Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has mentioned that there have to be a “collective response” to Israel’s assault on the Qatari capital Doha, as Arab leaders rushed to the tiny Gulf nation to precise solidarity.
“There’s a response that can occur from the area. This response is at present underneath session and dialogue with different companions within the area,” he informed US media outlet CNN on Wednesday, including that “your complete Gulf area is in danger”.
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“We hope for one thing significant that deters Israel from persevering with this bullying,” Sheikh Mohammed added, accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of main the area into “chaos”.
“We perceive some kind of regional assembly can be held right here in Qatar. We all know that the nations have pulled collectively their very own authorized crew. They’re taking a look at all authorized avenues to have Netanyahu tried for breaking worldwide regulation,” Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford mentioned.
“So yeah, the strain is certainly mounting on Israel, not solely from Qatar, however clearly on a regional and a wider worldwide degree. And that’s what I believe he’s clearly attempting to do in giving these very forceful statements to the US community, CNN.”
The Israeli army focused Hamas leaders in Doha on Tuesday as they had been assembly to debate the most recent Gaza ceasefire proposal put forth by US President Donald Trump. No less than seven individuals had been killed within the assault, however Hamas mentioned its management survived the assassination bid. Qatar says two of its safety officers had been killed within the assault that has drawn international condemnation.
On Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron condemned Israel’s assault in a cellphone name with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. “These strikes are unacceptable. I condemn them. I reaffirmed France’s dedication to the sovereignty and safety of Qatar,” he posted on X.
The assault was a part of a wider wave of Israeli strikes extending past its speedy borders, and marked the sixth nation attacked in simply 72 hours and the seventh for the reason that begin of this 12 months. On Wednesday, Israel killed 35 individuals in an assault on Yemen.
The chief of Lebanon’s Hezbollah group mentioned on Wednesday that Israel’s strike on Qatar is a warning to oil-rich Gulf nations that they might not be spared sooner or later if armed teams within the area are defeated.
“We’re on the facet of Qatar that was subjected to an aggression and we additionally stand with the Palestinian resistance,” Naim Kassem mentioned. He added that the Israeli strike is a part of its makes an attempt to create a “Better Israel” in massive elements of the Center East.
The “Better Israel” idea supported by ultranationalist Israelis is known to seek advice from an expansionist imaginative and prescient that lays declare to the occupied West Financial institution, Gaza, elements of Lebanon, Syria, Egypt and Jordan.
Israel has been accused of committing genocide in Gaza by quite a few rights teams, however that has not stopped it from its brutal marketing campaign of bombardment. On Wednesday, Israeli assaults throughout Gaza killed at the least 72 individuals, taking the entire variety of Palestinians killed since October 2023 to greater than 64,656. Israel has intensified its assault to seize Gaza Metropolis – residence to a couple of million Palestinians.
Sheikh Mohammed, the Qatari prime minister, additionally mentioned that the Israeli strike was aimed toward undermining “any likelihood of peace” in Gaza.
“All the things in regards to the assembly could be very well-known to the Israelis and the Individuals. It’s not one thing that we’re hiding,” he mentioned of the presence of Hamas officers in Qatar.
“I believe that what [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu did yesterday – he simply killed any hope for these [Israeli] hostages,” Sheikh Mohammed mentioned in regards to the 20 captives believed to be nonetheless alive in Gaza.
Netanyahu seems unfazed
Nevertheless, Netanyahu seems unfazed by the criticism from international leaders, together with the UN secretary-general.
On Wednesday, the Israeli prime minister threatened additional assaults on Qatar. “I say to Qatar and all nations who harbour terrorists, you both expel them otherwise you convey them to justice. As a result of should you don’t, we are going to,” Netanyahu mentioned.
Qatar has condemned Netanyahu’s “reckless” feedback relating to Qatar’s internet hosting of the Hamas workplace. “Netanyahu is totally conscious that the internet hosting of the Hamas workplace passed off throughout the framework of Qatar’s mediation efforts requested by the USA and Israel,” the overseas ministry mentioned in a press release on Wednesday.
It additionally referred to as out “the shameful try therein to justify the cowardly assault that focused Qatari territory, in addition to the express threats of future violations of state sovereignty”.
Netanyahu’s threats got here regardless of the US President Donald Trump on Tuesday saying no additional assaults would occur on Qatari soil.
The assault on Tuesday was the primary such assault by Israel on Qatar, which has been a key mediator in ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas and hosts the area’s largest United States army base, Al Udeid airbase, which hosts US troops.
The Qatari prime minister, who can also be the overseas minister of the Gulf nation, has dubbed Israel’s concentrating on of Hamas leaders in Doha on Tuesday “state terrorism”.
“I’ve no phrases to precise how enraged we’re from such an motion … we’re betrayed,” he mentioned within the interview with the cable community.
Netanyahu “must be delivered to justice. He’s the one who’s wished on the Worldwide Prison Court docket. He broke each worldwide regulation,” Sheikh Mohammed mentioned, referring to the arrest warrant in opposition to the Israeli prime minister for battle crimes.
Arab states categorical solidarity with Qatar
In the meantime, Gulf leaders have visited Doha to rally round Qatar, with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan calling the Israeli motion “felony” and a risk to regional stability.
In a gathering on Wednesday with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha, Sheikh Al Nahyan reaffirmed his nation’s “resolute solidarity with Qatar and its steadfast assist for all measures taken to safeguard its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the protection of its individuals”, in response to the UAE state media outlet WAM.
“He [Sheikh Al Nahyan] harassed that the felony assault constituted a violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and of all worldwide legal guidelines and norms, warning that such actions threaten the area’s safety, stability, and prospects for peace,” WAM added.
The crown princes of Kuwait and Jordan additionally travelled to Doha on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, often known as MBS, will arrive in Doha on Thursday.
“We’ll stand with the State of Qatar in all measures it takes, with out limits, and we are going to harness all our capabilities for that,” Prince Mohammed mentioned in an deal with to the Shura Council on Wednesday.
“We reject and condemn the assaults of the Israeli occupation within the area, the most recent of which was the brutal aggression in opposition to the State of Qatar,” the crown prince added.
“This requires Arab, Islamic, and worldwide motion to confront this aggression and to take worldwide measures to cease the occupation authority and deter it from its felony practices aimed toward destabilising the area’s safety and stability.”
In a short interview with reporters on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump mentioned he was “not thrilled” about Israel’s strike.
“This was a choice made by [Israeli] Prime Minister Netanyahu, it was not a choice made by me,” Trump wrote on his Fact Social platform.
Nonetheless, it stays unclear whether or not the Trump administration had been caught off guard, whether or not the US had indicated even tacit approval for such a strike, or if the assault might characterize a rupture in Washington’s “ironclad” assist for Israel.
Unbiased Center East Analyst Adam Shapiro mentioned if the US was not made conscious of the assault, it was not “one thing new”.
“I believe that is simply merely the best way Israel frequently acts because the tail wagging the US canine, doing what it needs, when it needs, and getting what it desires, in response to a double customary,” he informed Al Jazeera.