On November 15, 2023, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the mother of the Emir of Qatar and chairperson of the Qatar Foundation, addressed a conference in Turkey organized by Turkish First Lady Emine Erdoğan on the war in Gaza. In this speech Sheikha Moza said Israel spreads "fabricated historical narratives" and accuses anyone who challenges its narratives of antisemitism. She also said that the "brothers" in Palestine, the West Bank, and Gaza are the honor of the Arab nation and that the children of Palestine are "born men."
It should be noted that Sheikha Moza works with the UN on global education and youth projects. She is the founder of the Education Above All (EAA) Foundation, which is a partner of UNICEF[1] and UNESCO.[2] She is also involved in the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE), an initiative of Qatar Foundation that was established under her aegis,[3]and which holds an annual summit and other forums and conferences in which UN officials have participated.[4] In 2016 Sheikha Moza was appointed United Nations Advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals.[5] She also served as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and Special Envoy for Basic and Higher Education from 2003[6] until she recently resigned from this role in protest over what she called UNESCO's failure to carry out its role in rescuing and providing relief to the children of Gaza. [7]
To view excerpts from Sheikha Moza's speech at the conference, click below:
The following are excerpts from the speech:
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"For decades, we have witnessed Israel spreading fabricated historical narratives, which were refuted by many historians, including Israeli ones. These narratives have taken over the world's collective mind, and if someone dares to debate any Israeli narrative, he is cast aside, having been accused of antisemitism, which in itself, is another problematic narrative. By 'Semitism,' they mean Jews, having taken a monopoly on the Semitic race, which they attribute to themselves, while denying [its application] to other nations, which speak semitic languages, like the Arabs, the Assyrians, and the Chaldeans.
"I am not here to give a history lesson, but I wanted to warn that remaining silent about any erroneous historical narrative, and avoiding its examination and research into its sources, will only serve to validate it with time and cause it to be perceived as the truth. Perhaps antisemitism is the best example of that. Even we Arabs – who are Semites – have accepted this as is, with no argument. Now, in any discussion, we are trying to deny accusations of antisemitism. We have forgotten that we are Semites…
"I was recently shocked by the silence of UNESCO, when students are killed and schools destroyed in Gaza. This is absolutely not in line with UNESCO's history and values…
"Everything we do for our brothers in Palestine, in Gaza and in the West Bank, is less than they deserve. At this point in history, they represent the honor of our nation, in a time of inferiority and determination. To the children of Palestine, I say: You were born men. With your steadfastness, you have proven how feeble and broken are the people who we once thought to be men."
[1] https://www.unicef.org/partnerships/education-above-all-and-unicef-announce-new-programmes, March 27, 2023.
[2] https://www.educationaboveall.org/our-partners/unesco; https://reliefweb.int/report/lebanon/unesco-and-eaa-announce-10-million-restore-damaged-schools-beirut, November 4, 2020.
[3] https://www.mozabintnasser.qa/en/initiatives/education-research/world-innovation-summit-education.
[4] See e.g., https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/director-general-taking-part-annual-world-innovation-summit-education-wise, October 30, 2013; https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/the-world-innovation-summit-for-education-wise-to-host-global-education-forum-as-part-of-the-united-686476951.html, June 25, 2018.
[5] https://www.wise-qatar.org/biography/her-highness-sheikha-moza-bint-nasser/; https://www.un.org/uk/desa/secretary-general-appoints-new-sustainable-development-goals-advocates.
