Qatar’s prime minister urged the international community on Sunday to reject “double standards” and hold Israel accountable, speaking on the eve of an emergency summit called in response to an unprecedented Israeli strike on Hamas members in Doha.
“What is encouraging Israel to continue… is the silence, the inability of the international community to hold it accountable.”
Among the leaders expected at Monday’s summit are Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
‘Rein in Israel’ According to Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman, Majed al-Ansari, Monday’s meeting will consider “a draft resolution on the Israeli attack on the State of Qatar”.
Elham Fakhro, a fellow of Harvard’s Middle East Initiative, said she expected Gulf states to “use the summit to call on Washington to rein in Israel”.
On the eve of an emergency summit called in response to an unprecedented Israeli strike on Hamas members in Doha, Qatar’s prime minister called on the international community to reject “double standards” and hold Israel accountable on Sunday.
President Donald Trump rebuked the deadly attack, which was carried out by one US ally on another’s territory. Despite this, Trump sent Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Israel as a show of support.
Aiming to exert further pressure on Israel, which is already dealing with growing calls to end the war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Monday’s emergency meeting of Arab and Islamic leaders will be a clear demonstration of unity among Gulf nations.
At a preparatory meeting on Sunday, Qatari Premier Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani stated that Israel’s “war of extermination” in Gaza would not go forward and that “the time has come for the international community to stop using double standards and to punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed.”.
“What motivates Israel to keep going? is its inaction and the international community’s failure to hold it responsible. “..”.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are among the leaders anticipated to attend the summit on Monday.
Mahmud Abbas, the president of Palestine, landed in Doha on Sunday.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, visited Qatar earlier this week in a gesture of neighborly solidarity, but it is unclear if he will attend the event.
“Rein in Israel.”.
At the meeting on Monday, “a draft resolution on the Israeli attack on the State of Qatar” will be discussed, according to Majed al-Ansari, spokesman for Qatar’s foreign ministry.
Gulf states are expected to “use the summit to call on Washington to rein in Israel,” according to Elham Fakhro, a fellow of Harvard’s Middle East Initiative.
“On the grounds that Israel’s actions reveal the shortcomings of current assurances and have damaged US credibility as a security partner, they will also seek stronger US security guarantees,” she continued.
Read more After the Qatar strike, Rubio arrives in Israel.
Karim Bitar, a Middle East lecturer at Sciences Po University in Paris, described the event as a “litmus test” for Arab and Muslim leaders, claiming that many of their supporters were “sick and tired of the old-style communiques.”.
It is their expectation that these nations will do so today. “send a very important signal to the United States and Israel that it’s time for the international community to stop giving Israel this free pass,” he said.
Along with the United States and Egypt, Qatar is a major mediator in the Israel-Hamas conflict and is home to the largest US military base in the region.
Sheikh Mohammed, who is in the United States, had dinner with President Trump on Friday.
Bassem Naim, a member of the Hamas politburo, stated that the militant group, whose October 2023 attack on Israel precipitated the war in Gaza, hoped the summit would result in “clear and specific measures” on Israel and the conflict in addition to “a decisive and unified Arab-Islamic position.”.
With AFP, France 24.
