Qatar withdraws from Gaza talks, warns Hamas about Doha office: Diplomatic source

Qatar, which hosts a major US military base, has hosted the political leadership of Hamas since 2012 with Washington’s approval.

In talks held after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7 last year, both Qatari and US officials stated that the militant group would remain in Doha as long as its presence provided a valid communication channel.

Qatar announced in April that it was re-evaluating its role as a mediator in the conflict due to criticism, especially from Israeli and US politicians.

The diplomatic source said that at the time, the Qataris gave a similar message regarding the status of the Hamas office, encouraging Hamas officials to go to Turkey.

However, the source said that they returned two weeks later at the request of the USA and Israel because the negotiations in Turkey were “ineffective”.

Successive rounds of negotiations have failed to stop the fighting, except for a week-long pause in the fighting late last year that saw the release of scores of hostages held by Hamas.

Towards the end of US President Joe Biden’s term and ahead of this week’s US elections, Washington and Doha made an announcement last month to end the deadlock. new face-to-face meetings to explore new options.

However, the last attempt produced no progress.

The diplomatic source said Qatar “concluded that there was not enough willingness on both sides, with mediation efforts becoming more about politics and elections than a serious attempt to achieve peace.”

The source stated that Qatar “has advised the US administration and both parties that it will not accept being subjected to political abuse aimed at gaining political influence at the expense of Qatar by misleading the public.”