Qatar hosts summit in response to Israeli strike on Hamas in Doha, seeking to restrain such attacks

DUBAI United Arab Emirates AP Qatar hosted a summit of leaders of Arab and Islamic nations Monday in the hopes of presenting a united response to Israel s attack on Hamas leaders in Doha last week But the group has limited tactics to restrain Israel as its war in the Gaza Strip grinds on Israel launched its invasion of Gaza in response to Hamas Oct attack and since then it has also retaliated against the militant group and other members of Iran s so-called Axis of Resistance elsewhere including in Iran Lebanon Syria Yemen and now Qatar That s led to wider anger among Mideast nations already enraged by the over Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza and a growing concern that the U S commitment to protect Gulf Arab states may not be strong enough It is time for the international society to stop applying double standards and punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani Qatar s prime minister and foreign minister described a meeting Sunday However it remains unclear just what the summit will be able to achieve Crucial tensions among the nations meeting could blunt cooperation and they also have scarce levers they can pull Condemnations from countries that Israel considers enemies like Iran will mean little Meanwhile the nations attending that have diplomatic recognition deals with Israel may be reluctant to sever ties Considering the deep tensions between the Gulf states and other regional actors assembling the summit in less than a week especially given its scale is a notable achievement that underscores a shared sense of urgency in the region the New York-based Soufan Center reported The key question is whether the summit will signal a shift toward more consequential measures against Israel including diplomatic downgrades targeted economic actions and restrictions on airspace and access The attack on Hamas leaders came as Qatar serves as a key mediator in an effort to reach a ceasefire in the war something Doha insisted it will continue to do A variety of regional leaders attended the summit including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Syria s interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa Iran which hit a base in Qatar in June is attending the summit After the U S bombed Iranian nuclear sites in June Iran struck Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar a major hub for American forces a move that angered Qatar Nevertheless Iran sent President Masoud Pezeshkian to attend Monday s meeting Before leaving Tehran Pezeshkian noted the wide breadth of nations Israel has attacked since Oct This regime has attacked several Islamic countries he mentioned It does whatever it wants and unfortunately the United States and European countries also aid these actions Writing on the social platform X Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi added Iran stands with Qatar and indeed all Muslim brothers and sisters particularly against the scourge that is terrorizing the region Araghchi and Pezeshkian did not mention Iran s attack on Qatar and received an honor guard welcome when landing in Doha Qatar has been key in Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks Qatar an energy-rich nation on the Arabian Peninsula that hosted the World Cup long has served as an intermediary in conflicts For years it has hosted Hamas political leadership at the request of the U S providing a channel for Israel to negotiate with the militant group that has controlled Gaza for years But as the Israel-Hamas war has raged on Qatar increasingly has been criticized by hard-liners within Netanyahu s ruling body Netanyahu himself has vowed to strike all those who organized the Hamas-led attack on Israel in And since last week s strike the Israeli leader has doubled down on saying Qatar remains a manageable target if Hamas leaders are there On Sunday U S President Donald Trump offered renewed sponsorship for Qatar We re with them You know they ve been a great ally Trump explained A lot of people don t understand about Qatar Qatar has been a great ally and they also lead a very demanding life because they re right in the middle of everything U S Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in Israel on Monday for meetings with Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to express America s concern over the attack on Qatar and talk about Israel s planned new offensive on Gaza City Rubio declined to address Israel s strike while speaking to journalists in Jerusalem but revealed that America sought to work with all its partners in the region on stopping Hamas and reaching a ceasefire in the war We re going to continue to encourage Qatar to play a constructive role in that regard Rubio announced Netanyahu again added that Israel s decision to attack Qatar was a wholly independent decision by us Netanyahu faces increasing pressure from the Israeli constituents to end the war and bring home the hostages still held in Gaza whom are maintained by Israel to still be alive The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct killing around people mostly civilians and abducting Israel s ensuing offensives in Gaza has killed more than Palestinians according to Gaza s Physical condition Ministry which does not say how plenty of were civilians or combatants It says around half of those killed were women and children The ministry is part of the Hamas-run cabinet and staffed by biological professionals The U N and independent experts view its figures as the largest part reliable estimate of war casualties Israel disputes them but has not provided its own Source