Qatar says negotiations 'very, very difficult' amid escalations

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
27 Oct 2023 11:13
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The Qatari senior negotiator and Qatar's minister of state for foreign affairs, Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, says the situation in the Gaza Strip is "very, very critical," noting that for negotiations to work a certain time of "calm" is required.

Qatar Assistant Foreign Minister for Regional Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Salih Al Khulaifi speaks during the fifth edition of the Global Security Forum (GSF) on March 15, 2023. (Qatari Foreign Ministry)

Qatar has undertaken a "very, very difficult negotiation" between Hamas and "Israel," according to what the senior negotiator and Qatar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi revealed earlier on Thursday.

"It's a very, very difficult negotiation that we've been dealing with," the top Qatari diplomat told Sky News, before adding that the Palestinian Resistance and the Israeli Occupation have "zero confidence in each other."

Al-Khulaifi also added that "the violence increases every day and with the bombing continuous every day, our task has become even more difficult," stressing that "If the mediator wants to perform its task in the best way possible as a state, then we need to reach a period of calm."

The Qatari diplomat also emphasized that "any escalation whatsoever is going to make our job really harder. Any escalation whatsoever. So we're trying to send those messages to our partners and friends," reaffirming that "We need to reach a period where we can speak logically to both sides and come up with positive initiatives."

Al Khulaifi also highlighted that at present "It's very, very critical. It's a very critical situation," given that "the people in Gaza need the humanitarian assistance today more than ever."

This comes after Qatar and "Israel" had hinted that there have been advances regarding the releasing of the Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip as "Tel Aviv" seeks to allude that it has been making successful advances at a time of dire intelligence and military failures.

US, Qatar to reconsider Doha ties to Hamas after captives file: WP

The Washington Post reported, citing four informed diplomats, that the United States and Qatar have agreed to reconsider Doha's relationship with Hamas after resolving the file of Israeli captives held by the movement.

According to the report, the agreement was reached during a recent meeting in Doha between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.

Blinken had warned Doha about its close ties with Hamas, which hosts an office for the movement and its political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh. "There can be no more business as usual with Hamas," he said at a news conference in Qatar in mid-October.

The diplomats, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, mentioned that it has not been decided yet whether the reevaluation will lead to the collective departure of Hamas leaders from Qatar, where they have maintained a political office in the capital for a long time, or would result in less drastic measures.

The report suggested that the agreement is seen as an attempt to balance the short-term goal of the Biden administration, which is to secure the release of as many captives held by Hamas as possible, with its long-term goal of isolating the movement in the aftermath of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.