Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani hosted a group of rabbis on Monday at Lusail Palace in Doha. Rabbi Mendy Chitrik, chairman of the Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States, led the delegation along with his son, Rabbi Eliyahu Chitrik, who organizes Jewish communal programming in Qatar. They were joined by Rabbi Yehuda Gerami, the chief rabbi of Iran.

The emir’s office publicized the meeting, posting on the palace’s social media account that the delegation offered condolences on the passing of the emir’s father and predecessor, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani also attended the meeting.

The emir’s decision to publicize the visit on his official channels is a rare public acknowledgment of Jewish communal ties by a Gulf state that has no formal relations with Israel and funds the news outlet Al Jazeera that amplifies narratives hostile to the Jewish state.    

After the hour-long meeting, the elder Chitrik told Jewish Insider that “the emir received us very warmly.” 

“We conveyed to him the sympathy and condolences of the Jewish community in Qatar and we spoke about Jewish life in Qatar and different ways we can strengthen Jewish life in the Muslim world,” said Chitrik, chief rabbi of the Ashkenazi Jewish community of Turkey.

Jason Greenblatt, former White House Middle East envoy in the first Trump administration, told JI that the public announcement of the meeting signals warming ties between members of the Jewish community and Qatar.  

“Over the past decade, in all my dealings across the region, including with the State of Qatar, I have been treated with genuine warmth and courtesy as both a proud Jew and a strong supporter of Israel,” said Greenblatt. 

“Many people there, including some at the leadership level, may disagree with my position on Israel, yet I have consistently been received graciously. As an observant Jew, I have also found Qatar and other countries to be as accommodating as possible of my religious requirements. We may have serious differences over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but those differences have always coexisted with mutual respect for our views, beliefs and religions.” 

ARIS represents rabbis who serve about 110,000 Jewish people across 18 countries with a Muslim majority. The delegation of rabbis also met with Nickolay Mladenov and Aryeh Lightstone, respectively the high representative for the Board of Peace and the body’s senior advisor, in Brussels earlier this month.