lack of a strong response to Qatar’s support of enemies of the United States. The Sheikh shook his fists and concluded that Qatar was far better off, depending on The United States for protection, then swimming with sharks!

The room erupted with angry shouting by his inner circle!

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