For the imperial war on Libya Qatar provided the propaganda via Al Jazeerah, it provided the crucial Arab League request for a "no-fly zone", its Special Force troops –like the Egyptians, French, British and Bulgarian- trained the rebels. Quatar took care of the oil the rebels wanted to sell and gave them money, it also provided lots of arms, Belgian FN assault rifles and Milan anti-tank missiles, to the rebels and its air-force took part in the bombing of the country.
Now it wants a say in what happens next in the "new" Libya.
But here it gets funny. "Western" imperialists do not like other imperialists, especially not darker skin Muslim imperialists in funny garbs, to do as they do.
Which brings us to this rather comical Guardian piece:
Qatar accused of interfering in Libyan affairs
Western diplomats say Arab state is bypassing international agreements, to pursue its own agenda.
The tiny Arab emirate of Qatar, a leading supporter of the revolution in Libya, has been accused by western diplomats of interfering in the country's sovereignty.
The claims come amid growing concern among Libyans in the National Transitional Council (NTC) and western officials that Qatar, which supplied arms to Libyan revolutionaries, is pursuing its own postwar agenda at the cost of wider efforts to bring political stability to the country.
…
A senior diplomat said: "There is a question now about what foreign players like Qatar are doing in Libya – whether it is being helpful and respectful of Libyan sovereignty. "Qatar is not being respectful, and there is a feeling that it is riding roughshod over the issue of the country's sovereignty."
One might think this is satire fresh out of The Onion. How could anyone dare to interfere in Libya's sovereignity? Such is just unthinkable!
But that "senior diplomat", after having broken the UN resolutions on Libya on several issues, after having ignored the sovereignty of Libya in all aspects and after having bombed the Libyan people, seems serious in this.
All foreign powers with an interest in Libya, among which are the US, Britain and France, have had their own agendas. However, the source said: "There is a feeling that Qatar has been providing money and support to certain individuals."
But that is exactly what the other countries have done as well. The National Transitional Council is filled with expats from Washington, London and Paris, financed by the various secret services of those countries.
The guy Qatar is accused of supporting is no other than Abdelhakim Belhadj, former CIA prisoner and freed from jail by Saif al-Islam Gaddhafi. Belhaj, commanding a large gang of experienced folks from his Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, is currently the military commander of Tripoli.
At the centre of concerns are allegations that, rather than supporting the NTC, Qatar has chosen to back favoured key figures with financial and other resources. Most prominent among these would be the Islamist head of Tripoli's military council, Abdul-Aziz Belhaj.
The CIA abducted and tortured Belhaj and then provided him to Gaddhafi who kept him in jail for some years before he got freed. How come those "western" countries would object to this guy now? Is someone afraid of revenge?
Of particular concern over the last month has been how Qatar has chosen to throw its weight behind a group of Libyan individuals including Sheikh Ali Salabi, a Libyan cleric who resides in Doha and has close relations with Belhaj.
There has been the growing friction between Salabi and the NTC's interim prime minister, Mahmoud Jibril. Salabi has appeared on television to suggest Jibril is a "tyrant in waiting".
Salabi may be right on that.
He is, by the way, the senior cleric that brokered the deal between the senior LIFG leadership, including Bejhaj, and Gaddafi’s son, Seif al-Islam, for their release from prison. I would not be astonished to learn that Salabi is still in contact with Seif al Islam Gaddhafi.