Qatar reshuffle allows Tamim to impose greater rigour, introduce fresh faces

Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani’s 27 January cabinet reshuffle removed seven ministers and appointed new faces to the foreign affairs and public health portfolios. He then jetted off on to visit the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy. Holders of the core economy, finance, interior and energy positions remain unchanged, but the reshuffle provided a rallying call for greater rigour in a government that has fewer close Al-Thani relatives than in previous administrations (a trend of reducing family appointees that seems rare in the region).