Qatar summons German envoy over World Cup rights criticism

Qatar summoned the German ambassador on Friday over remarks by Germany’s interior minister, who appeared to criticize the decision to award the World Cup to the Gulf Arab nation because of its human rights record.

It was the first time Qatar has summoned an ambassador following years of heavy international scrutiny of its treatment of migrant workers and criminalization of homosexual relations.

With just weeks to go before the start of the soccer tournament, Qatari officials appear increasingly frustrated with such criticism, which they say is often unfounded and ignores progress on labor issues in recent years. Some have questioned the motives of critics, accusing them of unfairly singling out the first Arab or Muslim nation to host the world’s biggest sporting event.

Over 1.2 million fans are expected to descend on the tiny desert nation, whose natural gas riches have made it among the wealthiest countries on earth, for the month-long