This image shows a Qatari flag on a pole.
Qatar has condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s "inflammatory" remarks about its mediation efforts in the Gaza war, asserting that it will not be deterred by "campaigns of distortion and political pressure."
Netanyahu’s office told Qatar to decide which side Doha wanted to be on, on the Israeli side or the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement. Tel Aviv insisted that Doha “stop playing both sides with unclear rhetoric and decide whether it would stand with civilization or with Hamas.”
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari responded to Tel Aviv's position, saying Doha firmly rejects the "false narrative" pursued by Netanyahu's office.
He said the remarks made by the Israeli regime in its negotiations for peace talks “fall far short of the most basic standards of political and moral responsibility.”
Ansari pointed out that portraying the ongoing war in Gaza as a defense of “civilization” echoes the rhetoric of regimes throughout history that have used false narratives to justify crimes against innocent civilians.
“Since the outbreak of the war, the State of Qatar, working in close coordination with its partners, has made every effort to support mediation aimed at ending the fighting, protecting civilians, and securing the release of hostages,” Ansari said.
Furthermore, Ansari highlighted Doha’s efforts till now as a mediator between the two conflicting sides, criticizing the Israeli regime for causing today's worst humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“[T]he Palestinian people in Gaza are enduring one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes of modern times marked by a suffocating blockade, systematic starvation, denial of medicine and shelter, and the use of humanitarian aid as a tool of political coercion."
The Foreign Ministry spokesperson clarified for the Israeli officials that “Qatar’s principled foreign policy is not at odds with its role as a credible and impartial mediator."
"Campaigns of distortion and political pressure will not deter Qatar from standing with oppressed peoples, defending the rights of civilians regardless of background, and upholding international law without selectivity or exception.”
Ansari said Doha would continue to work as a mediator, alongside Washington and Cairo, to end the Israeli war against Gaza as soon as possible.
