Timed out: ‘Clock kid’ Ahmed turns his back on US to move to study in Qatar

The American boy arrested for bringing a homemade clock to his Texas school, that was mistaken for a bomb, is moving to Qatar after accepting a scholarship offer to study there. Fourteen-year-old Ahmed Mohamed’s family announced the move in a statement on Tuesday, a few hours after he was at the White House for an astronomy night hosted by President Barack Obama. The bespectacled ninth-grader became a global sensation after his September arrest, which many believe was influenced by bias against his Muslim religion. Obama tweeted at the time: “Cool clock, Ahmed, wanna bring it to the White House?”

I was really impressed with everything that Qatar Foundation has to offer and the campuses are really cool.

Ahmed Mohamed

After Mohamed was seen in a NASA T-shirt in handcuffs, the Twitter hashtag #IStandWithAhmed trended globally and was cited in praise from Google co-founder Sergey Brin and Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg, who said: “Having the skill and ambition to build something cool should lead to applause, not arrest.” No charges were filed and police in the Dallas suburb of Irving said in September they were reviewing their actions in the case. At the White House on Monday night, Obama briefly met Mohamed as he shook hands with students at the event, giving the student a hug.

We are going to move to a place where my kids can study and learn, and all of them being accepted by that country.

Ahmed’s father, Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed

clock kid Americas