Extremist group al-Qaida urges Muslims to steer clear of the World Cup in Qatar

The terror network has issued an alarming message to Muslims across the globe as the biggest sporting event on the planet kicks off.

Enner Valencia of Ecuador celebrates after scoring a goal which was later disallowed by the Video Assistant Referee during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group A match between Qatar and Ecuador. Picture: Lars Baron/Getty Images

Extremist group al-Qaida has sparked fears after urging Muslims people to shun the World Cup, which officially kicked off in Qatar on Sunday.

In a statement reported by the SITE Intelligence group over the weekend, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, the terror network’s Yemen-based branch, hit out at Qatar for “bringing immoral people, homosexuals, sowers of corruption and atheism into the Arabian Peninsula”, Reuters reports.

It added that the Cup was a distraction from the “occupation of Muslim countries and their oppression”.

Fireworks explode in the sky in Doha on November 20 during the opening day of the Qatar 2022 World Cup football tournament. Picture: Patricia De Melo Moreira/AFP

“We warn our Muslim brothers from following this event or attending it,” the statement said.

However, while the message from al-Qaida raised concerns, it stopped short of actually issuing a direct threat, or encouraging violence at the event.

The 2022 World Cup marks the first time the tournament is held in a majority Muslim nation.

The decision to hold the 2022 Cup in Qatar has been plagued by controversy, with critics slamming the Gulf nation’s human rights record.

Of particular concern is the country’s treatment of LGBTQ individuals, and the deaths and abuses of migrant workers who built Qatar’s World Cup infrastructure.

Enner Valencia of Ecuador celebrates after scoring a goal which was later disallowed by the Video Assistant Referee during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group A match between Qatar and Ecuador. Picture: Lars Baron/Getty Images

Qatar’s human rights record made headlines in Australia last month when 16 members of the Socceroos appeared in a short video claiming Qatar hosting the World Cup had “resulted in the suffering and the harm of countless of our fellow workers”.

The video, released on behalf of the entire Socceroos squad, showed the players reading lines from a collective statement calling for “effective remedy” to Qatar’s human rights abuses.

“Addressing these issues is not easy. And we do not have all the answers,” the Australian players said.

“We stand with FIFPro, the Building and Wood Workers International, and the International Trade Union Confederation, seeking to embed reforms and establish a lasting legacy in Qatar.

“This must include establishing a migrant resource centre, effective remedy for those who have been denied their rights, and the decriminalisation of all same-sex relationships.

A Qatari family watches the opening game of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 on November 20. Picture: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

“These are the basic rights that should be afforded to all and will ensure continued progress in Qatar … [and] a legacy that goes well beyond the final whistle of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.”

Football Australia also released a separate statement which declared: “The tournament has been associated with suffering for some migrant workers and their families and this cannot be ignored”.

Since being awarded the rights to host the World Cup back in 2010, Qatar has spent a staggering $A470 billion on construction, with an estimated 6500 construction workers killed during that period.

And according to Human Rights Watch, Qatar’s penal code punishes consensual sexual relations between men above age 16 with up to seven years in prison. It also provides penalties of between one and three years for any male who “instigates” or “entices” another male to “commit an act of sodomy or immorality”, while a penalty of up to 10 years is imposed on anyone who engages in consensual sexual relations, which could apply to consensual same-sex relations between women, men, or heterosexual partners.

Meanwhile, Qatar announced earlier this month that it had trained 50,000 people to provide security during the Cup, which runs until December 18.