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Doha denies having expelled Hamas leaders
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar reported on Saturday that it is «halted» its mediation efforts between Israel and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) in the Gaza Strip conflict due to lack of progress.
«Qatar notified the parties ten days ago, during the last attempt to reach an agreement, that it will suspend its mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel if an agreement is not reached in that round,» explained the group’s spokesperson in an official statement. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, Mayed bin Mohamed al Ansari.
Doha indicated that «Qatar will resume these efforts with its partners when the parties demonstrate their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war and the ongoing civilian suffering caused by the catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the Strip.»
When these conditions are met, «the State of Qatar will be at the forefront, making every positive effort to end the war and return the hostages and prisoners.» Thus, it emphasized that «reports of Qatar’s withdrawal from mediation for a ceasefire in Gaza are not accurate.»
Al Ansari explained in statements to the Qatari news agency QNA that «Qatar does not accept that mediation be used as a reason for blackmail, as we saw with the manipulation at the end of the first breakup and the agreement to exchange women and children.» In particular, he accuses the parties of «withdrawing» from the agreed obligations in the mediation and «taking advantage of the continuation of negotiations to justify the war for false political purposes.»
Qatar reiterated in the statement its «firm commitment» to support the «brotherly Palestinian people» and demand «all their rights,» starting with an independent Palestinian state with its 1967 borders and its capital in East Jerusalem.
Al Ansari also denied reports of the expulsion of the Hamas delegation to Doha. «The main objective of the office (of Hamas) in Qatar is to serve as a communication channel between the parties involved, and this channel has contributed to the ceasefire in previous phases and has helped maintain calm in the Strip.» «In this context, information must be obtained from official sources,» he argued.
Meanwhile, Hamas sources previously denied that Qatar had informed that the group’s leadership was no longer welcome in the country, according to the Palestinian newspaper Filastin, linked to the Islamist group.
These sources indicated that the Israeli public broadcaster Kan, the source of the information, disseminated «unfounded» data that «seeks to create confusion.» Kan published US sources recording that Qatar ordered the expulsion of Hamas leaders for rejecting an agreement, insisting on their demands for a complete and indefinite ceasefire and a total withdrawal from Palestinian territories.
Since the attack on October 7, 2023, in which Palestinian militias entered Israeli territory in Gaza and killed about 1,200 people, Qatar has tried to negotiate a ceasefire and the release of hostages with Egypt and the United States.
The biggest achievement so far was the November 2023 ceasefire that allowed the release of Palestinian hostages and prisoners, but since then there have been no further advances and Israel continues its military offensive that has already claimed the lives of more than 43,000 Palestinians and has caused an unprecedented humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
