Who is Sheikh Tamim?

Recently, we all sat and watched Sheikh Tamim address the nation for the first time since the crisis began.

He eloquently spoke about the blockade, his nation's sovereignty, and plans to continue to invest in Qatar's future.

To be honest, considering the timing and context, this is exactly what we would expect him to discuss.

Then he surprised us.

At the end of his speech he said this:

I cannot end this speech without expressing solidarity with the brotherly Palestinian people, especially our people in Al Quds (Jerusalem), and denouncing the closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first of the two Qiblas and the third of the two Holy Shrines, hoping that what is happening in Al Quds be an incentive for unity and solidarity instead of division.

It surprised us because all over social media, religious sheikhs to activists to the regular laymen of society have been discussing that the Palestine cause has reached a point in time where people don't even pretend to care anymore.

Whether it be Muslims, Arabs, or even, sometimes, Palestinians themselves. We have been seeing strong activism from the Israeli side for the Palestinian cause (by regular Israeli civilians) being voiced more loudly than most other places.

We also see a lot of Westerners championing the cause to lift the oppression on this population. And that's it.

World leaders seem unbothered. And for the most part so is the rest of the world.

Then, we go back to Sheikh Tamim.

A very young leader who's country is enduring a harsh surprise blockade by previously trusted and beloved neighbors. Yet, he is the one, when all eyes on are him, while his country is dealing with negative implications and abuses of the blockades to take a minute and actually acknowledge the fact that Palestinians are suffering whilst trying to attend mass in one of Islam's holiest sites.

Thus, who is Sheikh Tamim?

He was the one person, despite being under a blockade and dealing with diplomatic turmoil, to actually support a population withstanding a long unended suffering.

Sheikh Tamim, it would seem, is someone far likely better than the rest of us.

Many thanks to the Qatari Emir, for somehow teaching all of us to be humans again. We are truly at our best when we are supporting one another.