It was an awkward moment. Georgetown University’s interim president, Robert M. Groves, was testifying before the House Education and Workforce Committee last week and was asked if he would revoke the award that Georgetown gave in April to Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the mother of Qatar’s emir. Why? Because months earlier, she praised Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, mastermind of the October 2023 massacre.
Groves said no. “We honored her for her decades of work in access to education for the poorest children in the world,” he said calmly.
When pressed by a member of the committee, Groves deflected. “We will not revoke the medal,” he said, “because the reason for the medal remains true: her decades-long work in educating the poorest children of the world.”
Sitting directly behind Groves was one of Qatar’s most loyal allies in the U.S., former congressman Jim Moran, whose lobbying firm is paid at least $55,000 a month by Qatar’s embassy in Washington. After the hearing, Moran smiled and shook hands with the Georgetown interim president, according to a video shared with The Free Press by investigative journalist Asra Nomani.
