Qatar long accused of foreign influence operations. : The nation of Qatar, a Sharia-law monarchy that has been accused of trying to influence other countries’ governments, gave $1 billion to elite American universities since 2011, according to Department of Education data. Some universities have refused to discuss where strings are attached to that money. The Qatar Foundation, for example, filed a lawsuit against the Texas attorney general Oct. 12, 2018, to hide information about the $225 million Qatar has awarded to Texas A&M University since 2011.