Qatar is “reconsidering” its role as a mediator between Israel and Hamas after its Prime Minister claimed his country was “exploited” by leaders while overseeing hostage negotiations.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdurrahman Al Thani said there had been “abuse” of Qatar’s mediation for “narrow political interests”.
He did not name any politicians in his comments, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized Qatar and recently threatened to shut down the Qatari-owned Al Jazeera broadcaster.
Hamas’ top leaders live in exile in Qatar, considered one of the only parties with influence over the militant group.
Al Thani said there were “limits” to the mediator’s role and “to the ability with which we can contribute constructively to these negotiations.”
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdurrahman Al Thani said Wednesday that the country is reconsidering its role as a mediator between Israel and Hamas.
Al Thani made the remarks at a joint press conference in Doha, along with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (pictured left).
“Qatar is in the process of a complete reassessment of its role,” Al Thani said yesterday at a joint press conference in Doha alongside Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
“There is exploitation and abuse of Qatar’s role,” he said, adding that Qatar had been the victim of “point-calling” by “politicians trying to run election campaigns belittling the State of Qatar.”
Qatar has been a key intermediary during the war in Gaza and, along with the United States and Egypt, was instrumental in helping negotiate a brief cessation of fighting in November that led to the release of dozens of hostages.
The three countries have been engaged in weeks of behind-the-scenes talks aimed at securing a truce in war-torn Gaza, as well as the release of 133 Israeli captives held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. held in Israeli prisons.
Mediators have been trying to pressure Hamas and Israel to reach a ceasefire deal, and had hoped to reach it before the start of Ramadan last month, but the sides remain far apart on key terms.
Earlier Wednesday, Al Thani said negotiations had stalled.
“We are going through a delicate stage with some stagnation, and we are trying as much as possible to address this stagnation,” the Qatari prime minister said.
Al Thani’s comments come after US Democratic Congressman Steny Hoyer on Monday criticized Doha’s mediating role and threatened to “re-evaluate” ties between Washington and Doha.
Hoyer said Qatar must threaten Hamas with “repercussions” if the Palestinian militant group “continues to block progress toward the release of the hostages and the establishment of a temporary ceasefire.”
Qatar’s embassy in Washington responded sharply to Hoyer’s comments, calling them “surprising” and “not constructive.”
‘Qatar is only a mediator: we do not control Israel or Hamas. “Israel and Hamas are entirely responsible for reaching an agreement,” the Qatari embassy said in a statement earlier on Tuesday.
The Gulf diplomatic power has received backlash from both US and Israeli officials since it began its mediation role following the Hamas-led October 7 massacre in Israel.
Palestinian media reported yesterday that heavy shelling and fighting had occurred around the Nuseirat refugee camp.
Palestinians gather to inspect a collapsed building following an Israeli attack on the Jibta refugee camp in Rafah, Gaza, on April 17, 2024.
Israeli airstrikes were reported across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, including the southern city of Rafah.
There have been days of intense shelling and fighting in and around central Gaza, according to local reports.
This is despite Qatar’s crucial role as a mediator in the release of more than 100 captives from the clutches of Hamas last year.
The ceasefire discussions are taking place against the backdrop of an unfolding humanitarian disaster in Gaza, where Palestinians are suffering from severe shortages of food, energy, medicine and other essential items.
In November, following a week-long ceasefire, 105 hostages, most of them women and children, were released in exchange for some 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
During the Doha press conference yesterday, Qatari and Turkish officials emphasized the urgent need to end the brutal war in Gaza.
The conflict has entered its seventh month with no plans for a ceasefire in sight and with the number of Palestinian dead approaching a staggering 34,000, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
US President Joe Biden also expressed concern about the conflict in the Middle East and reiterated his demands for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
“The United States is committed to a ceasefire that will bring the hostages home and prevent the conflict from spreading,” Biden said in the Oval Office before his meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shyaa Al-Sudani on Monday, after Iran’s attack on Israel over the weekend.
Iran launched around 350 drones and missiles into the country, most of which were intercepted thanks to Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system and help from the British and American military.
The Qatari prime minister said Doha had “warned from the beginning of this war against the expansion of the circle of conflict, and today we see conflicts on different fronts.”
“We constantly call on the international community to assume its responsibilities and stop this war,” he added, stating that the people of Gaza were facing “siege and famine” and that humanitarian aid was being used as a “tool of political blackmail.”
Palestinian media reported yesterday that there was heavy shelling and fighting around the Nuseirat refugee camp, where 11 members of the al-Nouri family were reportedly killed in an attack on their home on Tuesday.
The Israeli military also said its forces had carried out a raid “to detain terrorists hiding in schools” in the northern city of Beit Hanoun.
Several Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives were detained and others who resisted were killed, he added.
IDF forces have been accused of beating and torturing captured Palestinians, including UN staff.
A truck carrying humanitarian aid arrives for processing at the Kerem Shalom (Karm Abu Salem) border crossing on April 15.
Palestinians gather for aid outside a UNRWA warehouse as Gaza residents face critical levels of hunger, March 18, 2024.
Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have been accused of beating and torturing captured Palestinians – including UN staff – and subjecting them to extreme sexual violence.
The allegations were documented in a United Nations report on Tuesday, which was fiercely disputed by Israel.
Israeli soldiers reportedly kept detainees in cages, deprived them of food, water and sleep, and tortured them during interrogations.
It came as Israeli authorities released more than 150 Palestinian detainees on Monday morning after they were captured in different parts of the Gaza Strip.
The detainees were handed over to Kerem Shalom, a crossing on the border of Egypt, Israel and Gaza.
UNRWA’s devastating report is based on information obtained as a result of the group’s role in providing humanitarian aid at the border point.
The freed Palestinians allege they were forced to drink toilet water, were attacked by dogs and faced threats that their relatives would be killed, according to the UN report.
A 41-year-old man, cited in the report, claimed to have been sexually violated with a hot metal rod.
He said he was also beaten with shoes and watched as other detainees succumbed to their injuries.