The beleaguered quest of the Qatar nation to host the World Cup tournament in 2022 is marred by yet another controversy, and this time, it involves terrorists. Earlier this week, Vocativ reported that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, the terrorist organization that currently wreaks havoc in the Middle East, has issued a warning to FIFA about having the most celebrated sporting event in Qatar.
According to the group, by the year 2022, Qatar will now be part of its recently-declared Islamic Caliphate under the rule of ISIS leader Al Baghdady aka Caliph Ibrahim Bin Awad Alqarshi. Moreover, that caliphate frowns on football games, as they are considered a diversion from Islamic religion.
The message, which was released on Sunday, also came in with a subtle threat addressed to FIFA president Sepp Blatter that should the world soccer body pushes through with its plans to have Qatar play host to the World Cup, their supposedly long-range scud missiles they have acquired could very well find its way to the tournament.
The message quickly became viral on social media platforms not because of the threat, but primarily because of the way the threat was delivered, Vocative observed. The tone reportedly has an air of nonchalance, which was unusual for a terrorist organization who would normally succumb to fiery and passion-laden words to get their point across. Moreover, the letter ended with the word "Thanks."
The letter addressed to Blatter's first name Joseph, read, "We had sent a message to you back in 2010, when you decided or were bribed by the former Amir of Qatar to have the 2022 world cup in Qatar. Now, after the establishment of the Caliphate state, we declare that there will be no world cup in Qatar since Qatar will be part of the Caliphate under the rule of the Caliph Ibrahim Bin Awad Alqarshi (Al Baghdady's full name) who doesn't allow corruption and diversion from Islam in the land of the Muslims. This is why we suggest that you will decide upon a replacement country instead of Qatar. The Islamic state has long-rang scud missiles that can easily reach Qatar, as the Americans already know."
Vocativ said the letter came at the heels of a detailed security assessment for Qatar revealed by The Sunday Times last month. The assessment concluded that there is a possibility that the World Cup would shut down altogether due to a terror attack on the country.
At the moment, investigation regarding the corruption allegations into Qatar securing the World Cup hosting rights are still on the way.
