Qatari Minister of Finance arrested on graft charges

Ali Shareef Al Emadi, Qatar’s Minister of Finance and simultaneously the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad Int’l), has been arrested following a warrant issued by the country’s attorney general. The state-run Qatar News Agency said on May 6 that Al Emadi had been dismissed from the ministry amid accusations of embezzlement, abuse of power, and misusing public funds. Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani confirmed to Reuters that the ongoing probe was related exclusively to Al Emadi’s activities as the finance minister and did not concern his other roles. “We are confident that our companies and entities are running the highest levels of corporate governance, and we are conducting regular reviews and audits for the governance of our companies,” he stressed. Al Emadi has been Qatar’s Minister of Finance since 2013. Aside from heading up the state-owned airline, he also sat on the board of the country’s sovereign wealth fund – the Qatar Investment Authority – and was the chairman of the Qatar National Bank (which he led as chief executive before 2013). Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, has since appointed Minister of Trade and Industry Ali Bin Ahmed Al Kuwari to subsume Al Emadi’s role as finance minister effective immediately.