Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has called on the international community to “stop using double standards” and hold Israel accountable for what he described as its “crimes,” following an unprecedented Israeli air strike on Hamas leaders in Doha.
Speaking on Sunday at a preparatory meeting ahead of an emergency summit of Arab and Islamic leaders, Sheikh Mohammed said:
“The time has come for the international community to stop using double standards and to punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed. Israel needs to know that the ongoing war of extermination that our brotherly Palestinian people is being subjected to, and whose aim is to expel them from their land, will not work.”
According to Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari, the summit, scheduled for Monday, will deliberate on a draft resolution condemning the Israeli attack on Qatar.
The high-level gathering will bring together key regional leaders, including Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas, who arrived in Doha on Sunday. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was also expected, according to Turkish media.
It was not yet confirmed if Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman—who visited Qatar earlier this week in a show of solidarity—would join the summit.
Qatar, home to the largest US military base in the region, has long played a key mediation role in the Israel-Hamas conflict, alongside the United States and Egypt.
Meanwhile, Hamas politburo member Bassem Naim expressed hope that the summit would lead to “a decisive and unified Arab-Islamic position” and “clear and specific measures” against Israel’s actions in Gaza and beyond.
