Does the Corona virus outbreak threaten Qatar World Cup?

According to a report prepared by the strategic and management consulting firm, Cornerstone Global Associates, based in London: “An internal memo conducted by a leading construction company in Qatar working on FIFA World Cup projects has raised concerns that many of its workers have contracted the virus and died, but No deaths were reported Covid-19“.

The report added, “The concerns raised are in line with concerns about the apparent discrepancy between the number of infections and the death rate. The internal memo referred to the return of the bodies of those killed by the virus to their places of origin.” Nepal AndIndia“.

“This practice contradicts the recommendations of various health authorities around the world. This also indicates that the Qatari authorities have mistakenly reported Covid-19 deaths, thus misleading the global healthcare community,” he added.

The 10-page document notes, “Covid-19: Will the 2022 FIFA World Cup Be held in Qatar?” That “by mid-August 2020, Qatar, whose population is believed to be about 2.8 million people, the majority of whom are foreign workers, suffered from the highest rate of infection with the Coronavirus in the world per member of the population.”

However, Cornerstone said, “Qatar records only 201 deaths due to the Corona virus, which indicates a mortality rate of 0.17%.” Health experts at Cornerstone have questioned the reliability of the death figures in Qatar, as the death rate of 0.17% appears to be “significantly lower than expected.”

According to the Johns Hopkins University Observatory, which tracks COVID-19 injuries and deaths by country, Qatar has suffered at least 216 total deaths and 126,339 cases.

The Cornerstone Foundation, which has a healthcare portfolio, has in the past provided advisory services to the World Health Organization and the National Health Service in Britain, and has been following the 2022 World Cup in Qatar since it was awarded to the Gulf state in 2010.

The Foreign Ministry and Qatari embassies in Washington, Brussels and Berlin did not respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

Qatar is in a new impasse

The Cornerstone report pushes the ruling regime in Doha, the capital of the gas-rich country, to a new impasse, as the Qatari regime has faced allegations that it bribed FIFA officials to secure the right to host the World Cup.

In April 2020, the US Department of Justice issued an indictment, stating that the three South American members of the FIFA Executive Committee 2010 were the late Nicholas Lewis, then CONMEBOL president, then-president of the Brazilian Football Association, Ricardo Teixeira, and a third co-conspirator who was not named. Accepted bribes to vote for Qatar to host the 2020 event.

Qatar’s exploitation of foreign workers in building stadiums came to the fore in the report, and Qatar recently built new state-of-the-art hospital facilities, but it is prohibited for the majority of its residents, who are workers from the Indian subcontinent.

An Amnesty International report for 2019 details the plight of thousands of workers who are being exploited by the Qatari regime despite calls for an end to inhuman work practices.

In the 52-page Amnesty report titled “Permanent Work, Without Pay: The Struggle of Foreign Workers in Qatar for Justice,” is a quote from a Kenyan employee at United Cleaning.

He told Amnesty International that he had to live for 5 months on minimal food and no salary, indicating that his family was greatly affected by his condition.

He added, “Tears flow from my eyes whenever I remember where we used to go to find food … in garbage containers … After two years and 5 months of working for United Cleaning Company without a vacation, the company owes me a large sum, but it refuses to pay it to me.”

The Human Rights Organization said, “Many migrant workers suffer from low wages, harsh working conditions, and restrictions on their movement … Qatar promised to improve workers’ access to justice … However, this promise has not been fulfilled … and until this is fixed, hundreds of workers will continue to do so. Leaving Qatar bankrupt and without justice. “

Qatar has pledged, according to the report Amnesty International, By improving migrant worker protection with the help of the International Labor Organization.
The Qatari regime refused to respond to Fox News’ questions about the Amnesty report.

Demands to transfer the World Cup from Qatar

In the past, British parliamentarians urged FIFA to transfer the 2022 World Cup from Qatar, including a member of parliament Damian Collins and a member of the House of Lords David Triesman.

The cost of transporting the World Cup from Qatar to a new host country will depend on the new host country and its existing facilities, Britain could be a major competitor for the transfer, and the estimated cost, according to Cornerstone’s analysis, will be around $ 100 million, with expenses including upgrading facilities.

The founder of Cornerstone, Ghanem Nusseibeh, told Fox News that “the benefits of bringing the 2022 World Cup to England far outweigh the cost.”
Nusseibeh, an expert on the Middle East, said, “The cost of building FIFA facilities in Qatar amounts to $ 200 billion, which, by the way, is far from the cost that other countries cost to build their facilities.”

He added, “Qatar’s revenues will be negligible compared to what it spent on both facilities and broadcasting rights. Even if 2022 succeeds according to Qatar or FIFA standards, it is, in fact, a heavy loss for both Qatar and FIFA, both financially and on reputation.”

FIFA spokeswoman Taisa Blume told Fox News in a statement that she had not been informed of the report from Cornerstone, and therefore “we are not in a position to comment on it.”