Qatar’s leadership is making all out efforts for de-escalation in Gaza raising its voice at all forums to stop the killing of innocent lives in the city of 2.3 million residents amid indiscriminate Israeli air raids. Hundreds of Palestinians including many women and children have been killed in the past hours in the fresh attacks.
Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in his meeting with US Secretary of State H E Antony Blinken stressed the need of de-escalation and opening safe corridors in Gaza as the city runs out of water, electricity, food and medicines. H H The Amir also stressed Qatar’s firm position against targeting the civilians in the conflict during the meeting.
In a press conference on Friday, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani also called for peaceful and immediate solution, saying all channels of communication open with all concerned parties must be kept opened. “Resolving this crisis requires continuous and intense cooperation, and we value the regional and international efforts that will reduce the escalation” he said. The Prime Minister also made it clear that “killing innocent civilians, especially children and women, and practising the policy of collective punishment is unacceptable under any pretext.”
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement yesterday warned of the danger of adopting a policy of collective punishment, including calls to evacuate the population of the northern Gaza Strip. It also said that forcing civilians to displace or seek refuge in neighboring countries constitutes a violation of international laws, and would exacerbate the effects of the ongoing confrontations in the Occupied Palestinian territories and aggravate the suffering of the Palestinian people.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed that the only guarantee for achieving sustainable peace in the region is to reach a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue, ensuring the restoration of rights to the Palestinian people, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Yesterday in Cairo, Chairman of the Association of Secretaries-General of Arab Parliaments and Secretary-General of the Shura Council H E Dr. Ahmed bin Nasser Al Fadala, called on the international community to protect the Palestinians from the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip. While speaking at the session of Arab Parliament, the Secretary-General urged the community work towards de-escalation. The situation in Gaza is such that even the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees said its shelters there “are not safe anymore.”
