Elite university raked in almost $700 million from Qatar

Northwestern University has raked in hundreds of millions of dollars in funding from Qatar, a nation that has been harboring Hamas’ leaders since 2012, federal disclosures show.

Roughly $690 million in funds originating in Qatar has flowed into Northwestern University since 2007, according to records maintained by the Department of Education. Northwestern caved to several demands made by pro-Palestinian protestors last month, including by providing them with a pathway to make the university divest from Israeli businesses, The Daily Northwestern reported.

Northwestern’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine took credit for the agreement with the university. A group of law firms are suing National Students for Justice in Palestine, alleging that the organization is working to advance Hamas’ goals.

Open The Books reported Monday that Saudi Arabian and Qatari money flowed into Northwestern’s coffers.

“Around the country, prestigious universities are succumbing to pressure from protestors who have damaged campuses, interfered with other students’ education and safety, and broadcast messages of hatred,” Open The Books CEO Adam Andrzejewski said in a press release. “Deals like the one at Northwestern seem inexplicable—that is until you follow the money,” he continued.

Qatar constituted the largest bloc of Northwestern’s revenue from Muslim nations that support Palestinian independence, sending about $690 million to the university since 2007, records show. Since 2018, Qatar has sent millions of dollars to the Gaza Strip that have been used to prop up Hamas, the terrorist organization behind the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in Israel, according to CNN.

Qatar is also harboring Hamas’ political leadership, which it has been doing in some capacity since 2012, according to The Times of Israel.

Qatar’s funding included disbursements to provide scholarships for Qatari students to attend Northwestern, funds for a Northwestern campus in Qatar as well as other financial transfers lacking detailed descriptions, according to Open The Books.

Today, @NorthwesternU declared itself a safe space for Antisemitism.

We are appalled by Northwestern’s decision to turn its back on Jewish and Israeli students who have been targets of hateful harassment and intimidation. This decision rewards the pro-terror, anti-Israel, and…

— Israel in Chicago (@IsraelinChicago) April 30, 2024

Entities located in Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates have also given money to Northwestern, according to federal records.

Northwestern received about $24 million originating in Saudi Arabia, records show. About $2.2 million of that was for scholarship grants to Saudi students, according to Open The Books.

Saudi Arabia has historically called for the establishment of a Palestinian state under its 1967 borders, including East Jerusalem as the state’s capital, according to the Associated Press.

Northwestern also took in $250,000 and $525,000 from Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, respectively. Turkey has been highly critical of Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 attacks, halting trade with the Jewish state citing humanitarian concerns, and the United Arab Emirates has similarly condemned Israel’s conduct.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also defended Hamas, calling the group a “resistance movement” and refusing to label them as terrorists, Reuters reported.

Some universities are getting funds directly from entities located in the West Bank and Gaza.

Harvard University, Brown University, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania collectively took in about $10 million in funds originating in the Palestinian territories between 2017 and 2023.

Northwestern University did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.

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