In response to my recent op-ed about Qatar in The Hill titled “Why is Qatar being blockaded and isolated,” several critics have deliberately distorted my views. Contrary to what my critics would have you believe, I am not a mouthpiece for Qatar, nor am I its uncritical defender. To the contrary, I believe it necessary for the international community to take a more critical view of the facts surrounding Qatar’s relationships in the Middle East.

What is needed is a probing and objective inquiry into competing narratives and claims. This is why I accepted the Emir’s invitation and disclosed that he paid for my trip. Do my critics really believe I can be bought? Do they think I am willing to express views I don’t believe for money? Do they think I would abandon my lifelong support of Israel for cash? This is the kind of argument I would expect from anti-Semites, who stereotype Jews as “money hungry,” not from reasonable people.