Daijiworld Media Network – Doha

Doha, Sep 15: Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Sunday condemned Israel for a deadly airstrike in Doha that killed six people, including five Hamas members and a Qatari security officer. The remarks came ahead of a meeting of Arab and Muslim foreign ministers to discuss a collective response to the attack.

Calling the strike “state terrorism,” Sheikh Mohammed said the assault violated international law and targeted ongoing ceasefire talks. “The reckless and treacherous Israeli aggression was committed while Qatar was hosting official and public negotiations, with the knowledge of the Israeli side itself,” he said, warning that it was an “attack on the principle of mediation itself.”

He urged the international community to “stop applying double standards and punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed,” stressing that the time had come for consequences. Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit also denounced the strike, warning that silence would only encourage more violence.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the operation, writing on X that Hamas leaders in Qatar were blocking ceasefire efforts and calling them “the main obstacle to releasing all our hostages and ending the war.”

Qatar has long served as an intermediary between Israel and Hamas at the request of the United States, but tensions have escalated as the Israel-Hamas conflict continues. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and abducting 251. Israel’s military operations in Gaza have since killed over 64,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

Hamas official Bassem Naim expressed hope that Monday’s summit would yield “a unified and decisive Arab–Islamic stance” on the ongoing war.