U.S. universities in Qatar and UAE shift to remote instruction amid conflict

In this file photo, a Qatari student walks to a building in the Texas A&M University campus at Education City, on October 18, 2011, in Doha, Qatar.Osama Faisal/AP/File

Doha, March 5, 2026 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) – Several U.S. universities with campuses in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have adjusted operations and moved to remote instruction until further notice as the U.S. State Department urges Americans in the Gulf to leave immediately, according to reporting by CNN.

In Doha’s Education City, Texas A&M University at Qatar diverted more than two dozen students travelling from Texas to Istanbul, and its campus building is locked down with no access for employees, students or visitors.

Georgetown University in Qatar shifted to online instruction and suspended a graduate business programme that was due to begin in Dubai on March 1, while working to bring students back home.

Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar said faculty and staff can leave Qatar and teach remotely, an option available to all staff regardless of nationality, and a university spokesperson reported no injuries among students, faculty or staff.

New York University Abu Dhabi is assisting students seeking to leave by identifying and securing travel arrangements, though air travel remains challenging.