Qatar suspends its role as mediator between Israel and Hamas

Qatar has suspended its role as a mediator in ceasefire and hostage release negotiations between Israel and Hamas, officials said.

The country said it would continue work when Hamas and Israel “showed willingness” to negotiate.

This statement was made after senior US officials said Washington would no longer accept the presence of Hamas representatives in Qatar, and accused the Palestinian group of rejecting new proposals to end the war. in Gaza.

Qatari media reports say Hamas’s political office in Doha “no longer serves its purpose” due to its “refusal to negotiate a deal in good faith” described by Qatari authorities as “inaccurate “.

A statement from the Qatari Foreign Ministry said: “Qatar informed the parties 10 days ago in a final attempt to reach an agreement that it will delay mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel if an agreement is not reached. agreement within that circle”.

“Qatar will continue those efforts… as all sides demonstrate their willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war.”

Hamas has had a base in the Qatari capital since 2012, at the request of the Obama administration.

The reports were denied by Hamas officials.

This small but influential Gulf nation is a key US ally in the region. It is home to a major US air force base and has handled many delicate political negotiations, including with Iran, the Taliban and Russia.

Along with the US and Egypt, the Qataris also played a key role in so far unsuccessful rounds of negotiations to broker a ceasefire in the year-long war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

But there is growing evidence of a change in the relationship.

After the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Hamas held a two-hour funeral tent in Doha in a small hall, in sharp contrast to the recent three-day funeral for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, conducted under official state and security supervision. .

The latest round of negotiations in mid-October failed to reach an agreement when Hamas rejected a short-term ceasefire proposal. This group has always called for a complete end to the war and the withdrawal of all Israeli troops from Gaza.

A statement from Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: “Media information regarding the Hamas office in Doha is inaccurate.”

“The main goal of the Qatar office is to become a communication channel… [which] contributed to achieving a ceasefire in previous stages.”

Israel has also been accused of rejecting the agreements. Days after being fired earlier this week, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of rejecting a peace deal against the advice of his security chiefs.

The call to expel Hamas from Qatar appears to be an attempt by the outgoing Biden administration to force some kind of peace deal before the end of his term in January.

If Hamas is forced to leave Doha, it is unclear where its political office will be headquartered. Key ally Iran would be one option, although the assassination of former leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July showed it could be at risk from Israel if it were stationed there. Nor would it give them anything close to similar diplomatic channels with the West.

A more likely choice would be Türkiye. As a NATO member but also a majority-Sunni country, this would give the group a relatively safe base from which to operate. Last April, President Erdogan hosted Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh and his delegation in Istanbul, where they talked about “what needs to be done to ensure the provision of adequate humanitarian aid and disruption for Gaza as well as a fair and lasting peace process in the region.” .

The move will likely be welcomed by Ankara, which often seeks to position itself as a mediator between East and West.

Key Hamas figures such as Osama Hamdan, Taher al-Nunu and others who regularly appear in news outlets have been in Istanbul for more than a month.

Their extended presence in Türkiye marks a departure from previous visits, which were often limited to short-term stays.

It is thought that the personal safety of the Hamas leadership is now a major concern for the group, which has seen two leaders killed in less than four months. Along with Haniyeh’s death in July, in October Israel killed Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind behind Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel.

According to the European Council on Foreign Relations, “Hamas has adopted a temporary model of collective leadership to minimize the impact of future Israeli assassinations.”

HA Hellyer, a senior associate at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi), told the BBC that nowhere “will protect them from Israeli assassination attempts like Doha, where the US has largest military base in the region”. , do”.

The latest move comes as US officials become increasingly frustrated with the Israeli government’s approach to ending the war. In October, the US Secretaries of State and Defense said if Israel did not allow more humanitarian aid into the territory by November 12, it would face unspecified policy “implications.”.

Last weekend, some United Nations officials warned that the situation in northern Gaza was “apocalyptic.” On Saturday, the Independent Famine Assessment Commission said it was “highly likely that famine is imminent in the regions”.

The relationship between President Joe Biden and Netanyahu has deteriorated throughout the war in Gaza, with pressure increasing from Washington to improve the humanitarian situation for Palestinians and find some form of negotiated settlement. judge.

However, according to Dr. Hellyer, America’s negotiation efforts made serious mistakes.

“By setting red lines and allowing Netanyahu to cross them without consequences, the Biden administration has effectively encouraged further impunity. I don’t think any of this will change in the next 10 weeks,” he said.

Any offer has been repeatedly rejected by Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition, who will now also feel emboldened by the prospect of Donald Trump’s upcoming presidency.

While it remains unclear exactly what approach Trump will take toward the region, he is believed to be more likely to allow Israel to act on its terms.

He has previously said that Israel should “finish what it started” in Gaza. During his final term in the White House, he took a number of steps that were seen as beneficial to Israel, including moving the US embassy to Jerusalem.

However, it was also reported that Trump told Netanyahu that he wanted to see an end to the fighting by the time he took office.

In any case, it appears that the current US administration will have less influence over the Jerusalem government.

Therefore, they may believe that the best way to reach some kind of agreement is to put pressure on Hamas. Whether it succeeds depends on whether Qatar, long a trusted ally, decides to go along with it.