Qatar suspends role as mediator between Israel and Hamas
The Gulf country's move comes after the U.S. reportedly said it would no longer accept the presence of Hamas representatives in Qatar.
Qatar has suspended its efforts as a mediator in negotiations for a cease-fire and hostage release between Israel and Hamas, the Qatari foreign ministry said late Saturday.
The Gulf country would resume its work when Hamas and Israel “show their willingness” to negotiate, the ministry said in a statement on X.
Qatar has been working alongside the U.S. and Egypt for months to facilitate talks between the warring sides in the Gaza Strip.
The move to pause its mediator role comes after senior U.S. officials reportedly said Washington would no longer accept the presence of Hamas representatives in Qatar, accusing the Palestinian militant group of rejecting fresh proposals for an end to the war in Gaza.
The Qatari statement said media reports on the future of the Hamas political office in Doha were “inaccurate” without specifying how.
“Qatar notified the parties 10 days ago during the last attempts to reach an agreement, that it would stall its efforts to mediate between Hamas and Israel if an agreement was not reached in that round,” the ministry said in Saturday’s statement.
“Qatar will resume those efforts … when the parties show their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war,” according to the statement.
U.S. President Joe Biden last month had urged the Israeli government to use the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as “an opportunity” to end the war in Gaza, calling it “a moment of justice.”
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