Abduction of Qatar royals now involves hackers, $2M

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—A member of Qatar’s ruling family has paid $2 million to a Greek shoe salesman’s firm to secure “proof of life” and ultimately free relatives and others kidnapped in Iraq over a year ago, presumably by Shiite militiamen.

The payment, disclosed in U.S. Justice Department documents examined by The Associated Press, shed new light on the opaque world of private hostage negotiation in the Middle East in a case that now involves hackers, encrypted internet communication and promises of millions of dollars in ransom payments.

The rare disclosure suggests Qatar could be trying to be more transparent with Washington, its main Western ally. The energy-rich country has long faced allegations of not doing enough to stop money from reaching Islamic extremists, including those fighting alongside the rebels in Syria.

“I just wonder if this is some way of twisting Qatar’s arm to try to break off its funding, supplies and so on to these sorts of groups,” said Christopher Davidson, a professor of Middle East politics at Durham University in Britain. “For them still to be missing all this time indicates it’s not just about money.”

The Qatari, Khalifa bin Fahed bin Mohammed Al Thani, signed a contract dated March 8 with a San Diego-based firm called Global Strategies Council Inc., according to documents filed to the Justice Department under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The contract called for a $2 million payment up front, a large sum that’s rare among other organizations filing these disclosures.

The contract calls for the group “to obtain proof of life,” speak to government agencies and “attempt to negotiate with captors for the release of captive members of the royal family of Qatar.”

Though not naming the Qataris held, the documents provide the first Qatari acknowledgment that those kidnapped included ruling family members.

Al Thani, the chairman of KBF Trading and Contracting Co. in Doha, did not respond to requests for comment.

Asked about the $2 million payment, Qatar’s Government Communications Office issued a statement to the AP saying the U.S. firm was “retained by a Qatari citizen acting in a private capacity.”

“We consider the hostage issue in Iraq of the utmost importance and it remains our top priority,” the government said. “We continue to engage in securing their safe release.”

The Dec. 16, 2015, abduction happened at dawn at a desert camp near the Saudi border in the southern Muthanna province, some 370 kilometers (230 miles) southeast of the capital, Baghdad. Gunmen kidnapped some two dozen Qataris and support staff who taking part in a falconry hunt.