Qumar

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Qumar appearing on a map, surrounded by Iranian territory

Qumar is a fictional Middle Eastern country in the television show The West Wing. In many aspects it bears resemblance to the emirate of Qatar, but can also be seen as an amalgam of many perceptions of the Middle East including oil wealth, radical Islam, state-sponsored terrorists, and the oppression of women. After the September 11 attacks, it became the main venue for the show's terrorism subplots.

[edit] Location

Maps in the background of some scenes have shown Qumar to be occupying a section of the Persian Gulf coast, on the north side of the Strait of Hormuz opposite the United Arab Emirates, which in real life is Iranian territory. The nation of Iran, however, also exists in the show, as demonstrated most recently in The Wake Up Call in season six. In addition, Qumar does not show up on maps of the Persian Gulf in later episodes.

Jabal Nafusa (which in real life is in Libya) is a large city in Qumar. Other important cities include Jatara, Salalah, Himms, Jasken and Tashken.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

[edit] Description

Qumar is an absolute monarchy, ruled by a sultan and his family. The country is a former British protectorate. The nation was first introduced in the second season where it was mentioned as a close ally of the United States. Also mentioned was the fact that America leases Kalifa Air Base in that nation, specifically in the Tiaret region, which has been there for some time. The lease was renewed in late 2001 and concludes in late 2011. Qumar was described as being a home for and financial supporter of the fictional Bahji terrorist group. The end of the third season saw President Bartlet order the assassination of the Qumari defense minister, Abdul ibn Shareef, on evidence he was a terrorist mastermind. Prior to that, Shareef had orchestrated a botched attempt to blow up the Golden Gate Bridge.

Qumar originally blamed Israel for the assassination. Bahji operatives, who were also Qumari citizens educated in Qumar, shot down the plane carrying Ben Yousef, the Israeli foreign minister. In retaliation, Israel bombed two terrorist training camps in the north and south of Qumar using 8 Thunder Fighter jets. In response to this, Qumar launched the boat Mastico, which carried arms headed for the Bahji, which the U.S. stopped. The government requested access to a sophisticated weapons system, then the release of convicted Bahji operatives, then millions of dollars; however the U.S. forced the boat to turn around. The assassination and U.S. involvement became public knowledge just after Zoey Bartlet was kidnapped, thanks to investigative reporting by Washington Post White House reporter Danny Concannon.

At the end of the fourth season, while President Bartlet had temporarily relinquished his presidential powers under the provisions of the 25th Amendment, the United States bombed several terrorist training camps in the country, specifically in Tumar and Lani, after the kidnapping of Zoey Bartlet. In addition, the military also launched a limited ground invasion to detain and question suspects. President Bartlet, National Security Advisor Dr. Nancy McNally, Secretary of State Lewis Berryhill, White House Chief of Staff Leo McGarry, and the U.N. secretary-general vehemently opposed these acts, mostly in light of the long-standing American-Qumari alliance.

Only a limited number of Qumari characters other than Shareef have appeared on the show, most notably Ali Nassir, the Qumari ambassador to the United Nations, and Prince Umar Usef, the Qumari ambassador to the United States.

Qumar continues on the show to be a U.S. ally, though the Sultan and other officials were extremely troubled by the assassination, bombing campaign, and invasion. As a result of the air strikes, gas pipelines were damaged, leading to economic troubles for the country and its European allies.